Page 135 of Ascendant King

Cade reached out, wrapping his arms around my chest, and I embraced him, both of us leaning together. He spoke quietly, his breath warm on my naked skin. “So, if this isn’t real, what do we do?”

“We go to the dinner. Leon will be there, King Bartlett handing you the keys to his kingdom. We confront him.” I pulled back, staring into Cade’s crystal blue eyes, waiting until they cleared, until his face became serious, the certainty in his gaze matching mine.

“We go,” he agreed. And we finish this once and for all.”

The rest of the afternoon was preparation. Since I would be shirtless, it would be too obvious if Cade covered me in the same amount of magic Tyson had had before our fight. So instead, he put as much magic as he could into the pants I would be wearing.

Then he lay down on the bed, curled himself on his side, and shut his eyes tightly. I didn’t smell any tears, but his shouldersshook, his breath uneven, as though he was desperate but couldn’t find air.

I curled along his back, pressing myself to his spine, his soft shirt touching my sensitive nipples. We didn’t speak for hours, everything between us unsaid.

I didn’t ask if some small part of him wanted to stay here, and he didn’t ask if I was hoping to see my own parents.

When someone knocked on the door, Cade startled, as though woken, although I knew he hadn’t been sleeping.

He swallowed, standing, pulling on the suit jacket he had chosen earlier. I stood, and Cade looked me over before bending down and retrieving the collar from the ground.

He stared at it in his hands, the smooth black leather gleaming in the room’s yellow light. I read his hesitation for what it was and broke the quiet between us.

“It’s okay. Put it on.” I lifted my chin.

With my eyes on the ceiling, I could feel his gaze on me, but he didn’t try to argue, slipping cool leather around my throat and pulling the tongue through the clasp. When he was done, he put two fingers between the leather and my skin, his short nails scraping the flesh.

“Is it too tight?” he asked, pulling his fingers free.

“No.” I looked down at him. “This isn’t real.”

I knew the urgency in my voice felt uncomfortable. He responded exactly the way I needed him to. “This isn’t real.”

Then he reached up, dragging me down for a searing kiss, and I melted into him, trusting he would catch me the way I caught him. Trusting him, because he was the one I chose.

Despite all of this, the collar, the history, what it looked like to everyone else, I chose him.

Someone knocked on the door again, louder this time, faster, the irritation clear in the cadence.

Cade walked over, opening the door and revealing Sonja in a shimmering blue evening gown. She scowled at him. “Well, is His Highness coming down for dinner?”

“Sorry,” Cade said lazily. “We lost track of time. I’m sure you know how that goes.”

Sonja made a disgusted noise, turning and heading down the hall.

I followed Cade out, shutting the door behind us as he took long steps to catch up with her. At the bottom of the stairs, she shot him a sharp look and then extended her hand.

The pause was excruciating before he lifted his elbow, drawing her hand through the crook of his arm. They continued to the ballroom in absolute silence. Only when they were at the door did she hiss, “You know, you could make this easier for me too.”

Then she grimaced a smile, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she looked at him as though purely in love. They walked in, and I followed behind.

The room quieted as we entered, and I took one glance around to see what we were up against. The table stretched on forever, more mages than I had seen at any of the House Bartlett events I’d been to. Worse, the consorts stood against the wall, decked out in collars studded with gems, made from fine metals.

At the head of the table, Leon stood, his tall-backed chair nearly a throne. “Here he is. The man of the hour.”

But his tone wasn’t mocking and his smile kind.

Cade leaned back, glancing at me. We couldn’t fight everyone here, not if they were all at full strength, but if they weren’t real, if they were just Leon’s creation, then we were still only fighting him.

Two seats to Leon’s right sat empty, and Cade and Sonja strode toward them, with me following behind. I felt everyone’s eyes on me, as though it was a physical touch stroking over myskin. Tyson stood against the wall next to Jesaiah, glaring at me venomously. Sonja took her seat, a frown lingering on her forehead as she looked to where Cade still stood.

“Leon,” Cade said, an arm’s length away from Leon. He narrowed his eyes. “What are we doing here?”