Page 3 of Their Crowned Mate
"Fine," I said unhappily. "But just until the morning."
"I'll take you back myself," said Aurelius.
I searched his face for any sign he was lying, but I had never been all that great at reading him to begin with. I decided I would just have to trust that he was telling the truth, and if he wasn't, well… then we were going to have a problem. And he was going to have three of them.
"I'm going to bed," I muttered. I was way too wired to sleep, but admittedly, I needed a minute alone to process everything. Especially Alexander.
No sooner had I shut the door to the guest room than I heard low murmuring voices down the hall. I was sure they were conspiring something of their own, but I was too exhausted to deal with it right now, emotionally and physically.
I sat on the edge of the bed and texted Cole, starting and stopping the message a few dozen times before I decided to just keep it simple and tell him why I was staying the night. It was the truth, after all. Hopefully by the time morning came, I would have a better way of explaining all this.
And I had to, considering the fact that Alexander was probably going to get to it first if I didn't. The fact that he was off brooding somewhere would hopefully give me a little while, and I really did not want to have that conversation over text.
The hushed conversation was still going on when I finally laid down, but I couldn't quite make out anything, and I wasn't really sure I wanted to do.
I still couldn't help thinking about Aurelius's outburst, though, or the fact that he had been willing to go up against one of his brothers for all intents and purposes on behalf of my honor.
Just when I thought I had him figured out, he proved yet again that I really didn't know or understand him. Even if I had known him all my life.
CHAPTER2
LAVINIA
Iwoke up to the sunlight streaming in through the window, and for a moment, I was disoriented. It took me a solid minute to remember where I was and why.
Then it all came rushing back to me in a painful wave. I groaned, burying my face in the pillow.
I had hoped, foolishly perhaps, that this would all be some sort of nightmare. That I would wake up and none of it would be real. But it was all too real, and there was no escaping it.
I heard the door open a crack. "Lavinia?" Aurelius asked quietly.
I groaned again and sat up, running a hand through my sleep-tousled hair. Okay, so maybe tousled was an understatement. This was a bit beyond finger combing. "What do you want?" I asked, far less kindly than I probably should have.
But then, he hadn't rebuffed the others' idea of keeping me here near enthusiastically enough for my liking. Considering I was doing this for him—and okay, also because I wanted the pack's help in fighting my own war against the emperor of the fae—it felt like another betrayal.
It didn't help that the morning sickness was in full swing again.
I had been hoping it would take a break for at least a day, but apparently not.
Aurelius's brow furrowed into a frown as he stepped into the room. "I wanted to check on you," he said. "You've been through a lot."
"No thanks to you," I muttered.
He sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. "I'm sorry," he said. "I know I should have handled things better last night."
"Yeah, you think?"
He paused, clearly searching for words. "It's not raining anymore, so if you're ready, I can take you home."
I looked at him doubtfully. "Oh, so you're going to let me leave now?"
He sighed. "Lavinia, I'm not holding you hostage."
"No? Because you didn't sound too opposed when Marcus and Cole came up with the idea."
Aurelius's frown deepened. "I know you're capable of taking care of yourself, but I can't help worrying about you."
"Worrying about what? Having three men who actually care about me?" I challenged. "Who wouldn't turn their backs on me just because it was convenient?"
