Page 26

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

X enia's heart pounded from both the encounter with Elodie and the fact that she was alone with Cael in his bedroom.

It was larger than the guest rooms, with a wide expanse of window that overlooked the stables and paddock, as well as the lush evergreen woods beyond.

There was an unlit fireplace fronted by two low-backed chairs upholstered in a green-and-blue plaid. The two built-in shelves bracketing the fireplace held an array of books, their spines pristine. Cael wasn’t much of a reader.

Occupying the other half of the room was a large bed with a dark wood frame and plaid linens that matched the armchairs.

The room was well-appointed and tastefully decorated to match the lodge’s hunting aesthetic, but Xenia felt a pang of sadness that there wasn’t a scrap of Cael anywhere. No art hung on the walls, no evidence of his own taste or hobbies. If she hadn’t known any better, she’d think this was just another guest room.

At least it was clean. Bed made, no sign of Cael’s breakfast tray. She did see the two notes she’d left him tucked against the brass lamp on his nightstand. She chuckled, wondering if he’d said his affirmations today.

“Come.” Cael guided her into his bathroom, and Xenia cradled her wounded arm, trying not to bleed all over the black marble floor. “Take off your dress.”

Xenia’s insides sparkled to life at the deep command, though she knew he didn’t mean it how she’d taken it. She untied her apron, then carefully shucked off her uniform.

Cael cupped her waist and hoisted her onto the light pine vanity, his cool fingers a brand on her hip through the thin silk of her chemise. He turned on the faucet, then grabbed a washcloth from underneath the sink. Gripping her forearm, his touch so achingly gentle, he began cleaning off her wounds.

She hissed when the warm water made contact with a bleeding gash.

“Sorry,” he murmured, eyes focused on his task. “Why did she do this to you?”

Xenia choked back tears. “I was stupid. I just… I don’t know what I was thinking. I didn’t mean to rip her dress.”

“I’m sure she has plenty.” Cael cleaned the cloth under the running water, then knelt to grab something under the sink. It put his head perilously close to where it had been during their tryst in Rhamnos.

Phantom memories surfaced, the feel of his tongue and hands on her, inside her, and she pressed her thighs together to stop the warmth flooding her sex.

Dangerous. She didn’t want to get him, or herself, into trouble with Arran.

Cael stood upright, shaking his head with a rueful smile, then began rubbing healing balm onto her wounds.

Her upper lip twitched. “This feels familiar.”

“You can’t seem to keep yourself from getting into trouble, Blondie.” Cael’s own lip twitched and Xenia’s heart soared at her nickname.

“I need to get back in there.”

The smile fell from Cael’s face. “No. Absolutely not. I don’t want you anywhere near her again. Why?”

“I found a locked box hidden in her closet. What do you think is in there?”

“Who the fuck knows? Or cares? Knowing her, it's probably a bunch of sappy love poems or something.” Cael scoffed, his fingers tightening on her arm as he made another pass with the balm. “Your curiosity is going to get you killed someday. I’m sure it’s nothing. Don’t fucking worry about it.”

“Why would she bother bringing it all the way here if it wasn’t important?” Xenia countered, her defiance rising as Cael tried to dissuade her. “Don’t you want to know what secrets your fiancée is hiding before you…before you promise yourself to her for the rest of your life?”

Healing complete, Cael placed his palms outside of Xenia’s hips and leaned in, snaring her with his flint-steel gaze. His scent, that familiar mossy green freshness, washed over her as she tilted her head up, their lips nearly touching. Her heart slammed against her ribs as she fought the urge to open her thighs and wrap her legs around his waist.

“What’s the matter, Zee?” he whispered, staring at her mouth. “You hoping to find something damning in there?”

“Yes.” Cael’s breathy chuckle caressed her lips. “And I don’t trust her. She’s petty and cruel.”

“Then she and I are a perfect match.”

She grabbed his chin, forcing him to look at her. “Bullshit. You are not cruel. You’re a stubborn, bossy asshole, but you’re not cruel.”

His gaze softened, but underneath her fingertips, she could feel how tense his jaw was. As if he were clenching his teeth tight enough to snap them.

“You can’t marry her,” Xenia whispered.

Cael pushed up off of the sink, robbing her of their proximity.

“I know.” He ran a hand through his hair, tousling it adorably. A sly grin spread onto his face and her heart leapt. “I had a very interesting meeting this morning.”

Cael launched into an incredible story. One that filled Xenia with more hope than she’d felt since she’d been taken in Rhamnos. About how Tristan had returned to the continent. About how he’d joined with a group of rebels called the Teles Chrysos—of which Xenia’s hero Trophonios was a member; so fucking cool.

“Tristan said Trophonios may be able to help us figure out how to deactivate the device. I’m meeting with Tristan again in a few days to bring him the sample you gave me.”

“That’s kind of them,” Xenia said.

Cael dipped his chin. “We need to do something for them in return.”

Xenia’s excitement skyrocketed. “ We ?”

Cael nodded, then pulled a small flute made of fire opal from his pocket.

Xenia cocked her head. “What is that?”

He explained what it was and how the rebels hoped to use it to gain control over the dragon at Typhon Mountain.

Xenia blew out a long breath, shaking her head in wonder. “So you and I are going to be rebels together?”

Cael bit his lip, holding back an amused smile. “If you consider doing research rebel activity.”

Xenia clapped her hands. “Research is my favorite kind of rebel activity.”

Cael laughed, and Xenia responded in kind, peals of delighted giggles echoing off the marble around them.

Cael’s brows pinched, and a look of such profound concern twisted his features that Xenia abruptly stopped laughing. “What?”

“I need to tell you something else.” He stepped in closer, running a hand up over her jaw and cupping her cheek. “It’s not pleasant.”

Xenia squared her shoulders. “Tell me. Whatever it is, we can face it togeth?—”

“Cassandra’s been sent to Tartarus.”

Horror plunked into Xenia’s gut, displacing her excitement. Tears bloomed on her lashes and her throat pinched shut. She couldn’t breathe. Oh High Gods, she couldn’t?—

Cael placed his hand on her heart, his fingertips caressing her collarbone. “Breathe, Zee. It’s going to be okay. Breathe .”

She stared into his deep gray eyes, her anchor in a turbulent sea, and did as he commanded. She filled her lungs, pushing her chest into his hand.

“Good,” Cael murmured. “Now exhale.”

She released it slowly, Cael keeping his hand at her heart. And after a few more breaths, her panic subsided. She choked out a ragged whisper. “ Why ?”

Cael shook his head, looking as devastated as Xenia felt. “Eamon discovered what she was doing with those memories. Stealing treasures to help the humans in the colonies. At least, that’s what he said publicly. More likely, it was a move to punish Tristan once Eamon learned how much she meant to him.”

Xenia closed her eyes, clinging to Cael’s shoulders and feeling like she might pass out. All her fears for Cassandra had finally been realized.

“What can we do?” Xenia said, her voice shrill as her panic flared again. “We have to leave. We have to go now. We’ll go to Delos, beg the Emperor to let her out. I’ll tell him it was my fault. I helped her, Cael. It’s my fault. He can take me instead.”

Cael’s brows pinched, his lips a thin line. “You know that’s not possible. The best thing you can do right now is be strong for her. Tristan and the Teles Chrysos will free her as soon as they take Delos. Focus on our own plan to get out of here and join the rebels so you can be reunited with her.” He cupped her cheeks and brought their faces together. “ I am in control of my happiness and my destiny .”

Xenia barked out a garbled laugh. “Since when did you become the positive one?”

Cael gave her a soft smile, stroking a thumb across her lips. “Someone once told me that positivity isn’t effortless. You just have to dare to see the world the way you want to. So, dare to see this world with me. One where you and I are away from all this mess and with our friends again. Close your eyes and picture it.”

Xenia did as she was told, her eyes sliding closed. And she could see that world. The four of them together again, laughing and hugging and crying. A lovely, tear-soaked reunion. She held the image in her heart, clung to it fiercely enough to power through these next weeks.

She popped her eyes open, capturing Cael’s concerned ones, then pushed up from the counter and kissed him.

She tasted like sunshine and starlight. Like sin and madness. Like the decadent joy of the forbidden.

He eased himself between her spread thighs, and she let out a delicious little whimper as he probed his tongue into her mouth.

He shouldn’t be doing this.

But Amatu fucking spare him, he couldn’t help himself.

That stupid, selfish, primal part of his brain insisted he have her. Even if doing so meant putting her in grave danger.

He pulled back to study her: flushed, swollen lips; wild, rebellious curls; hard nipples poking through her thin white chemise.

His cock twitched as his eyes roved down to her legs. To those fucking stockings that drove him half-mad with desire.

He placed his hands on the golden skin just above, running his thumbs along the edges of the wool, and Xenia’s thighs quivered in anticipation.

“Cael,” she breathed.

He flicked his eyes back to hers, and the lust shining there ripped away the last shred of his sanity.

His hands roved higher, coasting over the crease of her hip. He dragged her chemise above the taut plane of her stomach, and she arched her back as his knuckles traced over her breasts. He tossed her chemise aside, then ran his thumb across a peaked bud while she writhed against the counter.

He leaned in, their mouths inches apart. “You want this?”

“You know I do.” She grabbed his wrist and pushed his hand between her legs, to the wet heat waiting for him. He murmured a curse.

She surged forward and kissed him again, laying her hand atop his and grinding his fingers against her slick panties.

He was hard as a fucking rock, all rational thought buried. He needed to make her come. He needed to feel her fall apart on his fingers. He needed to give her something in return for her gentle words and buoyant spirit.

He wrenched his hand from underneath hers, and she huffed a frustrated breath against his mouth.

He pulled back and cocked an eyebrow at her. “Off,” he ordered, dipping his eyes to her panties. “Now.”

A thrill shuddered through her limbs as she scooted around on the counter, pulling them off and letting them fall to the floor. She went to remove the stockings, but he stilled her with a shake of his head.

“No. Leave those on. And open your legs.”

Xenia leaned back against the mirror and obeyed his request.

Stygios end him.

Her flushed pink sex gleamed, and the sight of her bared to him in nothing but those wool stockings was the hottest fucking thing he’d seen in one-and-a-half centuries of life.

He spent a long minute admiring her. Committing the view to memory in case this was the last time.

She stroked her thighs, beckoning him.

He tried to draw up an ounce of guilt for what he was about to do. Technically, he was promised to another female.

But his selfish heart only wanted her .

The luminous little star splayed across his counter. His guiding light through the darkness.

He stepped into her, his cock throbbing behind his zipper, and slid a finger inside her at the same time as he cupped one small, perfect breast.

Her hips jolted forward, and she threw her head back.

She reached out to grab him, to pull him closer, but he caught her wrists in one hand and pulled them above her head.

“No touching,” he murmured, running his lips down her neck as he continued to pump his finger in and out of her slowly. He didn’t want her to touch him. He wanted this to be solely about her pleasure—and he might come in his pants if she did.

Her wrists strained against his grip. “Cael, please .”

He squeezed them tighter. “No. Focus on how I’m making you feel. Don’t worry about me.”

He turned his hand, adding a second finger and pressing the base of his palm against her swollen clit.

“Oh, f-f-fuck. ” Her stuttering moan thickened his cock further. A bright bolt of pleasure that nearly pitched him over the edge. He’d thought of no one else since he’d left her in Rhamnos. Hadn’t even touched himself. And that pent-up frustration was threatening to explode.

He pumped into her, circling his palm against her clit, feeling her inner walls ripple and shudder as she rolled her hips against his hand.

She was close.

“You can take more, Blondie,” he growled against her neck, biting against her galloping pulse and drinking down the intoxicating taste of her skin, the scent of her arousal.

“ Yes. ”

He added a third finger, then switched out the base of his palm for his thumb, which he brushed over her clit in teasing, rhythmic strokes.

Her breathing stilled, her entire body taut as a bowstring. All her muscles tensed and released, then tensed again in shorter and shorter increments.

He released her wrists, traveling his palm up one of her hands and intertwining their fingers.

She brought her other hand to his face and cupped his cheek as he pressed their foreheads together, staring into her enchanting emerald eyes as he fucked her with his fingers.

And even though he was fully clothed, he felt stripped bare. An intimacy he’d never experienced with anyone.

He curled his fingers, stroking the tips across that spot just inside her entrance as he circled her clit with the pad of his thumb.

“Give it to me, Xenia,” he breathed against her lips.

Her brows furrowed and her thighs pushed together slightly before they slammed back out again and she jerked against his hand, her sex pulsing around his fingers.

A scream tore from her throat, and he swallowed it with a kiss, devouring the sweet sounds of her climax as his own shuddered down his spine.

As she came down from the high, he removed his fingers, but continued to stroke his thumb over her clit. She squealed and pushed his hand away. “Too sensitive,” she breathed as she fell against his torso, and he chuckled.

They spent several minutes like that, Cael holding her, stroking her hair. Her breathing returned to normal.

She pulled away and gazed up at him, satisfaction and wonder in her eyes. “What was that for?”

He tilted her chin up with a finger, and pressed a gentle kiss to her addicting lips. “That was for you.”

Her eyes flicked to the wet spot at his groin. “Looks like it might have been for you, too.”

He pinched one of her curls between his fingers. “I couldn’t help it. I crave you. The sounds you make. The way you taste. I’ve been dying to touch you since the moment you came back to me.”

He pulled the silver cuff from his pocket and placed it on her wrist.

She smiled up at him. “What’s this?”

“Tristan gave it to me. It will help us communicate. Just tap the violet stone and picture me in your mind, and you’ll be able to send me messages. Sort of like windwhispers. And the opal will allow you to portal wherever you like—within the estate, obviously. Though I wouldn’t use that one very often. Only if you’re completely sure that where you intend to land is empty. We should test it now; go back down to your room so you can put on a new uniform. Then I’m going to take you to see Mistress Ostere to have you reassigned.”

“No,” Xenia bit out, brows furrowed. “I need legitimate access to Elodie’s room. And I need you to get me that key.”

Cael scrubbed a hand down his face. “You’re going to get caught, Blondie.”

She shot him a sharp glare. “Cael.”

“No.”

“ Cael. ”

“I said no !”

She jumped down from the counter, her breasts jiggling, and he nearly forgot what they were arguing about.

She bent over to grab her panties and chemise, then hastily pulled them on. Her frustration was so adorable that he had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. High Gods , he was such an asshole. But if he broke, she’d resume her ill-advised campaign to spy on his fiancée.

Dressed again, she ran her fingers through her hair, pulling out the last few pins. “Thanks for the orgasm, pterodactyl, but if you’re not going to get me that key, I’ll do it myself.”

She made to stride past him, but he caught her elbow. He didn’t understand why she was so insistent.

“Zee, just leave it. There are far more important things to be doing.” Cael leaned in again, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “And you’re going to prefer your new assignment.”

She cocked a brow. “Oh, am I?”

“Trust me.” Cael nodded, then lifted her wrist and tapped the cuff, portaling them out of the room.

After a quick trip to Xenia’s quarters to snag a clean uniform and ensure she could hide the cuff beneath her sleeve—and after Cael did some careful rearranging of his untucked shirt to hide the spot on his pants—he brought her to Mistress Ostere to secure her new assignment.

The Stoneridge estate library was a beautiful stone and glass building just inside the entrance gate and separate from the main house.

It wasn’t as large as the Temple library in Thalenn, but certainly larger than one would expect to find within a private residence.

When he opened the thick glass door, Xenia’s jaw dropped, her gaze gamboling through the hall.

The exact reaction he’d been hoping for.

“Told you you’d like it.” He winked.

Flowing up to the coffered ceiling, three full floors of shelves were accessed by an iron spiral staircase. On the main floor, tufted leather couches and an arrangement of oak tables surrounded a floor-to-ceiling riverstone fireplace.

He placed his hand at the small of her back, savoring the contact. He wanted to steal her back to his bedroom and lock her away from the world. Keep her safe.

Keep her his .

But cocooning Xenia here among her beloved books, hidden from the prying eyes of Arran and Tomas—not to mention his fucking fiancée—gave him at least some sense of security. He could’ve kissed Mistress Ostere when she’d agreed to it.

He walked Xenia up to the main desk and the human librarian, a middle-aged woman with soil-dark hair and kind eyes, bowed at his approach.

“Master Zephryus,” she said, “what a pleasure. What can I do for you today?”

“Good to see you again, Margaret.” He pasted on his most charming smile. One that felt less fake than it might have a few weeks ago. Swore he saw Xenia bite her lip to stifle a chuckle. “This is Mistress Cirillo. She’s new on staff and she’s been assigned to the library.”

“Wonderful.” Margaret’s eyes twinkled with genuine merriment. “I’ll be happy for the help.”

“She’s also assisting me with some research.” Cael leaned a forearm onto the desk. “I’ve been away from Stoneridge for too long, and I need to get up to speed on my father’s business ventures. I trust you’ll make sure she’s not too bogged down with dusting and re-shelving to help me?”

Margaret sighed, enraptured by the full force of Cael’s charisma. “Of course. Whatever you need.”

“You’re a doll, Margaret, thank you.” The woman giggled, a peony blush staining her cheeks. Xenia was shaking with barely concealed laughter. “I’ll show her around the hall, then leave her to your care.”

Margaret dipped her head. “As you wish.”

Cael tapped a hand against his heart, a gesture of gratitude, then led Xenia to the first row of stacks, loudly naming the section.

Once he knew Margaret couldn’t overhear them, he cornered Xenia, placing his hands on the shelf behind her head and caging her between his arms.

“ Whatever you need, Master Zephryus ,” Xenia teased in Margaret’s high-pitched voice. “High Gods, you had that woman—and Mistress Ostere, I might add—eating out of the palm of your hand.”

He smirked, leaning in close enough to run his nose along her cheek. Fuck, she smelled damn-near edible. Especially with that lingering arousal still on her. “I can be charming when I want to be.”

“Good thing I’m not silly enough to fall for it.” Her eyes glittered with mischievous intent, and it took all of his restraint to not pull up her skirt, wrap her thighs around his waist and fuck her right here in the blissfully empty stacks.

“Oh, never,” he grinned, feeling better than he had in weeks. Xenia coming on his fingers probably had something to do with it. “I was serious about the research though. I’ve given you the perfect cover. See what you can find about both the tracking device and the dragon while you’re in here.”

Xenia swiveled her gaze across the titles, a giddy child in a well-stocked candy store. Her grateful smile nearly stopped his heart.

“I’ve got to run,” he said, reluctantly. “My father’s expecting me to brief him on my meetings today. You’ll be okay alone?”

“I will be now.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Don’t get distracted. You know what we’re looking for.”

“Yeah, yeah. Tracking device. Dragon. Flute. Any books on what a massive asshole your father is. Got it.”

Cael chuckled, glancing left and right to ensure they lacked an audience, then kissed her temple. “Have fun, Blondie. Behave. Message me on the cuff if you find anything and we can meet in the stable loft.”

She waved him away, then took off down the stacks, vibrating with excitement.

Cael shook his head ruefully as he left, thanking Margaret again, and trudged up the path to the main house.

With Xenia safely ensconced within the library, he felt like he could breathe for the first time in days.

It was unfamiliar, this thing blooming in his chest.

It almost felt like hope.