Page 56 of Vathia
“Are you finished?” I drawl.
He crosses his arms and glares at me.
“She’s going to be Queen,” Killian reminds him, voicing my earlier thoughts. “It is our job as her consorts—if she decides to have us—to guide and protect her. I know you just went through something traumatic, but taking it out on her isn’t helping anyone. We are stronger together, and all you’re doing right now is fracturing us.”
“Wait. What happened to you, Tal?” Ravina whispers, peering at him from over my arms where she is thankfully sounding a bit better.
He bares his teeth at her and storms back to his dragon. “We need to get back to Kraryn, let’s stop dawdling,” he throws over his shoulders.
“Are you good to ride?” Jesper asks.
She nods. “Yeah, let’s just get back.”
Killian nods while Jesper gives her a quick peck on the cheek before they both head back to their dragons.
I kiss the top of her head and walk her over to Vasari, but as I go to move away, she grabs my hand.
“Would you stay with me when we get back?” she asks softly, a light pink coloring rising on her cheeks.
My head dips, a genuine smile tugging at the corner of my lips. “Of course. Now get up there and ride safely. Let’s not give Talyn a heart attack.” I wink at her so she knows I’m teasing.
Once we are all situated we take off again, flying straight for Kraryn.
Is this the night? No, I won’t put that kind of pressure on her. Maybe she’s just tired of Jesper’s snoring. Either way, I’m definitely looking forward to sharing a bed with my mate again. That night at the inn was just a taste of what we could have and I want so much more with her, like waking up to her lips parted and softly breathing as she dreams of our field. I could have a thousand mornings like that and it would never be enough.
But Talyn really needs to get his head out of his trench of an ass. Killian wouldn’t tell us what happened but said it was bad; he’s working on him, and I’m glad he isn’t ignoring her anymore, but treating her like something to control? That’s not okay either. Maybe I need to have a talk with him, but that can wait until tomorrow.
THE MOMENT WE land on my family’s grounds, I use the shadows of the keep and blink over to my mate. It’s late and we can debrief my mother tomorrow.
She gasps in surprise as I melt out of the shadows behind her and wrap my arms around her waist. I smirk and lean in, my lips brushing against her ear. “Free your bird before I steal you for the night. I’m impatient to get you into my bed.”
A tiny shiver wracks through her body as she quickly unlocks the cage, opening its door. “Good girl,” I murmur as I pull her into the shadows, reappearing in my room.
I lean against the pillar that leads into the bedroom off the common room of my chambers, watching her as she takes in the expanse of my space.
“Your room is huge,” she whispers as she heads over to the large windows that overlook the ocean.
I smirk, keeping the inappropriate comment I want to make about something else being huge, but I suppose she’ll find out about that later. “Come on, let’s get all that armor off you. I have an extra stand you can place it on, until I get one in your room.”
She turns towards me, her sapphire eyes appraising me like I am her. My mate is absolutely stunning with specks of blood coating her, the strands of her reddish-brown hair tousled due to the wind and the metal of her armor hugging every one of her luscious curves. Oh how I wish to remove each piece from her body as slowly as possible so I can take in everything about her.
She glances around the room quickly, like she’s looking for something. “Where is your washroom hiding? I’d like to shower and wash the day away before bed.”
I almost slap my forehead. Of course she’d want to get clean before bed. Forcing some air from my lungs, I clear my throat. “Of course. Follow me,” I state, giving her a soft smile as I pass her going through the far door into the bathroom.
She follows me into the space. “Thank you, I’ll be out shortly,” she murmurs, a light pink tinging her cheeks.
“Do you need help removing your armor first?” I ask, praying to the fates that she says yes.
She glances down at herself, her cheeks darkening as she sighs. “Yeah, that might be best. I don’t even remember how you got it on me in the first place.” She chuckles as she peers down at her vambraces, twisting her arm looking for the clasps.
A sense of smug male pride blooms inside me as I approach her. Maybe I’ll never show her how to take off her armor so I get the pleasure of always doing this for her. With nimble fingers I begin removing pieces of her armor, blinking away and back again to place them on the stand, and within moments, all she has on are her leathers.
“I’ll get you a clean tunic to wear to bed tonight. The shower is just behind that retaining wall and the towels hanging on the wall are clean.” I gesture with my head to the area behind the half-wall. It is tiled with smooth stone with an overhead water system that has heated water. “I’ll be right back.” Blinking out of the room, I end up in front of my wardrobe, plucking a black tunic from inside it and shadowing back to the bathroom. Walking seems so tedious when I can be next to her so much faster with my magick.
I place the folded shirt on the counter and leave. As much as I would like a glimpse of her creamy skin, I won’t. I want her expressed permission before I lay my eyes on her naked body again. I scrub my hand down my face before meandering over to the bed and turning down the sheets for the night. There’s a possessiveness pushing me tonight, especially after the skirmish we had today.
The other Lords are getting brave, sending their warriors so close to my borders and knowing that with one wrong move something could have happened to Ravina. Especially with that one male there. I didn’t like the way he watched her. We should have killed them, but if she’s ready to make a claim for herthrone and let the Lords know she’s going to fight for what is rightfully hers, then I’ll support it. Even if we should have killed the bastard and sent one of the others. But Jesper and Killian got a little too bloodthirsty and killed the others off quickly.
