But then Cyprian had met me and had learned why none of his lovers could ever fully satisfy him. Cyprian craves strength, especially in his lover, so as much as he needed to dominate, he also needed to submit. For that, he needed a woman who was like him—both strong and yielding. A woman who could fully give herself to his mastery and then fully commit to commanding him. Most people don't work like that but I happen to be a complicated woman. I take great pride in supporting myself but I also enjoy a man who wants to take care of me. There are moments when my hands ache to clench in my lover's hair and yank his head back to bare his throat, and other times when I want to bare my throat to a set of sharp teeth. I get a thrill from seeing a man kneel before me but also from kneeling to see to my lover's needs.
In short, Cyprian and I worked. Out of all of my men, it was Cyprian who matched me best. Cyprian had saved me from myself and I had done the same for him. Our relationship looked ridiculous if not impossible from the outside. A prim Yale graduate who had been a translator for the President of the United States and the libertine owner of a D.C. sex club. Even I would have scoffed derisively if you'd told me a year ago that I would end up happily married to this man. But beneath the surface, we fit as if we'd been made for each other and simply being near him made me feel complete.
“How much time do we have with you?” Cyprian asked as he trailed an elegant finger along my jaw.
“I'm not sure.” I went serious and stepped back so I could think without the distraction of his touch. “I was going to head back soon but I suppose I could stay a little longer.”
“At least for breakfast,” he drawled as he drew me into the living room.
The other men joined us and the food and coffee were passed out. Cyprian sat beside me on the sofa, his arm casually thrown across my shoulders, while Mal and Kyrian took the armchairs to either side of us.
“So, tell me about the trouble in Danu,” Cyprian said.
After the relaxing night I'd had, I was more inclined to talk about Danu. I told the men everything—from the sacrifice of Sairana's Ember to that of the Bargests. Then I told them what Master Salien had said about my magic—how I had lost some and also what it was. How it wasn't just color magic but Spirit. And then I had to tell them that my loss was likely theirs as well.
“I'm sorry that I've weakened you,” I said in conclusion.
“We don't care about that,” Cyprian surprised me by saying. “All that matters is that you're alive. But I don't want you mortal, Se Esaria. You need to be careful around those hearts. Everan is right, you can't lose any more magic.”
“I'll be careful,” I promised. “We have a lot of mages working on finding the thief.”
“Yes, but you're the only one who can take back the asha and magic and return them,” Malik pointed out.
“I'm the only one who could take them back forcibly but there must be other ways to get them back,” I mused. “If the thief touched the mantle again, he or she might be able to return what they stole.”
“If they were willing,” Kyrian scoffed.
“Or if they were made to be willing,” I countered.
Kyrian nodded. “I suppose so. But you need to be the one to reclaim them so you can take back the asha you lost.”
“The magic,” I corrected him. “My asha has already regrown its lost pieces, it's just my magic that's diminished.”
“These are all theories,” Malik murmured. “Those mages can't possibly know all of that from simply touching you.”
“They can sense magic, Mal,” I explained. “I'm sure they were able to feel what was and what wasn't inside me. And they understand it in ways that other Danutians don't so they were able to interpret what they sensed.”
“Still, they could be wrong.”
“I don't think they are.”
“It's a shame about the Ember,” Kyrian said, probably to change the subject.
“Yes, but I think we should concentrate on the more important matter.” Cyprian looked around at all of us gravely.
We all stared at him, waiting for him to continue.
“The fact that Amara made unicorns!” Cyprian exclaimed with a smile that would have been right at home on the face of a teenage girl.
I laughed. “It was pretty amazing. Everan wasn't too pleased, though.”
“Introducing a new species into Danu's ecosystem is the least of his concerns,” Cyprian went serious. “You need to set a guard on those hearts, Se Esaria.”
I blinked. “You know, that was never even brought up. Probably because the Gods protect the hearts. Only Earth was unprotected but the Bargests agreed to watch over it.”
“You said this person doesn't have to touch the hearts to draw on their magic,” Kyrian reminded us. “It's the mantle that needs to be protected, but that would be impossible. You'd have to guard every inch of dirt.”
My face fell. “That's probably why guards weren't mentioned.”
