Page 107 of Gilded Curses

“Yes, you were.”

Orin grinned. At one time, it would have annoyed him that Cole knew him so well; now, he enjoyed it. He’d missed this.

“Yeah, I was,” he admitted, and they all laughed together.

CHAPTER EIGHTY-NINE

“So… the dark fae?” Del asked as he walked with Sahira to her room. Shade trotted beside her.

She’d known it was coming, but he’d waited longer to broach the subject than she’d anticipated. “It was not something I planned. That realm changed us; him for the better… in some ways, but in many ways, he is still very much Orin.”

She wouldn’t change that about him.

“What about you? How did it change you?”

“Me…?” She shrugged as her voice trailed off. “I’m stronger. I had to be; it was so awful there.”

“And you did what was necessary to survive.”

“Yes, but… I enjoyed killing those dagadon. That’s never happened to me before.”

“It’s understandable after everything they did, but are you going to be okay with it?”

She pondered this before responding. “Yes. I’m different but also happier than before I left.” Sahira gulped before meeting her brother’s gaze; concern shimmered in his blue eyes. “I know it’s impossible to believe, and you must think I’m an idiot for falling for a dark fae, especially Orin, but I really do love him. Believe it or not, he does love me too.”

Del released a loud breath. “Okay, but do you trust him?”

“At one time, I would have said it was impossible to trust Orin, and I would have been right. Now, I trust him with everything I am and know that’s right… for me.”

“So, I shouldn’t trust him then,” Del said with a laugh.

“Could you, after all the history between you?”

“Depends.”

“On what.”

“On how he treats you.”

For a while, Orin’s treatment of her hadn’t been so great, but as they always did, things changed. In this instance, she was certain they’d changed for the better.

“The Cursed Realm changed him more than me. He’s not the same man he once was. Don’t get me wrong, he’s still vicious, manipulative, and will destroy almost anyone who gets in his way, but he made friends and has empathy. He also gave his heart to me.”

She wasn’t sure it would be enough for him to settle down and stay that way, but time would tell. She could still end up with a broken heart, but until then, she would love him, and he would love her.

No one ever knew what the future held, and she planned to savor every minute of happiness they shared.

“I fought it so hard,” she admitted in a whisper. “I’ve spent more time hating him than loving him. He drove me crazy, and I punched him a couple of times.”

Del grunted. “Good.”

Sahira leaned against his side as she smiled. “But no matter how relentlessly I fought it, I was still drawn to him. It was as frustrating as the man himself.”

“Hmm,” Del murmured before falling silent. After a minute, he asked, “Do you think he could be your consort?”

Sahira straightened away to frown at him in confusion. “What?”

“Your consort. Vampires have an intense mate bond too, like lycans. Or did you forget that?”