She crossed her arms and turned her shoulder. “But you’re hoping she does so you and Cercies can fuck her too, tell me I’m wrong Aurelius!” she yelled.
He paused and took a breath. Calmly, he stated, “I hope she does because she is the only way to stop a full realm war that will destroy us all. I do not plan on invoking the Law of Flesh on the High Lord’s mate. Her time here is temporary. She wishes to return to her realm with her mortal mate. And as long as we can keep this a secret from the council, Cercies and I will not be forced to comply with Holy Law.”
She stormed off in the opposite direction. I slid back around the corner and walked nonchalantly toward my room, knowing he would round the corner and see me. I pretended I had not just overheard a deeply disturbing conversation. I was so confused. Titus had not mentioned anything about having to be involved with anyone else, and now both Aurelius and Cercies had some kind of claim to me through a law I did not understand. I thought Fae males were territorial. None of this made sense. My fist clenched so tightly that my nails bit into my skin. I was starting to get the feeling that I had been played for a fool, duped into some weird Faerie sex cult thing. That’s when I heard,
“Delilah!” he called out.
I pretended I did not hear him and kept walking. I wanted to avoid him at all costs. He shouted again.
“Delilah, wait!” His pace quickened. I had no choice but to halt. It was unavoidable.
He took one look at my red, puffy face, heavy eyeliner streaked down my cheeks, and the ripped leather strap, and horror consumed him.
Panic and rage filled his voice, “Dear Guardians, are you okay? What happened?”
“Just leave me alone, Aurelius. I’ve dealt with enough assholes for one day,” I said flatly and resumed walking.
I really was at my wits’ end. My sanity was hanging on by a thread. I could not pretend for another moment that I was unaware of their scheme. I snapped. I could not hold my fury back any longer, “why don’t you ask Cercies at the next gang bang, he’ll tell you all about it.”
“Did he do this to you?” he shouted. “I swear I’ll kill him.” My words took a moment to register. He seemed to have a delayed reaction to what I had implied.
His face shifted into a look of remorse. “Fuck, how much did you hear?” he asked.
“Enough to know you are all fucking crazy. I want to leave.
Screw your prophecy. I don’t care anymore!”
“Delilah, can we talk about this? I will explain everything, please,” he begged.
“Why do you do that?” I shouted, shoving him away with watery eyes. He looked overtaken with confusion.
“Why do you call me Delilah now instead of Lady Delilah? Is it because I let you almost kiss me, and now you don’t respect me anymore? Do you think I’m some kind of property of the High Lord's to be passed around?” My voice shook as the words poured out. “When I woke up in this shitty realm, you were my only friend. You saved me. But I was wrong. You played me for a fool.”
I stormed off again. Then I felt a gentle tug on my arm.
“I stopped addressing you as Lady Delilah whenever I could get away with it because it made me feel like you were so far above me and out of my reach. It was killing me. The very words started to burn my lips. Last night, in your room, I realized I wanted you to be mine. I wanted to be close enough to address you casually, to be your close friend, and hopefully more. I know how insane that sounds. You have only been here a short time, but you are all I think about."
“I see the way the dragons respond to you. I’ve worked with dragons my entire existence. I am the Royal Master of Dragons. How they interact with you and submit to you is not normal. You are extraordinary, Delilah, and I am doing the best I can to be honorable and worthy of you. But it is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”
“Why didn’t you kiss me?” I asked. Why was I asking? What was I doing? Did I want him to kiss me? I did not know if part of me was burning with curiosity, or if another, more dangerous part wanted to provoke him.
“I did. I kissed your hand, remember?” he replied shortly.
I narrowed my eyes. “Don’t pretend your lips weren’t inches from mine. What happened, Aurelius? Why did you change your mind?” I demanded.
His head tipped down in frustration. He pursed his lips into a line, then leaned in close and spoke in an almost inaudible tone. “You never know who is watching, Delilah. You need to be careful.”
My eyes widened. My stomach dropped, and bile rose up my throat. Could Titus watch me through fire? That would mean, oh God, he saw everything with Big Red. I felt overwhelmingly violated for the second time today. I turned on my heel and ran back to my room. This time, he let me go.
I slammed my door shut and tried to catch my breath. I had sprinted the rest of the way. The first thing I did was dump a pitcher of water on the fire, extinguishing both fireplaces.
“Goodness, Lila, you gave me a fright!” Calpurnia yelped as she changed my sheets.
She studied me, and her face fell into a look of panic and horror.
“What happened? Guardians, Lila, are you all right?” She embraced me in a tight hug.
Then the flood gates opened. I could not hold it back any longer. I sobbed, and she began to cry too. I held her tightly and cried into her shoulder. We sank to the floor as tears streamed down our faces.
