Page 50 of The Barbaric Fae's Soul

“I don’t want to be the rejector in a long-term bond again,” Teris warned.

“Should my feelings fade the way Thorns seems to think they will, Oren already volunteered to connect with her. I’m sure there’d be a line of others thrilled by the opportunity, if we were to ask around.”

“She might even have a fated mate in one of the unseelies,” Teris pointed out.

The blood drained from Aev’s face, and his eyes lifted to the trees, scanning them slowly. There were a few fae in different positions, watching our interaction and some of the others. The fated mate thing was probably a bit of a trigger for Aev, and I felt bad about that.

I slipped my hand around his bicep in an effort to calm him. All it did was remind me how ridiculously strong the man was. Seriously, those biceps were massive. “If I had a fated mate who was interested in me, he would’ve already come forward. I’ve been single for a while, remember?”

“That’s true,” he said, though he continued scanning the trees.

Would he get all barbarically possessive, if I told him I was his?

Would he want to claim me in every way, to show the other men that I was taken? Or would it calm him?

Why did the idea of that give me goosebumps?

“I’ll do it, as long as no one’s going to try to kill me for it,” Teris finally said, looking at Aev. “Then again, it might be fun to fight the tamed king.” He flashed him a smirk.

Aev’s lips curved upward wickedly. “You’d find me a much harder target to hit now that I have my ice back.”

Teris lifted a shoulder. “Only one way to find out.”

“Not while Thorns is here,” Aev said simply.

The ease with which he turned down the fight made my heart swell, even if I felt a little bad that he couldn’t do what he wanted around me. His fight with Oren hadn’t been triggering for me, but he knew that I usually avoided all semblance of violence. That shit was brutal on my mind.

“Alright. Let’s get this over with,” Teris said, gesturing for me to come closer.

“That’s exactly what you want to hear from a guy you’re about to kiss,” I drawled back.

“It sure as hell better be how he feels,” Aev said. Despite the warning in the words, his voice was perfectly pleasant.

“As soon as you feel the bond break, pull her away,” Teris instructed the ex-king.

“I will.”

I stepped up to Teris, wishing there was another way out of the bond that didn’t involvekissing someone.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered to both men. This whole thing was going to be shitty for both of them—and it was completely my fault.

“I’d do the exact same thing in your shoes,” Teris said bluntly.

“And you know I wouldn’t go along with this if I didn’t understand your fear,” Aev said.

Teris tucked his hands in the pockets of his pants as I stepped closer to him. I’d never seen any other fae wearing long pants before—Teris was the only one. And there were rips in the fabric that looked intentional, so I wasn’t entirely sure why he bothered. But anyway, keeping his hands to himself was probably a good call, if we wanted to avoid bloodshed. I’d never seen Aev hurt anyone, but between his ice magic and the way I had seen him fight, he was undoubtedly skilled enough to do it.

“Are you really sure about this?” I asked Teris, grimacing.

“Are you?” he countered.

I let out a slow breath.

No, I was not.

But Aev’s hands landed on my hips, anchoring me and telling me he had accepted it.

So I went up on my tiptoes, and kissed Teris.

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