Page 22 of Married By Treachery

“Then why are you so reckless with yours?” he said, studying her. He could truly observe her now, this mortal bride so unlike his kith even before their kingdom had been cursed. That color—that life—was what had ensorcelled him before when she’d snuck into his bedchamber.

No, before even that. When she’d stood before her people and offered herself up to him. Even for a mortal, she stood out.

Especiallyfor a mortal.

Yes, the women of the Forest were known for their perfect beauty, yet as Jake gazed upon the mortal girl, he couldn’t help but marvel at the beauty inimperfection. In color that blotched and shifted, in the splattering of freckles that dusted her nose and spoke of time spent in the sun. The differences marked her and set her apart and made her so deeply intriguing.

His gaze followed lines that weren’t soft with privilege but were cut with training and discipline. His attention moved to hands that weren’t smoothed but were callused and strong from hard work. Raquel’s nose turned up at the end, as though set in a natural state of defiance, and her upper lip jutted out more than the bottom, giving a pucker to her mouth that Jake felt the sudden urge to taste.

Which was precisely the moment Rian returned with Sienne, who was still covered from head to toe in Depraved blood.

Sienne’s eyes narrowed on Raquel, and then she turned the heat of her wrath upon Jake. “You idiot. You should have known better.”

“There are countless things I probably should have done, but before we begin listing off all of my deficiencies, perhaps you might consider helping the girl before she dies in the next two minutes…?”

Sienne pursed her lips but joined him at the bed. “She’s a pretty little mortal, isn’t she?” Sienne eyed him.

“She’ll be a dead little mortal if you don’t hurry.”

“That’s hardly my fault. Well, let me see it.”

Jake pulled back the tunic he’d been holding against Raquel’s wound, and Sienne fell still. She looked long at Jake, who looked steadily back, and a strange and heavy pressure settled upon his chest. “Can you help her or not?” Jake asked tightly.

“It seems Imust,” Sienne snapped. “Unless you’ve got another eligible mortal bride hiding somewhere in your bedchamber. It wouldn’t be the first time.”

Jake glowered at her, but she shooed at him. “Well, get back. I can’t possibly purge the poison from her body with all this anxious energy simmering around you.”

“I’m not anxious.”

“Mm.”

Jake regarded her flatly but stepped back to give Sienne room while Rian—now joined by Banon and Marix—watched from the doorway. Sienne knelt beside the bed, then flipped her dark hair over her shoulders.

Jake flexed his fingers.

Sienne smoothed the blankets upon the bed.

Jake tapped his foot.

Sienne glanced back at him. “Not anxious, are we?”

“Oneminute.”

Sienne rolled her eyes, took Raquel’s hand in hers, and closed her eyes.

A breath.

Sienne’s forehead wrinkled.

“How bad is it?” Jake asked.

“Very.”

That pressure pushed harder upon his chest, making it oddly difficult to breathe. He told himself that it was because of their mission. That she was their only chance. If he failed now, he would never be admitted to the palace again, and he would spend the rest of his life running from Edom’s vengeance.

Though considering the state of their kingdom,the rest of his lifemight not be very long.

Sienne murmured, and Jake felt that familiar pull upon the ether—the force that linked all Forest kith. A force they drew upon in various forms, depending upon the Fates’ discretion, and the Fates had gifted Sienne with healing. In fact, she was the most talented healer Jake had ever known, and that was saying a lot. One acquired many acquaintances the longer one lived, and Jake had lived to see almost one hundred years of sunsets.

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