by JL Madore
“Welcome all, to the pre-drink event,” I say, opening the door for my brother and his mates. “Creed’s so happy you could join us.”
“We wouldn’t miss it,” Kotah says, hugging me.
“Still, it’s a lot of travel for you guys going back and forth a couple of times a week.”
“We don’t mind,” Calli says. “Hawk’s used to gallivanting across the country and with his private jet, and if it brings us to you and Honor, we’ll deal.”
“Meh,” Brant waggles his brows. “It’s perfectly enjoyable when you use the time wisely.”
I laugh and point at him. “Don’t elaborate.”
Kotah chuckles. “Ignore him. The travel time is fine and soon it’ll be even better. We’ve been working on our plans for the Pennsylvania Prime Palace and things are shaping up.”
I’m so excited about that.
“Is Lukas here?” Hawk asks.
“No, he moved into our room of the heir’s suite and is keeping an eye on her tonight. Shadow’s been sitting with her and he thinks there has been some progress with her cognitive awareness.”
Calli grins. “That’s fantastic. I can’t wait to check in on her.”
I nod. “You guys can either claim a guest room in our suite here or claim the Auburn Suite and be close to Honor and Lukas, whichever you prefer.”
Kotah waves that away. “I want to be with you, to see where you’re living, and spend time with your mates in your new home.”
I’m glad. I want that too.
“Then I suppose I should invite you past the front foyer then, shouldn’t I? We’ll save the grand tour for after the coronation. For now, Rhy and Doc are waiting in the great room. We figured we’d have a drink and you all can relax and watch things on the wall screen while we’re gone.”
“So like the green room before the big television debut?” Jaxx asks, following my lead.
“More like watching the game at the pub,” I say, rounding the corner of the wall into the great room. “And you’re playing the part of the bartender, Jaxx. I think you should have everything you need.”
Jaxx stalls out, wide-eyed, and whistles a catcall. “Oh, prepare to get roostered, all of ya.”
Calli laughs. “Lasso it in, cowboy. We’re not here to get roostered. We’re having a celebration drink before Creed and Keyla go on a quadrant-wide broadcast. Them falling over drunk is not the goal here.”
Doc raises his tumbler as the quint come in and settle. “The moment Keyla and I saw this room, we thought of you, Jaguar.”
Jaxx’s long-legged strides carries him across the polished stone floor and around the couches. Once behind the bar, he starts taking inventory of what he has to work with. “Is it my birthday? It feels like it.”
While he’s acting foolish and entertaining everyone, I jog upstairs to check on the man of the hour. When I don’t find him in our suite, I keep searching until I end up in our shared office.
“Hey. Is everything all right? The quint’s here and we’re getting ready for your coronation toast.”
He looks up from behind his desk and pushes a wooden box toward me. “Sorry. I got lost in thought.”
I read his intention for me to open it and take a look. It’s a signet ring with the Thornebane crest on it. “Is this your father’s?”
He shakes his head. “A replacement. Laryssa had the original melted down and destroyed. It’s the same though. It’s the symbolism that counts, I suppose.”
I pick it up and sit on his desk facing him. “So, is there a reason you’re sitting in here staring at a replica of your father’s ring while we have family downstairs and a quadrant waiting to watch you claim your crown?”
He looks up at me and shrugs. “I always thought I’d look forward to ruling. I planned for it my whole life. I hungered for it over the past two years. Now that it’s here, I’d give anything for my father to be alive a little longer. He was a great king. What if I don’t measure up? What if I get it all wrong?”
I pluck the ring out of its padded housing and claim his hand. “I bet, when your father was facing his coronation, he spoke those same words to your mother. Being a great ruler doesn’t come from having all the answers, it comes from being willing to admit you don’t have all the answers and surrounding yourself with capable people who you can trust.”
I slide the ring onto his finger and then hike my skirt so I can widen my legs to straddle his lap. Reaching around his neck to the back, I kiss the worry lines on his forehead. “You and I are here for our citizens. We want the best for them. We’ll heal this quadrant together and we’ll learn to be great leaders together.”
He leans forward and kisses the royal banding on my throat. “I appreciate what you’re saying—and you’re right—but if we don’t get up and leave right now, I’ll need to fuck you on this desk. Sadly, even leaving right now, I may have a noticeable hard-on during my coronation telecast.”
I burst out laughing and hop up. “Not what I was going for, sorry.”
“Not your fault. It seems I can’t be anywhere near you before my need for you burns hot in my blood.”
I let my wolf rise to the surface and growl for him. “That goes both ways.”
I kiss him and now I’m the one with sexual need zinging in my blood. I swallow and pull him out of the office and toward the stairs. “We need to surround ourselves with other people.”
He chuckles. “Good idea.”
The two of us walk hand-in-hand toward the stairs. Everything is still so new, but I hardly remember my life before Creed looked into my eyes that first time.
“I’m sorry Honor couldn’t stand with you today.”
He shrugs. “Me too. It has only been a week. I have faith Lukas will break the Blood Witch’s curses. And with my efforts trying to reach her with mind energy, I have faith she’ll wake up soon.”
“Me too.”
We round the post to the stairs and start to descend together. “And when she does, we’ll all be together to ensure she lives a long and happy life. She deserves it.”
“She does—”
Creed’s expression pinches a moment before he winces and doubles over. “Fuck, that hurts.”
I grab hold of him, worried that he might fall down the stairs. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
A scream bursts from his lips as he curls in on himself, panting. I barely catch him but there’s a real chance both of us will topple down the stairs.
“Help!”
The powerful flap of wings brings the arrival of Hawk’s wildling form almost immediately after I call out. He transforms back into a man in time to block us from tumbling down the steps.
Doc is there a couple of seconds later and then everyone is helping and grabbing and carrying Creed down to the floor on the main level of our suite.
“What’s wrong?” Doc asks, dropping to the ground beside him. “Where’s the pain?”
Creed
“My back. Worse than it’s ever been. It’s on fire. Fuck, make it stop.” The pain is sharp and floods my body. The cursed beast within me roars as red-hot agony burns through my cells.
“How attached are you to this shirt?”
“Fuck the shirt.”
“Jaxx, get it off him.”
I close my eyes, gasping as Jaxx slices down my back. The rending of fabric signals the end of that shirt’s usefulness.
“What’s happening?” Keyla asks.
“What the fuck are we looking at?” Jaxx asks.
There’s a round of male cursing and then someone grabs my ankle. By the rush of soothing energy, it must be Kotah. “All will be well, brother-mine. We are here for you.”
“Why is his back doing that?” Brant asks.
“I think it’s his wings,” Doc says. “Part of his torture was having them shorn off. Do wings grow back?”
“We used my tears on him a week or two ago. Could that have started the process?” Calli asks.
“Or the curse is weakening?” Hawk sugg
ests.
“What do we do?” Keyla asks.
“It looks like they’re trying to break out,” Dillan says. “I say we make two surgical cuts and see what happens. Creed? Any objections to that?”
“I don’t give a fuck. Just do something.”
“Okay, someone go and grab my medical bag from the foyer closet.”
Keyla lays down facing me and clutches my hand and Rhylan spoons her so they’re both there. “We’ve got you, my prince. We’re here.”
“All right,” Dillan says. “This might hurt but with the amount of pain you’re already in, I doubt it.”
I feel the pressure of the blade pressing against the flesh of my back but he’s right, it doesn’t hurt. In a sea of pain, it’s a small ripple on the surface.
“Almost there,” Doc says. “It is your wings. They regrew and are trapped. Once they’re free, this will all be over. It’s like a monarch trying to burst out of a cocoon.”
“Hang in there.” Rhylan’s gaze is bright and beautiful. Fuck I love seeing his eyes.
Bone snaps inside me and the crack ricochets inside my skull. I twist, screaming as blood runs hot down my sides. “Fuck. Get them free.”
I can’t focus. I release Keyla’s hand for fear of breaking it. Rolling onto my stomach, I press my forehead against the polished marble of the floor.
My back is on fire, my skin aflame. Bones and cartilage snap and reform, as my wings break through. The pain is cosmic. It obliterates all thought, all sound.
And then… it stops.
Doc
When Creed falls still, I’m not sure if he blacked out, dropped dead, or what. The dropped dead worry is answered fairly quickly because his chest is still heaving with the pain and his entire body is shaking.
“Is it over?” Keyla blinks up at me with tears pooling in her eyes.
“Yeah, I think so.”
“Fucking hell,” Hawk says, stepping back to sit on the steps. “That was intense, Creed. Glad it’s over.”
Creed barks a laugh that holds no humor and falls limp against the floor. “Yeah, me too.”
“How about we give the four of you a moment of privacy,” Calli says.
“Yeah,” Jaxx says. “We’ll be in the great room drinkin’ hard and trying to numb the past five minutes from our minds.”
“Save us one,” I hand Brant my scalpel and point toward the kitchen. “Just leave it on the counter. I’ll take care of cleaning it later.”
When it’s just the four of us, I drop to one knee to check on our mate. “How are you doing?”
“I’ve been better.” Creed’s voice is a little raw but his pupils are focused and his breathing is normalizing.
I take the discarded tatters of his shirt and wipe up some of the blood on his sides and down his ribs. “I hate to be the one to bring it up, but we need to get you upstairs. You need a quick shower and a fresh outfit before your coronation broadcast and we’ve got no time.”
“Fuck.”
“Yeah, that pretty much covers it.”
“Can’t a guy wallow in his agony for five minutes?”
Rhylan chuckles. “Not if that guy is about to be made king of the quadrant.”
Creed groans and moves to push up onto his palms. He’s got nothing left and gets nowhere.
“Need a little help, mate?” I grip under his arm on one side while Rhylan grabs the other.
Together, we get him back up to our bedroom and into the ensuite. “This isn’t as sexy as our usual strip you down, but it’ll have to do. You know, with the entire quadrant waiting on you and all.”
Keyla is already beautiful in her queenly gown, so Rhylan and I strip down and help him in.
“Don’t get his hair wet if you don’t have to,” she says. “We don’t have time for it to dry again.”
I sweep the length of his silver mane up and hold it out of the way from the spray.
“How do they look?” Creed asks, still barely strong enough to lift his head. “Are they fully restored?”
“Are they supposed to be black and turquoise with sparkles catching the light?” I ask.
His entire body seems to relax with his exhale. “Yes. Thank the gods.”
Rhylan and I get the blood rinsed away and turn off the water as quickly as we can. Keyla meets us with a towel. “I’ve got another outfit set out on the bed. How does dressing work with wings?”
Creed seems to be rousing a bit and starts supporting his weight. “Faeries usually withdraw their wings, wear clothing designed to go around the wing blades, go shirtless, or wear a vest.”
“I looked around your closet and didn’t see anything but dress shirts.”
“That’s because I didn’t have wings when I packed to move into this suite.”
“We don’t have time to go back to the heirs’ suite and get something.”
Creed straightens and stands on his own for the first time, glancing in the mirror. “No, we don’t, but I think my father’s battle leathers are in the chest in the office. I asked Isabo to put them there for me.”
Rhylan jogs off and returns a few minutes later with a set of spank, brown and silver leathers. He pulls the pants on commando which is sexy as fuck, and then Rhy helps him on with the battle vest.
Keyla steps behind him and straightens his long silver hair between his wings.
The king is ready to represent.
“Damn, Creed,” I say, grinning. “You fucking rock those leathers. All I’m picturing now is the coronation afterparty.”
Rhy jogs out of the bathroom, tucking his shirt back in, once again ready for the coronation. “I’m with our bear. We need to have another sexy playroom photoshoot with you wearing that.”
Keyla chuckles. “Doc likes that idea too much. Dude, settle that bad boy down. We’ll be in front of our citizens in less than five minutes.”
The three of them all shift their gazes to my cock and it stands up strong and proud. “Staring at him isn’t helping. But yeah, I’ll get dressed.”
Creed grins. “Let’s get this done and get back here quickly. The king wants private time with his mates.”
I grab my clothes and put a little hustle into it.
Yeah, life is good.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Creed
The next few days pass with an unusual calmness. After the past two years, it keeps me off balance to have things going so smoothly. Keyla and I spend a great deal of time together in the study laying out our plans for the quadrant. As different as our realms might be, we see things in much the same light. Collaboration with her is an incredible addition to my confidence in leading.
And it’s not only my relationship with Keyla that is working out better than I ever thought possible.
After spending our days with the citizens of the Dornte, Keyla and I come back to the King’s Tower and spend our evenings with our mates, laughing, fucking, and generally enjoying one another’s company.
It’s the happiest I’ve ever been.
The only dark spot is Honor’s inability to share it with me.
“What time are you expecting them to come through?” Rhy asks, checking his watch.
Even standing beneath the shaded overhang of the Dornte Portal Hub’s pick-up area, Rhylan’s eyes practically glow in the light. It’s incredible to see him show himself to the world. He’s not only good-looking, but with his hair out of his face, his personality shines through for all the world to see.
Keyla shrugs, waving to someone in the crowd, and smiles like she’s seen a dear friend. “Not sure. The time between the other realm and this one is wonky. I never know if it’s day or night back home. I’m sure they’ll be here soon.”
I follow her delighted gaze and recognize the green-skinned, wrinkle-faced trylle and pixie woman with ombre blue hair and fluttering silver wings.
“Who’s that?” Rhy asks.
“It’s two of the faery outcasts and unwanteds—the people in the underground tunnels who gave us shelter benea
th the city that first night we needed refuge during the hours of curfew.”
“You mean the hours while Doc and I scoured the city searching for you and cleaning up the mess you left behind when you killed Riven.”
Huh, I never thought much about that once we got out of there. “Yeah, then. Thanks for that. Is there anything I should be worried about on that front let me know before it bites me in the ass.”
Rhylan frowns. “Why would it bite you?”
“Because I killed a man and fled the scene.”
Rhy rolls his eyes. “And you’re just getting around to worrying about that now?”
I grin. “It’s been a busy couple of weeks.”
“Yeah, it has.” Rhylan chuckles and waves my concern away. “I took care of it. You’re fine.”
“Creed, come over and say hello,” Keyla says, waving me over to join her. “You remember Coal and Lyree from the tunnels.”
I leave Rhy and Dillan at the shuttle van and join her. I don’t think I knew the woman’s name, but I remember her. “Yes, of course. How are you both?”
The two seem flustered but Keyla hugs them like they are family and they seem to relax. “We are well, thank you, Majesty,” Lyree says. “Congratulations on reclaiming the realm. We are all so pleased for you.”
“You played an important part in that,” Keyla says. “You helped two strangers in a dangerous time. That says a lot about you. We will always be grateful.”
Coal clears his throat. “The universe simply placed the people you needed in your path. All is as it was meant to be.”
“Beautifully said,” Keyla says. “And now that the obstacles have been removed, Dornte is well on its way to being restored as a quadrant of peace and honor.”
Coal smiles at her and I see the affection in his dark, black eyes. I can hardly fault the male for being enamored. I think everyone who meets Keyla is a little thunderstruck… but perhaps I’m biased.
Rhylan
Doc and I watch Keyla and Creed interacting with a couple of citizens in the crowd and I smile. The two of them in action is living magic at work. Soul-seared is a crazy concept but anyone seeing the two of them together can see they are a perfect match.
