“Say I take other lovers, several other lovers, and we form a fighting team strong enough to kill the Corrupter. What then? Will we buy a house and live in it together? One happy family with a massive bed? Will we have a schedule of who gets to fuck me on which night of the week?”
“Ember, stop it,” Rath said sternly.
“No, we need to think about this shit!” I slammed a fist on the table, shaking the glasses. “Because I can't fall in love with more men only to lose them all. So, what is it? What are we going to become?”
“I don't know,” Rath's tone went gentle. “But I will be with you no matter what happens, Ember. I will never leave. If we have to work out sleeping arrangements, we'll do it.”
“But you can't be sure that you'll feel the same when this is over.”
“Yes, I can.” Rath reclaimed my hand. “I know my heart, and I know yours. I will be with you. I cannot speak for Xae, though I believe he feels the same.”
Xae grunted.
Rath nodded at him and went on, “Wewill be with you forever. I'm looking forward to spending time with you after the war is over.”
The fight went out of me, and I slumped back in my chair. “I don't want to do this.”
“That makes it easier on us,” Xae said. “I'm sorry I handled things so poorly today. I'll be better next time.”
“Next time,” I muttered as I stood up, taking my wine with me. I left the table and headed to the bedroom.
“Where are you going?” Xae asked.
“To take a shower before dinner.” I heard the creak of the chair as he stood, and I quickly added, “Alone.”
Xae growled.
“Let him be,” Rath said. “Everyone needs some time alone, and it sounds as if he hasn't gotten it yet.”
Chapter Six
I entered the dining hall later that night, walking between my lovers. The other Wraith Lords were accustomed to seeing us together and only nodded or called out a greeting as we passed by. All but the new addition.
Jathalion was seated amid a group of men, animatedly speaking, his wings lifted behind him in a lively display. But then he spotted me. He stopped talking, his stare locked on my face, and his wings fell. The men in his group turned to look at me, several of them smiling when they saw me. I recalled what Jath had said in the garden, how he was usually a fun guy, but he needed some time to transition. It looked as if he had. Except for his eyes. They still held pain.
And fury.
I looked away, biting the inside of my cheek to keep from making a sound. On my left, between Jath and me, Xae was less discreet. He let out a low growl and moved to block me from Jath's sight. And him from me. I didn't mind. I'd seen enough. So I focused ahead, and when we reached the buffet, I focused on filling my plate. Then I had to focus on walking to a table with my men and sitting down between them, opposite Nex, and closest to the wall. And yes, all that focus was necessary. We were facing the other half of the room, but, thank the Goddess, Nex was big enough to block my view.
I sighed, my shoulders relaxing at last, and set to my meal.
“You guys have a chance to welcome Jathalion home?” Nex asked.
My shoulders tensed.
“I haven't yet,” Rath said with a quelling look at Xae. “But Xae did, and Ember met him.”
“Oh, yeah?” Nex looked at me and smirked. “You thinking about adding him to your collection? He's a top. I know because I've tried to turn him into a bottom. He's one of my very few failures.”
“Shut the fuck up, Nex,” Xae growled.
“What the fuck did you just say to me?” Nex snarled.
“Uh.” I cleared my throat. “Xae's a bit on edge, Nex. We've had an . . . issue with . . . uh—”
“Oh, for fuck's sake,” Rath muttered. “Xae found Ember talking to Jathalion and reacted poorly. He's trying to rein in his wolf.”
“Holy fuck,” Nex said, shooting Xae a sympathetic look. “Sorry, man. You know I can sympathize with the beast thing. I wouldn't have said anything if I knew Ember was truly interested in Jath.”
