I smiled, feeling a wobble in my sternum.
“Elias would have to get through me first.” Lord Onyx looked at me. “Varys is correct. This is delicious.”
Heat touched my cheeks. “I’m glad you like it.”
“Pastries and desserts can be your responsibility from now on. Coffee as well.” Onyx took a drink. “You may have converted me.”
Fane softly smiled as he organized items on the tray.
“I’d love that.” Happiness flared in my belly. “I’ll report to the kitchen first thing for breakfast.”
The knights had started training again, and Briar had found a place in the clinic. Lake had taken on more whittling projects and enjoyed being outside without fear, socializing like he’d never been able to do, and it looked like he’d start gardening again. And Rowan seemed to be enjoying all his cat naps and freedom.
“You can find happiness here, if you open your heart to it.”
Fane’s words settled over my chest. Although still homesick, the ache of that loss didn’t feel nearly as deep. The Shadow Realm wasn’t the home we knew, but maybe we really could find happiness there. Eventually.
Later that evening, after my men and I returned to our room, we took turns washing up from the day. The tub wasn’t big enough for all of us, unfortunately. We’d need one of those Roman bathhouses for that. Or a trip to a hot spring. The five of us then made ourselves comfortable around the lit hearth, not yet ready to sleep.
“Lord Onyx couldn’t take his eyes off you tonight, little treasure.” Rowan reclined on the window bench, one foot in the sill as he looked outside.
“Aye.” Callum nodded. “I noticed as well.”
I sat on Maddox’s lap on the small couch, with Briar on the cushion beside us. Lake and Callum sat on the rug. Oreo lay between them, slowly wagging his tail as his eyes closed.
“When will you tell him?” Lake asked. “That he’s one of us.”
His question caused a furrow in Callum’s brow. Briar seemed contemplative too. When I’d told them all about Onyx being my fated mate, they’d expressed concern over my safety but had accepted it.
But were they really okay with me being with him?
“He doesn’t have to be one of you,” I whispered. The words hurt more than I thought they would. But I’d rather keep that hollowness in my chest and live with the ache than upset any of them. “Just because fate brought Onyx and I together doesn’t mean I have to—”
“Yes, you do,” Maddox softly interjected, wrapping both arms around me. “I may not have the ability to sense your emotions like Lake does, but I hear the ache in your voice. I see it in your eyes when you look at Lord Onyx. I see it in his as well, when looking at you.”
Tears prickled in my eyes. “But—”
“Must I say it again?” I felt Maddox smile against the shell of my ear. “You could love a hundred men, yet I’d know that a piece of your heart belonged only to me. Why should he be denied the joy of loving you when none of us were?”
“Our captain’s right, love.” Briar grabbed my hand and threaded our fingers together. “I’m sure if any male not among your fated mates were to make advances on you, I’d think differently, but I feel no jealously or resentment toward Lord Onyx. It’s as though a place in my own soul recognizes him as well. A bond that connects all of us together.”
Lake nodded to himself.
Callum breathed out. “I still fear that he will hurt you in some way, Ev. Though, I suspect that fear comes from the yearsI spent believing him to be our enemy. It’s hard to take him out of that box and put him in another.”
“I get that,” I told him. “Honestly, he’s a mystery to me too. I hardly ever know what he’s thinking. But I sense a kindness in him, Cal. I don’t think he plans to hurt any of us.”
Albeit faint, a dimple showed in his cheek. “If you trust him, I’ll try to do the same.”
“He’s not sleeping in our bed,” Maddox grumbled. “I’ll throw him outside with the thief.”
Rowan scoffed. “You’ll be the one thrown outside, you gluttonous bastard.”
I smiled at their banter. They had, in not so many words, given their blessing for me to act on my feelings for the demon lord. But would Lord Onyx return those feelings? Hard to say for sure.
A while later, we settled in for the night and slid into bed.
“I ate too many mashed potatoes and cake tonight,” I mumbled once we were tucked under the covers, our bodies pressed together. “I’m stuffed.”
