This was borderline ridiculous, a voice said in the back of my mind. A fae spectacle spearheaded by my father. And Rowan was here with his arms around me, and he smelled and looked so delicious, so why were we still participating?
The fae bond settled into our hearts, right next to the budding shifter bond, a spot of silver and pink, almost touching the other.
And with it came a roaring hunger to taste every inch of Rowan’s skin. “Will this wear off?” I whispered as my fingers crept up his chest.
Rowan snorted. “Gods, I hope not.” He tilted my neck back and pressed a hot kiss to my throat.
At that moment, feeling his hardness press insistently against my thigh, I had had enough of this constant theater.
“Get out,” I said.
A feminine snort of laughter before Moira called, “Speak up!”
Rowan dotted kisses along my collarbone.
“LEAVE.” My voice boomed throughout the keep. Thunder rolled above us. Lightning cracked and sizzled, smashing to the ground. The scent of ozone rose around us. I flicked a careless hand out. Screams sounded all around us before silence clanged like a bell.
Dad or Mom, someone had sent them all away. Or me. Who the hell knew? We both had enough magic flooding our bodies to take down the entire state.
Rowan chuckled against my throat.
“Reset your wards,” I whispered.
I felt the wards settle around us. With a whispered command, a thick layer of roots and vines rose from the ground, tangling around each other in tight knots. I sent them high enough to prevent prying eyes, giving us enough room to navigate, and left the area above us wide open.
Rowan tugged my shirt up and over my head and tossed it to the ground. I called up a soft bed of grass and leaves behind Rowan and gently pushed him down.
His wicked chuckle made me shiver. Rowan settled against our makeshift bed and watched as I removed my clothing. His eyes glowed a strange silver and gold, mixed with a trace of familiar watermelon tourmaline.
“It’s been long enough, don’t you think?” I murmured, shimmying out of my pants.
Rowan unbuckled his belt in response.
“No. Let me.”
A smile curved his lips. His hands fell away. Vines slid from the ground, wrapping around his buckle. Rowan sucked in a breath before releasing it with a soft laugh. The vines made quick work of his buckle, but I took over, sending the vines to wrap around his wrists.
“Evie.”
I didn’t want to talk. Other, more pressing things took precedence. “No more waiting, Rowan. We’re already bound forever. You are my friend, my lover, my king. Such a relationship requires consummation.”
His eyes burned with emotion and desire. “I want to touch you.”
“Me first.”
I made quick work of his clothing until Rowan was bare beneath me. I’d never get enough of him, never tire of the way he looked at me.
“You look at me like you want to devour me.”
In response, I straddled him, his tip at my entrance.
“Evie.”
“No more waiting,” I said and sank onto Rowan, claiming him as mine for all eternity.
He sucked in a sharp breath. A low moan escaped my throat as he filled and stretched me. Muscles corded in his arms when he tried to reach for me, but the vines held tight. Release tingled at my spine, and I hadn’t even moved.
A golden light bloomed in our chests. I smiled down at my mate and began to move.
