A fire burned low in the hearth, and a half empty goblet of wine set on the small table beside a burgundy armchair. Next to the goblet was a leatherbound book, the spine worn. Tingles of anticipation shot through me when I realized it was the same one I had flipped through the day before. The storybook with the red spider lily.
Other novels were stacked on the coffee table, along with a dessert plate I instantly recognized as part of the set I’d used to serve the carrot cake earlier that evening. Fane, the sneaky demon, had made sure Onyx got a slice of it.
“So this is where you’ve been all day.” I slowly walked through the study, glancing at the various shelves.
“For most of it, yes. Just as I told you.”
“After you lied first,” I reminded him, stopping in front of the mantle to toss him a raised eyebrow look. “Quite the story you told too. Not just one person butthree. Descriptive too. Especially the part where you mentioned being inside them.”
“Not my proudest moment.” Onyx sat on the couch and patted the cushion beside him, a silent request for me to join him. I did, though my legs wobbled on the way. “Truth be told,it’s been a while since anyone has been in my bed. Apart from you.”
Damn if that didn’t shock me—in a good way.
“This pleases you?” he asked, missing nothing.
“No.” I rested my hands in my lap and kept my knees pressed together, feeling awkward. “Okay, maybe a little. Guess I really am selfish and greedy, huh?”
He faintly smiled. “The possession you feel over your males comes from the fated bond between you.”
“Betweenus,” I said softly. “That includes you too, you know.”
“I know.”
“But you don’t want to be with me?”
“Want has nothing to do with it.” Onyx’s eyes found mine, and the red irises glinted with firelight. “You are the one person in all the realms I fear the most.”
“You’re afraid ofme?” I asked, surprised. “Why? Worried I’ll bake too many treats and make you gain weight?” The last bit was added in an attempt to combat my nerves. Humor was a defense mechanism. “You’ll still be handsome no matter what size you are, so eat all the honey cake you want.”
A soft chuckle rumbled in his chest. It transitioned to the softest of sighs. “I heard your conversation with Lake in the garden earlier today. He truly wasn’t bothered by the thought of me touching you.”
“How did you hear? Were you hiding in the bushes or something?”
“Within the shade of the oak tree,” he responded. “Using the shadows. When you left the garden and were speaking to Briar, I concealed myself in the trees within the courtyard. I could’ve sworn you saw me.”
The pieces clicked into place. “So thatwasyou. I didn’t see you, but I caught a trace of woodsmoke.”
“You said we each have a unique scent?” he asked. “Each of your… mates?”
I nodded. “Maddox is warm spice and leather. Briar is magnolia blossoms, which is funny when I think about it because usually, I’m vehemently opposed to flowers, but I love his scent. It soothes me. Lake is peaches, and Callum is vanilla bean. Rowan is similar to yours. Smoky and kind of peppery.”
“Perhaps because we’re kindred spirits,” Onyx suggested. “Both of us possess shadow magic.”
“And are stubborn buttholes who reject the idea of love.” I tossed him a smile. It came easier now, less nervous. “Rowan eventually learned to trust me though.”
“Trust plays no part in my decision to reject our bond,” he said, focusing on the burning logs in the hearth. “Your eyes are like a mirror into your soul. One look and anyone can see how pure you are. How gentle and… beautiful.” He deeply inhaled and held the breath. On the slow exhale, his gaze shifted back to me. “Yet, despite that beauty you will bring only devastation.”
“You keep saying that.” A lump wedged in my throat. “Gotta admit it’s giving me a complex. You make it sound like I’m a curse that’s been inflicted on you.”
“Because you are.” Onyx’s eyes tightened at the corners. “Is that not what love is but a curse? And you, Evan, are by far the worst of all, for you were brought to me by fate. Those damned lilies should never have appeared to you.”
The harshness of his tone hurt. “Look. If anyone understands the struggle of getting caught in fate’s plan, it’s me. But, although I didn’t choose it, I wouldn’t trade this life with my men… with you… for anything. Loving them has made me happier than I thought possible. I hope you can let me love you someday too.”
“You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“Then explain it to me,” I gently pressed. “That’s why you brought me here, right? So we can talk. So I can understand.”
He watched me for a moment. “Some outside of this realm believe the red spider lily to be a death omen. Do you know why that is?”
