“Hey,” he whispered gently, placing one of his hands against the back of my neck. “You can’t blame yourself for their actions, D. We both know that you never would have done it. And even if youdidtell her, it wouldn’t have changed the fact that Cain is a monster.”
“We could have protected her!” I yelled at him. His blue eyes stared back at me, their softness unwavering. “If I had told Kaiden, maybe he would have stopped the senseless bickering with her. He might have taken her sooner. I don’t know… But I know that I should have donesomething!”
He pressed his lips together, giving me a moment to breathe, before speaking again. “It’s not your fault, D.”
“I should have helped her.”
When his forehead touched mine, I let out a staggering breath and felt my shoulders drop.
“It’s not your fault,” he said again.
I didn’t know where this patience of his came from. He always knew how to settle the storm that swirled in my mind.
“The seer will take you to the tunnels, and you’ll get her back.”
“And when we do?” I asked, nerves fluttering in my chest.
Warmth spread across my skin as his hand slid from behind my neck to my jaw, lifting my face to look up at him again. One of his brown locks fell, brushing the top of his brow. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m here.” His nose brushed mine, making my lips tingle in anticipation. “I’ll… always… be here.”
Before I could respond, his lips were on mine, and my feet moved until my back hit the bookshelf. This was what I needed.Him. His touch. His kiss. My hands slid into his hair as I opened for him, letting his tongue touch mine with a heat that scrambled my mind just enough to make me forget.
“I love you,” he whispered, his voice thick with desire as his hand slid down my chest, undoing the buttons of my shirt. “Nothing will change that. No blood bond. No queen. I amyours.”
I quickly fumbled to remove my shirt before ripping his open, running a hand down his chest—craving to feel every inch of him. “Yours,” I breathed, and bit his bottom lip just enough to draw the smallest drop of blood. “I will always be yours.”
Once his hand slid down the front of my pants, I gasped, but Stefan’s other hand found my lips and muffled the moan that slipped out. “Prove it to me,” he whispered, his lashes lowering as heat crept into his cheeks.
His fingers wrapped around my already-hardened length, and my eyes rolled back as he began to move. Tonight, I would have to put the mask on again. I’d have to find Morrigan, bring her back, and I’d tell her everything. I could only pray to every one of the gods that she’d understand.
But for now?
I placed my hand on the back of Stefan’s head, gripping his hair as his hands fell from my lips. He lowered slowly to the floor, his eyes never leaving mine until he knelt before me.
“Open your mouth,” I told him.
Chapter 3
CASSIUS
I’m so fuckinghungry.
Shoving more food in my mouth, I tried to ignore the ache in my stomach that had it twisting into knots. But, no matter the amount that I ate, it didn’t take away the emptiness that kept me hollow and empty. She hated me—I knew she did. The day that Eris, Naaz, and I met with her to feed, I could see it in her eyes. Eyes that once glistened with innocence and desire were empty…cold.
That was, until she looked up at Kaiden. The man, who had treated her no better than the dirt under his shoe, held a piece of her that none of us seemed worthy of. It angered me in a way that I couldn’t even begin to describe. But I wasn’t angry at her or Kaiden.
No, I was angry at myself.
If only I had told her…
Harley had encouraged me to. The more time he spent with her, the more he felt she deserved to know. Fuck… Harley. Herfather. If he had known back then, he would have forced me to tell her. Though, it would have been immediately followed by an ass-kicking for what transpired between me and Morrigan after the damned arrow pierced my ribs. Actually, he probably would have killed me instead.
I shoved my plate of food away, staring at the small mountain of bones that sat atop the porcelain. “Myren!” I called out. His feet scurried across the floor, stopping beside my seat. “Is there any update?”
“N-No, My Lord.” He bowed his head and slowly retrieved the plate from the table. “I have asked each of the staff. No one has seen her in weeks.”
I wanted Shae. None of the younger staff understood me in the way that she did. She was honest and intrusive, and it was exactly what I needed right now. But she was also close to Morrigan. She had taken her under her wing in a motherly way that Morrigan had needed more than anything else. I needed that piece of Morrigan, a memory to cling to. Unfortunately for me, and everyone forced to be in my vicinity, Shae decided thatnowwould be the time for the only vacation she’s ever taken since working in this castle.
“Someone has to have seen her,” I insisted, gripping my chalice—that I had ordered to be filled to the brim with wine at all times—so hard that my knuckles were screaming at me. “She wouldn’t just disappear like that.”
