Page 146 of Ascendant King
The last was said with an ironic twist to his mouth.
“Is that what you want?” I asked.
“I want something better. I want to be a part of your pack but also have a place for mages, also have a place for any magical creature.” Cade dropped his hands, and I caught the banner before it could touch the ground, taking it from him and carefully folding it. “The other mage houses are just now figuring out that they can’t reforge connections with the ley lines. I’m afraid that the fight is about to get very bloody soon. As they fight over what scraps of power they have left.”
When Cade had severed the connections with the ley lines, we had realized that most mage houses would have no way of reconnecting. The original mages that had forced their control on the ley lines in the first place were long dead. This new crop of mages didn’t have enough power to control the ley lines.
The mage kings of old had bent the ley lines to their will, and I had a feeling that that wouldn’t be possible again. The ley lines wouldn’t let themselves be forced into a position like that again.
“And I can offer a different way. A place for anyone who wants safety.” Cade looked up at me, his blue eyes hopeful. “A mage house allied with the strongest pack in California. A mage house allied with the Emperor Wolf would be a good example for any mage the world over who wants to build bridges with other magical creatures rather than forcing them to submit.”
I grinned at him. “I haven’t been crowned yet. To be Emperor Wolf, I’m going to need all the East Coast packs. Based on the alphas I just had to win over, I’m not sure I’ll even get that far.”
“You will.” Cade reached up, brushing his finger across my hairline. “And I’ll be by your side.”
I had a moment to feel surprise, to feel gratitude, to feel a thousand emotions that left my chest bubbling with happiness.Then Cade pressed forward, sealing our lips in a soft kiss. He pressed gently, and every nerve was on fire. I needed more pressure, but as soon as I leaned in, he moved back.
He grinned at me, the curl of his smile lighting his eyes. Gently, he took the folded banner from me and walked over to the bedside table, placing it on top. Then, standing next to the bed, he began unbuttoning his shirt.
I stood where I was, watching him hungrily as he exposed each millimeter of tattooed skin. I wanted to lean in and consume him, press my mouth along every inch of him, pushing him down on the bed and swallowing him whole.
I was staring so hard at his pants that he had to clear his throat. When I looked up, I saw it.
The tattoo with the Los Santos Pack logo had been fixed on his neck since he’d severed the ties to the ley lines. Now, there was a second layer of text. Los Santos Pack was written over the top, but House Castillo was written underneath. I stepped forward, and Cade trembled when I drew a finger over the text. The wolf in the logo turned to me, mouth opening in a silent growl.
“I thought you couldn’t control your magic. You couldn’t control what form it took,” I said, my voice soft with wonder.
“Well, I wanted this on my skin. Permanently.” Cade looked up, staring at me, eyes challenging. “Because that’s what we are. You and me.”
I stared, then looked down at the tattoo again. The rest of the ink on his body shifted, moved away from my finger, but the words “House Castillo” stayed fixed.
“This is—” I wasn’t sure how to phrase it.
Cade covered my hand with his, pressing it against the ink. “Do you know how strange it was to walk into a tattoo parlor as a mage? They all assumed I wanted to fake more magic.” WhenI laughed, Cade blushed. “It’s not unheard of for mages who are embarrassed at their lack of magic.”
I leaned down, kissing him, stroking my hand up the thick maze of blades and vines until my thumb found his nipple. He gasped. I murmured against his lips, “I don’t think that’s anything you have to worry about.”
Cade let out a soft sigh, and I pushed him down on the bed, letting myself enjoy the slide of his skin against mine. I peppered more kisses down his neck, biting sharply where the thick muscle of his shoulder was so tense.
He moaned, breathy and helpless. I continued my torment, kissing all the way down to a nipple. When I pressed my mouth on it, for a second, I didn’t do anything, and Cade whined, desperate, clawing my hair, trying to get some of the friction he needed.
I stroked my tongue over the hard nub, biting it sharply before turning my attention to the other nipple, sucking hard, making his legs spread wantonly. He arched his hips up, and I could feel the trapped length of his cock.
Savoring the feel, I pressed down harder, letting my hips trap him against the mattress. He couldn’t move and growled in frustration. I smirked down at him.
“Did you want something?”
His eyes snapped. “I want you to get undressed.”
The imperious words were an order. I shivered, letting myself hesitate. Was this how I wanted our relationship to be?
Then I looked up at his eyes, the flash of them, and I knew that everywhere else, I could be in charge. Every other place, I could make necessary decisions. Even here. I could decide no.
Or I could let go. Let him take some of the weight I had taken on. Let him be the one to help me.
I sat back on my knees and pulled off my shirt, unbuttoning my pants and shoving them down my thighs until they trappedmy knees. I started to sit back further to pull them off completely, but Cade said, “No.”
My hand stopped.