Page 14 of Temptation Unleashed (Talaenian Fae #3)

At last, she nodded. “Okay. Fine. A bite to eat, a conversation. I’d like you to be forthcoming when answering my questions.

” She sidled by him and unlocked the doors.

“And like hell you’re driving. I’m aware of your driving skills, and they put the fear of God into me.

” She raised her brows when Cael chuckled.

“You might survive a death-defying ride with your Fae-ness, but I’m still human. ”

Rori settled into the cozy table tucked toward the back of the small restaurant, away from other diners.

A private little table that would allow her and Cael to converse without having to whisper every word.

The server brought out waters and menus, and Cael quickly placed an order for a bunch of appetizers.

He slid his menu off to the side once the server left and unfolded his napkin to place over his lap.

Rori watched him closely, taking in each nuance of this new version of Steve.

The longer she watched him move, go through familiar motions, from rolling his shoulders once he settled into his chair to the relaxed half-grin that loved to play on his mouth, the more she began to accept that this Fae creature was no different in demeanor than the human Steve.

Sincerity rolled off him, perhaps more magnified now, and an ease in trusting the man came naturally.

He had a way of making people comfortable around him, and regardless of how bad Rori wanted to blame it on magic, she knew in her soul this was the real Cael.

“What exactly are you?”

The bluntness of her question didn’t seem to bother him in the least as he straightened the crooked angle of his fork beside his plate and sipped his water.

He had pulled his hair back to the nape of his neck except for a few rebel strands that brushed his cheeks, showcasing the full shape of his ears and the sharper angles of his face.

As he lowered his glass to the table, he tapped his menu.

“The lamb here is spectacular.” He motioned to her untouched menu. She hadn’t bothered to move once she seated herself in the chair. Her muscles were strung tight with uncertainty as she observed her company. “Do you know what you’re getting?”

“Cael.”

“Fae. Seelie, to be more specific. Tuatha de Danann if you want to further narrow it down.”

She blinked. She was right about Fae. “Seelie. Like the different courts and houses and all that?”

“You read those romances, don’t you?” He chuckled quietly, a sound that relaxed her as much has her conscience would allow.

“Cassy’s guilty pleasure, too. I find the Fae ones so flamboyant.

Actually, we’re a little more boring compared to romantasy novels.

Sure, we’ve got a king and courts and politics.

We have different races of Fae, just like humans have different races.

We have different realms, whereas humans have different countries.

We’re not all that different.” He snapped his fingers in quick succession. “Parallel might be a good word to use.”

“Humans don’t have magic. Sooo,” Rori drew out, trying to piece together her thoughts. “What court are you from?”

“There are no individual courts. Dagda, who is our king, heads the only Court in Faery. It’s comprised of multiple High Fae from different houses based on bloodlines, abilities, and powers.

Usually, a member of the High Fae represents a sector, or realm, in a show of unity.

Seelie are a unified race, even when it comes to those who may not be pureblooded Fae. ”

“Your brother mentioned something about pureblood and keeping your race pure.” Rori’s eyes narrowed. “That’s why he wanted to kill you? Because you and Cassy are dating?”

Cael’s eyes lifted to the ceiling. His body stiffened a little, hands folding over his plate as Rori waited for him to respond.

If she understood even the gist of the encounter between the brothers last night, it seemed Cael’s association with Cassy and Rori was cause for Thaddeus’s targeted attack.

Two mortal women brought a death sentence to Cael’s doorstep.

As his attention returned to her, he hunched over the edge of the table and lowered his voice for her ears only.

“Thad and I have different views on many things. One of those things is the significance of intermingling with the human species and how it’s viewed by different Fae.”

He paused and cast the approaching server a shaded glance before plastering his smile back on his mouth.

He indicated to her to place her order, which she declined.

How the hell was she supposed to eat when her stomach twisted in more knots than she could begin to count?

It didn’t stop him from ordering a full meal, handing the server their menus, and waiting until she was out of sight before resuming his solemn expression.

“Let me tell you a story. It’s not like your traditional fairytales, though.

There once lived a beautiful Seelie princess, born of the seed of Dagda, King of Realms. She was spoiled, selfish, and narrowminded.

She was coddled and coaxed and doted on by those in power.

She became a powerful princess, and a masterful manipulator.

As time went on, she began to present ideas to further strengthen the Seelie breed.

Her visions of a perfect Faery blurred the ethical lines of right and wrong, becoming twisted and hypocritical, but those who followed her believed in her vision, blinded by their own self-righteousness to see the dangerous game she played.

“You see, one particular race of Fae is the Talaenian race. They’re a very prominent presence in our world, especially since they are the creation of pureblooded Fae falling in love with humans and creating new generations of mix-blooded Fae.

They were believed to be inferior to the Seelie due to their diluted bloodlines and presumed faulty magic and lesser power.

However, that can’t be further from the truth.

Their leader descends from a very powerful High Fae and he possesses untouched power from his paternal bloodline.

His father had been one of Dagda’s most valued members of Court.

One of his most trusted men, until he fell in love with a human woman.

“This is where things take that hypocritical twist. Daeanna, the crazy princess, obsessed over the leader of the Talaenian people.

Used to getting everything she wanted, his rejection sparked outrage from the princess.

She set up the leader to make it appear that he caused mass causalities among humans one night.

She then used her standing as princess to barter for his life.

She cursed him for two hundred years, making him her property.

He despised her to his very core and fought against his curse each day.

He refused her day after day, night after night, until her demands could not be fought.

But it left her bed cold more often than not. So she came up with another plan.

“That’s when Daeanna took a young, na?ve man into her fold and made him her lover.

I’ve always speculated she chose Thad because of the friendship Thad and Shaye once had.

What better way to weaken an adversary than to drive a wedge between him and those closest to him, right?

Well, during the following years, she molded her new minion into the perfect ally, the perfect weapon, the perfect pawn in her deceitful game.

She somehow broke down a man who once protected innocents and provided for those less fortunate and turned him into a cold, calculating creature who obsessed over her as much as she obsessed over the Talaenian leader. ”

Rori couldn’t help but sense that Cael’s words hung on more than a story. The smooth insertion of his brother’s old ways led her to believe he reminisced of a time when the murderous beast she’d seen in his condo held the capacity to care.

He clung to a sliver of hope.

Her heart ached for him as he took another drink of water.

The joy she’d been so used to seeing in Cael muted when he turned his face back to her.

The silver of his eyes dulled, sadness haunting his expression.

Sorrow tensed the skin around his eyes and the air that had settled over the table filled her with a sense of longing.

“Not so long ago, there was a battle. A battle that took place on Talaenian soil, led by Daeanna and her devout followers. Thaddeus nearly lost his life, if rumor speaks any truth. I’ve heard multiple versions, but they all end the same.

He was shot through twice by arrows and left for dead on the grounds.

When the proverbial dust cleared, his body was nowhere to be found.

He’d been presumed dead.” He snickered, his fingers gingerly touching his neck where Thaddeus’s blade had nicked the night before.

“Obviously, he’s alive and well, having survived a doomed attack.

Whether or not the stories of his fall are true, only he knows that and only he will divulge it. ”

She pictured arrows piercing through the beast and winced. “You’d think if it’s true, that he’d repent his old ways and try to live his second chance a little humbler. ”

“Which is why I’m not sure if I believe the rumors.”

“What happened with the princess?”

The last words left a foul taste on her tongue.

Princess. Thaddeus’s lover . He’d a lover for a hundred years who held station in his world.

No wonder he didn’t care for humans. She bore witness to how humans treated each other on a daily basis, those of higher class and status looking down on those less fortunate.

“Oh, she was killed by Dagda.”