“It is.” She stops walking, turning to face me in the moonlight. “I meant what I said earlier. About belonging here. I've never felt that before, anywhere.”
The admission settles something restless in my chest, but I'm careful not to make more of it than she intends. We are still learning what this connection means, still discovering its boundaries and possibilities.
“Then we plan together,” I say. “Your ability to coordinate the shadow servants will be crucial in what comes next. They respond to you in ways I have never seen before.”
“What does come next?”
“Preparation. Fortification. And patience.” We resume walking toward the castle's looming bulk. “Vasek will make his move when he believes the time is right. We will be ready for him.”
By the time we reach the castle's main entrance, the violence still hums through my system. The feeding should have settled me, but being near her while blood-drunk makes everything more intense. More dangerous.
“You should rest,” I tell her as we climb the stairs toward the residential levels, though rest is the last thing on my mind.
“What about you?”
“I should check on defensive preparations. Alert the border guards to increased threat levels.” The practicaltasks feel impossibly distant. The satisfaction of killing still burns through my system, making civilized behavior feel like an ill-fitting costume.
She studies my face in the torchlight. “You're still not settled.”
“No.” The admission comes easier than expected. “The hunger has been fed, but the satisfaction hasn't fully... integrated. I remain somewhat dangerous.”
Her eyes darken at my words. “Good. I like you dangerous.”
“Braith.” Warning and need war in my voice. “I may not be gentle company tonight.”
“I don't want gentle company. I want you.” Her hand finds mine, fingers intertwining with bloodstained ones. “All of you. Especially the parts you think you should hide.”
I follow her down the corridor, aware that this night has changed something fundamental between us. The careful boundaries we've maintained are dissolving, replaced by something rawer and more honest.
My cock throbs with every step, the scent of her arousal mixing with the copper still clinging to my skin. Tonight, she will see exactly what she's chosen to stay with.
Whatever happens next, there will be no pretending I am anything other than what she witnessed in the grove.
BRAITH
The door to my chambers closes behind us with a soft click that somehow sounds final. Kiakoa stands just inside, massive frame filling the space, and he hasn't moved since we crossed the threshold. His breathing is still too fast, too deep, and his hands remain clenched at his sides.
He's trying so hard to be careful. To be the controlled lord rather than the creature that just painted his grove with enemy blood.
“You promised,” I say softly.
His golden eyes fix on mine, pupils still dilated from the killing high. “Braith.”
“What if I want whatever you are right now? Blood-drunk and deadly and mine?”
The last word breaks something in his control. He moves then, faster than thought, backing me against the door with his hands braced on either side of my head. His body cages me in, all heat and barely restrained power.
“You don't know what you're asking for.”
“Don't I?” I slide my hands up his chest, feeling the rapid hammer of his heart beneath leather and wool. “I watched you tear men apart with your bare hands. I watched you kill for me. And I got wet from it.”
His breathing stops entirely.
“I got wet,” I repeat, letting him see the truth in my eyes. “Standing there watching you be exactly what you were made to be, protecting what belongs to you. I was throbbing before you even finished with the last one.”
A growl rumbles through his chest. His hands move from the door to my waist, gripping tight enough to bruise.
“You're not afraid.”
