Page 181 of Obsidian and Frost

“Whatever it is we’ll figure it out together, sweets.”

I nodded. “Okay.” I looked out at Sylas. “Sorry. I see now why you didn’t want to tell meandwhy you’ve been off lately. I thought… I thought you were pulling away or getting sicker and keeping it all from us again.”

“I will never pull away from you. Not in this lifetime.”

I smiled and held his gaze for a moment.

And then I looked at Cassius. “I’m sorry I ruined dinner and broke that plate.”

He snapped his fingers and then I saw the plate back on the table with the exact amount of food I’d had on it before, and the wall by the cupboards was cleaned of the mess too. “It appears fine to me.”

I chuckled. “Thank you.” I looked at each of them in turn, then at all the effort Cassius had gone to. “But I still ruined dinner.”

“Actually, I would say that you made it oddly entertaining.”

“Wow, the buttoned-up image that I had of you is really shattering all over the place lately.”

Velra smiled and stroked his chest. “How do you feel about that?”

He clasped her hand on him possessively. “Although it comes with its complications, I am rather enjoying it.”

“Good,” she said with a sweet chuckle.

Sylas came over and asked me, “What about the Blood Trace? What are your thoughts?”

“Well, we obviously need to do it.”

“If you don’t want to do it, Lazriel, rest assured that I will find another way to resolve this situation. You’re not boxed in or forced into anything.”

“I know I’m not.” He’d always made that very clear to me and gone to every effort to ensure my agency was protected in all circumstances.

I sucked in a breath as they all awaited my answer. “Let’s do it. Let’s get these answers. It’s the best way to take back control over all of this.”

“All right,” Sylas said. “Finish your steak. I need a few minutes to prepare, then we’ll convene in the living room.”

As he went to move, Cassius clamped his hand down on his shoulder. “First, you will allow Velra to assist you in the way we discussed earlier.”

Sylas started. “Cassius—”

“Really?” Velra cried. “You’re ready now?”

“I mean, yes, but I don’t want you to feel like I’m—”

“I’ve been waiting for you to allow me to do this for you.” She grabbed his hand. “Come on.”

He needed help, but it was so difficult for him to actually ask for it. Of course Velra understood that about him.

She was the fucking best, through and through.

In every way imaginable.

Shit,he looked hot as fuck right now.

Sylas in all hisAlmighty Necromancerglory.

His chest was bare and he stood there in just his low-hanging pants, his magic flaming on either palm as he held a black and gold fancy-looking knife in his right hand, the magic encircling the handle and all up the blade.

He’d called a whole box of the things here. His ceremonial blades, he’d named them. I’d never seen them at his house and he’d told us it was because he’d lent them to Kai Hunter.Apparently that intense sorcerer had been using them for some experiments he’d been doing in his home cave lab. Yeah, an actual cave that he’d moved to the home he shared with his lovers.