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"One of us usually goes into town every month or two. There are some witches we trade supplies for, which allows us to get things like bread and spice," Dusk explains, and I can tell he's trying to be nice.
Rayne eats another spoonful. "I don't know anything about cooking. Our staff always took care of it at the mansion."
"We had a staff at our castle too," Phantom tells him. "But even so, we were expected to know how to do things like hunt and cook."
Rayne nods, and I follow their easy conversation with interest, wondering what the hell changed between them that they're talking so comfortably to each other now. "That wasn't so much our focus. My parents wanted me to learn politics, mostly. To know how to dance with young women, how to impress powerful men and women alike. I never enjoyed it much, but as the heir, it always felt like it was necessary."
"Being an heir is... difficult," Phantom says, and there's pain in his eyes once more.
"No matter what we do, we'll make mistakes." Rayne seems to choose each word with care. "I mean, I went and got myself killed after all."
Dusk laughs. Onyx, who's been watching the exchange, gives a snort, and I'm still staring at all of them trying to figure out this new twist.
"You guys are getting along." I don't realize I've spoken aloud until all eyes are on me. Instantly, I feel my cheeks heat.
"Smooth, darling, real smooth," Rayne teases.
I feel like my face is on fire. "It's just that the last time you were all together I thought you were going to kick each other's asses."
"She's not wrong," Dusk mutters.
"But we came to an understanding of sorts," Rayne says, and he won't look me in the eye, so I don't know what to think, but my mind is spinning.
"What kind of understanding?"
Dusk gives me a small smile that makes my heart race. "Eat first, fae."
Fae. He says it like a term of endearment. But, hell, he could have called mebitchin that tone right now, and I'd be swooning. Damn that handsome shadow beast.
"Fine," I tell him, then eat even faster.
Rayne smothers a laugh behind his hand. The mandoesknow me well enough to know that I'm not exactly the patient type.
After a few minutes, we finish eating and I look at everyone, taking a deep breath, but before I can say a word, Phantom says, “We need to talk.”
I'm sure I look ridiculous. When I realize my mouth is hanging open, I close it, but it isn't enough. I feel like a train that was on a track, and now I'm in the middle of the woods, not sure how I got there.
I had a plan. A specific thing I wanted to say. But as I look at all the men, it seems, based on their expressions, that this is something they all want to be said. Something they want me to listen to. Considering everything that’s happened, and how difficult my rejection of them has been, I finally nod. I can at least listen to them first, since they’ve been putting themselves in danger to protect me.
“We have to talk about the mating bond.” Phantom’s voice is deep, a half-growl that could be a purr.
"That's exactly what I wanted to talk about," I say, and I'm not sure whether I'm relieved or even more worried.
At least they're not fighting.That's a good sign, right?
Phantom squares his shoulders, and an air of a royalty instantly falls over him. "As you know, the shadow king pulled the moon stone from the sky and broke it into shards. These are the shards you are helping us find.” Of course I know about the shards.But what does this have to do with the mating bond?“I don't know how he learned to steal our moon. I don't know how he learned that he could use the shards to create a connection to the earth, a way to expand the shadow world. But it's clear he wants to control the earth and put an end to humanity. Hell, he wants to put an end to all living creations here, just as he did to our world.”
I nod, because what else am I supposed to say? The story isn’t new, just varied by who tells it and what details they include.
“But you said this is about the mating bond. The thing is, I still don’t understand how creating this bond will stop the king.” It’s an intricate ploy if it’s only about having sex. That would be flattering if that is what it is, but I doubt it.
Dusk sighs, looks at the other two shadow beasts, then presses on as if he wishes they were discussing something else, anything else. “Once, we were in love with a woman.”
Something strange and foreign twists in my gut.They were?They never mentioned this before. But then again, I'd be a fool to think I was the first woman they'd ever met or cared for. We're in our early twenties, at least, probably mid-twenties for them. By this point a lot of people have had a few heartbreaks under their belt, so why does the idea of another woman they were in love bother me so much?
"Okay," I manage, failing miserably to conceal my hurt feelings at the revelation.
Dusk nods at Phantom and it's like they're sharing a thought like only siblings can, but then Onyx nods, too, before Dusk continues. “She wasn't a mate, but a love. True and deep. We grew up together in our castle. We watched her grow from a girl into a woman, just as we grew from boys to men. We shared moments, stories, and it felt very natural. We had never felt a mate bond before, so part of us wondered if that was what we were feeling, even though we weren't sure at the time.”
