“That’s none of your business.”
He released a small snort of laughter. “Okay then, tell me why Cole cares about any incident involving you… or why he cares aboutyou?” he asked.
Cole didn’t want anyone to know she was his mate because they would use it against him, and she wouldnotgive Orin that weapon. He was Cole’s brother, but they were as close as the north and south poles.
“I guess I’m a really good lay,” she replied with a casual indifference she didn’t feel.
“There are plenty of those in the world, and he’s had many of them. He wouldn’t protect a single one of them. So, whyyou?”
Lexi somehow managed to keep herself from wincing over his words, but she didn’t keep her reaction completely hidden from him. This conversation wasn’t going how she’d planned, but then, she hadn’t planned any of this. She had no idea what she was going to say or do when she came here tonight.
“And if Cole is so concerned about you, where is he that he can’t protect you himself?”
Lexi gulped; she would have to tell him about his father now. “He’s going through the trials.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Orin openedhis mouth to respond before closing it. His forehead furrowed, and he shook his head before looking to her again. His shock and confusion were evident, but there was also a growing understanding in his eyes.
An understanding he sought to deny if his next question was any indication.
“What trials?” he asked.
“The dark fae trials to become king. Orin, your father is dead,” Lexi whispered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tell you like this…. I don’t know how…. I… I… meant to tell you, but….”
Her voice trailed off as she realized she was talking in pointless circles and sounding like an idiot. Orin stared at a spot over her shoulder. She had no idea what the look on his face was—grief, confusion, denial, anger?
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I know how difficult it is to lose your dad.”
“That can’t be true,” Orin said. “He can’t be dead.”
Lexi had thought the same thing when word of her father’s death arrived. It was easy to deny something when you didn’t witness it.
“Cole was there,” she said. “He saw it happen.”
He finally blinked. “Cole was there?Hetold you this?”
“Yes.”
When his gaze ran over her again, his interest was much keener. Lexi refused to fidget beneath his scrutiny.
“What happened to my father?” he demanded.
Lexi took a deep breath before telling him how the Lord of the Shadow Realms ordered the death of the king of the dark fae… and why. She contemplated telling him that Cole wasn’t on the Lord’s side anymore and planned to fight against the evil monster, but she kept the words to herself.
She already felt like she was betraying Cole by keepingthissecret from him. If he wanted Orin to know he planned to kill the Lord, he would tell him once he found out Orin was here.
When she finished, Orin’s only reaction was a slow blink. Lexi stared at her feet as she dug the toe of her sneaker into the ground; he had to understand he was a big part of the reason his father was dead. That wasn’t a burden anyone should have to bear, not even an asshole like Orin.
“I have to go,” Lexi said. “I’ll leave through one of the exits in the woods. That way, if someone sees me returning to the manor, I can claim I couldn’t sleep and went for a walk.”
“Who goes out for a walk in the middle of the night?”
“I do… on occasion. It’s peaceful at night, no one is around to bother me, and I love the song of the crickets and tree frogs. Besides, it’s better than me emerging from the tunnels and into the manor. Brokk doesn’t know the tunnels exist, and Sahira would have endless questions for me. You’re going to have to be more careful; I don’t know how long Brokk is staying here.”
“Cole intends to be the next dark fae king.”
It wasn’t a question, but Lexi answered him anyway. “Yes. He didn’t have a choice. And now, he’s already started them. If he doesn’t do as the Lord commands, the Lord has promised to level the Gloaming.”
