Skidding down the incline, I return to the road, greeting others who are headed to the camp as the night begins to fall. By the morning, everyone should be evacuated. And then? The war begins.
* * *
“You should be with the others.” Gareth holds me close, our bodies still drenched with sweat and every nerve ending tingling.
“I like it right here.” I kiss his neck, running my tongue over the mark of my teeth.
“So do I.” He thrusts upward, his half-hard cock still inside me. “But when the armies get here, you need to be gone.”
“Come with me.” I perch my chin on his chest. “Protect us poor changelings and lesser fae.”
“I can protect you better by fighting.” He kisses my forehead.
The fear that’s been tiptoeing around my heart roars to life. “What if you get hurt?”
“I can heal.”
I run my finger along the scar that splits his brow. “What about this one?”
“I told you about that one.” He shrugs.
“Yes, either it was from an epic battle with Brannon the Dark or a drunken encounter with a wagon wheel.” I scrunch my nose. “My coin is on the wagon wheel.”
He laughs and runs his hands up my back, leaving chill bumps in their wake. “I don’t want to fight.” His mirth turns to a sigh. “The Ancestors know I’ve fought plenty in my life. The war against Shathinor almost claimed my life many times over. I thought—no, Ihoped—my days of warfare were over, but now—”
“Now you have a changeling mate who helps start rebellions and gets into all sorts of mischief,” I provide.
“All true.” He pulls me up his body so we’re face-to-face. “But I wouldn’t change her, not a single thing.”
My insides go melty. He’s the only one who’s ever been able to do that to me, to turn me into a bubbly witch’s brew of love potion.
“Why do you say such romantic things to a filthy harlot like your Xalana?” I kiss him lightly, slipping my tongue between his lips.
“Because I love her.” He palms my ass, kneading and squeezing. With a growl, he rolls me over, but then abruptly gets up.
“Wha—”
He puts a finger to his lips as he draws his sword.
I pull the sheet up to my neck and peer into the darkness. “What is it? Is Cenet already here?” Panic turns my stomach to acid, and I realize I’m not ready. I can’t just watch Gareth go to war. All this worry flashes through my mind as he creeps toward the door.
With a hard yank, he rips it open.
Sabine leans against the frame, her obsidian black body a smudge on the night. “Here you are.” She ignores Gareth, his sword, and his nakedness and looks at me.
“Hi!” I wave and sigh with relief.
She pushes past Gareth and jumps on the bed with me. “Miss me?”
I mean, she’s creepy, her obsidian skin crackling and her black teeth and eyes the things of nightmares, but I throw my arms around her. “I feel like it’s been years.”
She pats my back. “Boundaries, changeling.”
I pull away. “Sorry.”
Glancing down at my breasts, she nods. “Love looks good on you.” Then she runs a sharp claw down my neck and shoulder. “Did you need to mark her so viciously, my lord?” She casts a look over her shoulder at Gareth who’s pulling his pants on.
“She’s mine.” He shrugs.
