“Promise me that no matter what happens in this war, no matter what choices I have to make, know I’m always yours. In life and in death.”
“You’re mine, and I’m yours,” he said. “Wherever you go, I will follow.”
But where I would go, if it came to that, he couldn’t follow. No one could.
The dragon growled, his instincts catching the scent of a secret.
“Barbie—” Killian’s voice held a warning. “Are you keeping something from us?”
“Must you know?” I asked.
Yes!the dragon insisted.
“Fine,” I said, offering a partial truth to shield the whole. “I love both of you so much. There, I said it.”
Warmth and love shone from Killian’s eyes, so tender and profound it made my heart ache. Then his gaze shifted, storm-blue giving way to gold as the dragon looked out at me.
“And I love you more than myself and the dragon combined,” Killian said. “I love you more than life itself.”
“Then bathe me nicely before we have to return,” I said.
He scooped me up and carried me toward the spring, his lips brushing mine. “Soon, I will have you alone again. I’ll fuck you until you scream my name.”
My blood heated at his promise. I had so much to look forward to. No matter what happened, I’d always fight to find my way back to him.
Chapter
Nineteen
Sy
The chaos king had promised to return in an hour, but more than two hours had passed.
With nowhere else to go, Rowan lounged on the couch while I sprawled on top of him. A bowl of cherries sat on the coffee table so he could feed me while we chilled.
Bea had left to work on blood magic spells, and Cade was tasked with collecting vials of our blood for her. He’d leveled up her rank to allow her to summon anyone or even the whole house to assist her.
Cami and Rock departed as well, instead of staying to babysit us.
Rowan and I had planned to slip back to Barbie’s room to fuck as soon as the heirs were gone, but they were still here, lingering over food and drink, bartering and laughing. I had studied each of them extensively through Barbie’s eyes before our separation, and I knew they were not just one thing.
I liked how they were. They weren’t losers awaiting doom; they were top predators actively and competently working to prevent it. One quality I truly appreciated was their capacity to laugh in the face of adversity. If we were going out, we would do it with a bang.
My mate was momentarily kicked down, but he wouldn’t stay down for long.
Right now, everyone was still reeling from what had happened: the vortex hijacking us to the Underworld, Barbie and I returning separately, the heirs nulling the Brides Selection, and the devastating news of Ruin’s approaching army.
“Shouldn’t they be back by now?” Louis grunted, jealousy unmistakable in his pale blue eyes. He’d thought he’d gotten Barbie, only to have her swept away from under his nose. “How long are they going to fuck? This waiting ill suits us. We need to find a way to drag them back. It’s unfair for Killian to leave us all hanging. We need to get to the Red Room.”
“Maybe we don’t have to wait for them to return,” I said, spitting out a cherry stone. “We could just go in ourselves.”
“The problem is,” Cade said, massaging his temple, “Barbie is the only one who can open the Red Room.”
“Not the only one,” I said. “Whatever Barbie can do, I can do better.”
Rowan stilled beneath me, and the other heirs turned to stare. Silas and Louis still had the hots for me, but they’d become more reserved since Rowan’s exile. Stealing me from him now would be like kicking a man when he was down. The heirs were ruthless, even morally gray, but they would not cross that line with one another.
I lifted my chin. “I am not competing with Barbie. She may be the only goddess on Earth, but I am the oldest magic. It is time I showed all of you what I can do so you’ll take me seriously.”
