Page 113 of Contested Crown

When I shifted, my bones screamed, every pain from the fight coming back to me. My skin felt oversensitive. A shift in the breeze dragged across my raw flesh like sandpaper. No, I had to be strong for Cade.

I ignored my own nakedness—the backyard was warded from nosy neighbors. All they ever saw was an empty lot.

I checked under the mat, but the key wasn’t there. So I began systematically looking under flowerpots.

“What is this place?” Cade frowned, looking at the small back patio, covered with plants growing in containers, trees that protected the yard from sun.

“When Declan has a girlfriend, he likes putting her up here.” I finally found the key and brushed the dirt off it before inserting it in the back door.

I unlocked it, then turned back to Cade, catching sight of his wide eyes.

“We’re walking straight into Declan’s house?” Cade asked, his mouth working for a moment before he glared at me. “Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Extremely,” I confirmed. “Except, if Declan is locked down, not going anywhere, not even to check on his own clubs, then he probably has his girlfriend living with him. And I personally moved the last girl out of here myself, so I’m pretty sure it’s empty.”

“And we couldn’t have stayed herebefore?” Cade’s annoyance made his words sharp.

“We weren’t close by. And it wasn’t a guarantee. It’s not going to protect us if the mages we just fought caught our scent.” I held open the door. “But it does have a shower. And beds.”

“And last night, we were in adrug den.” Cade glared at me as he walked through the door.

“We can’t stay here long. Even one night is pushing it.” But as I stepped in, I could feel the quiet of the house, smell it.

Abandoned places had a certain smell or, rather, a lack of smell. No one had been in here since I had moved the last girl out a few months ago. Still, I locked the door, then shoved a small side table in front of it. It wouldn’t stop anyone, but it would make noise.

I went to the front door and found a small chair to put in front of that one, then I found Cade standing where I’d left him, examining the clean lines, the expensive furniture.

Declan was particular about who he took an interest in. It had to be someone smart, but not smarter than him, someone who, when left to their own devices, didn’t get into trouble, didn’t cause him trouble. Someone constantly available, no matter what time of day Declan showed up.

“Grow some tits, and you’d be perfect for me,” Declan had told me once.

Cade looked around the downstairs, then decisively walked up the stairs. After trying two doors, he found the bathroom and strode over to the shower, turning it on.

As he waited, his palm under the spray, he looked at me critically. “You could walk through the wards.”

I nodded, glancing at the mirror. My chest was covered in tattoos, almost as many as Cade usually had. Basil had gained more of himself, missing only the tip of his tail now. He curled over my shoulder, his head resting just below my clavicle.

I stared, and his tongue flicked out, one eye opening to regard me critically.

“Did you and Declan ever—” Cade broke off, swallowing. “They said his lieutenant, and I just assumed?—”

I laughed. “No, Declan and I never got around to that. I figured he would still have me okay with the wards because he knew I wouldn’t come back here. And it’s more expensive to change wards than it is to reset security codes on his buildings.”

Cade drew his hand out from the shower and stripped off his shirt. The ink on his skin matched mine, and he walked over, pressing his hand to my chest. I watched him draw his magic back into himself, the tattoo flowing over his fingers, up his wrist, over his shoulder, and back onto his skin.

He blinked at me, and I found myself staring back at him.

“I’m going to leave you with some more magic. When I took too much off you earlier, you began to lose your shift.” Cade examined my face. “Is that all right?”

“I’m not going to explode with that much magic, even though we aren’t officially consorts yet?” Somehow the question was more weighted than I intended. Part of me wanted him to say that wedidneed to become consorts, that hedidneed to claim me.

Instead, Cade shook his head. “It hasn’t so far. I’m not sure what we’re doing here, Miles. The rules don’t seem to apply to us.”

“I can take whatever you give me,” I said.

Cade’s brows pulled together, his expression going troubled. He turned away from me. “The water is ready.”

Still naked, I stepped under the spray, watching through the mist of water as Cade undressed and came close to me.