Page 395 of Never Kiss a Fae
Cyrus wrapped his arm around me, steering me away from the nesting party and toward the building’s exit. “Where are we going?” I asked.
“Home,” he replied.
“Without saying bye to everyone?” I asked, frowning.
“I’ll mist you back for that,” he promised as Exos took my hand and walked along on my other side.
“All right. I’m holding you to that.” Not that I really wanted to return to the party, but it seemed rude to leave without at least expressing my gratitude to everyone. Especially Aflora and Gina, who had traveled the realms to get here.
Titus, Vox, and Sol joined us outside, their gazes all filled with questions.
“You don’t know what their gift is, do you?” I asked them.
A chorus of negatives met my question.
Which meant this was all Exos and Cyrus. Great. “Nothing good happens when you two are working together,” I grumbled, not really meaning it. But I wanted to know what they had planned for me.
“Nothing at all?” Cyrus replied, his hand slipping lower onto my backside. “You seem to enjoy it when Exos and I work together.”
I shivered, Exos’s comments from earlier warming my mind. “Well, maybe there are exceptions.”
Titus grunted.
“Jealous, Firefly?” Cyrus taunted him.
“Fuck off, Jackass,” Titus retorted.
“That’sRoyalJackass to you,” Cyrus corrected.
My fire mate just shook his head, his demeanor displaying his exhaustion. He’d worked hard keeping all those flames under control today. Because I hadn’t been able to help.
My lips twisted. I really needed to say something, but how did I bring it up? Like,Oh, by the way, I can’t access the elements. Okay. Good chat.
They were all being so protective already. That would just make it worse.
Except, my not talking to them also caused problems.
I really should—
“Cyrus has been bragging about his present to you all week,” Titus murmured, distracting me. “But he wouldn’t tell us what it is.” He glowered at the Water King. “Ihadbeen hoping to overshadow him with a fire cake, but that blew up in my face.”
Vox chuckled. “Literally.” He patted the Fire Fae on the arm as we started up the path to our home. It wasn’t too far from the Chancellor’s office—since I was the Chancellor. But we had built the two buildings separately, unlike my predecessor, who lived and worked in the same place.
“We can make one together,” Vox added, taking pity on my fire mate. “I’d love to learn the recipe.”
Titus opened the door to our house. “There was a reason I had my brother bring the present. It’s a highly guarded secret through my mum’s line. Good luck getting it out of her.”
“Challenge accepted,” Vox said, his eyes gleaming as he stepped through the threshold. My air mate seemed determined to learn all cuisine secrets, human, fae, or otherwise.
My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I hadn’t been able to enjoy any of his typically scrumptious meals for a few days now. I hoped whatever Cyrus and Exos planned to surprise me with came with a side of hamburgers and fries.
Cyrus undid his tie as we entered our home and stepped in front of me. I lifted my brow. “And what do you plan to do with that?” I asked.
“Blindfold you.” He wrapped the soft silk over my eyes, and Exos released my hand to step behind me and helped his brother tie the strands against my hair.
“You said this wasn’t about sex,” I reminded him. “Not that I’m complaining.”
He chuckled. “I just want to make sure you get the full effect,” he promised. Although, the tug in our mate-bonds suggested he wouldn’t mind a little foreplay follow-up later.
