"You think you need to get ahead of a murder with something as permanent as an immortal mate bond?" Jonah sounded skeptical. "You people murder immortals all of the time."
Callum's low, even voice made my gut tighten. "Killing another member of Rumor's Cabinet is a punishable crime. Killing someone directly involved in a difficult part of your mate's past is an expectation."
"So you want to marry me to stay out of prison." My own voice was very flat.
"He still wants to fuck you,"Sable put in.
I had no idea if she was right, and it ultimately didn’t matter at the moment.
"Yes." Liv nodded twice. "Having a pretty little werewolf mate who has issues with Simon will protect him from the Cabinet’s retaliation. Given the size of the bargain you made, along with how well Callum upheld his side of the deal, you're not going to have a choice in the matter. Sorry."
"You don't sound sorry," I stated.
"I'm not. I'm not the moron who sold my soul to open a café." She glanced at Callum.
I could feel him staring at me even though I was looking at her.
Her insult was fair, so I had no problem with it. I’d heard similar from many people. Jonah in particular.
"The ceremony will be this weekend. You'll move in with me today," Callum said."We need to make it look like we’ve embraced a long-standing hidden relationship."
"Is that a requirement of the bargain, or..." I trailed off when he lifted an eyebrow."Of course it is."
"So if they fake a mate bond for a while, Kat's side of the bargain will be upheld, and she'll be free to go," Jonah stated.
"No. It has to be a real mate bond." Callum didn't take his eyes off me.I probably should’ve been alarmed, and kind of was, but the whole moment was pretty surreal.
How often did a vicious king walk into your coffee shop and tell you that you were going to be their mate for the rest of your immortal life?
Not often. Obviously.
"After we seal the bond, I’ll be free from the bargain. Right?" I checked.
"Kind of," Liv said.
Callum didn't comment.
I was starting to realize why we hadn’t talked when we hooked up. The guy was a littletooneutral.
Sable, on the other hand, was deranged.She basically purred as he continued staring at me.
"Get in the car." Liv pointed to the parking lot. "The red Lambo is mine. I'm driving you. Callum's packing up your shit."
"I can pack my own things."
"No." Callum didn't bat an eye at the request, or his refusal.
"This isinsane," Jonah pointed out.
If I’d been in danger, or if he could actually have a prayer at taking down one of the fae, I was sure he would’ve defended me a little more.
But it didn’t seem like I was in danger.
And we would both die before we could actually injure a fae. Shifters were the least magical kind of immortals, and our animals were pretty unpredictable.
Like my wolf. Who would be much more likely to snuggle with the fae king than attack him.
I gave Jonah a small smile. "I sold my soul. Guess this is the cost."
