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Vento and Luca had left already, but I spotted Blaise and Valentina still near the edge of the pit, surrounded by people who looked friendly and protective. When I caught Blaise’s eye, she motioned me over.
“This boy is not playing around,” she said, gesturing down to where Kas was already gleefully pummeling Jillian.
“I... may have promised him anaimabond later,” I said quietly, feeling my cheeks heat as Blaise cackled. Even Valentina cracked a smile, though she looked a little pale. Just as pissed-off as ever, though.
“Hey, we’re heading out. Val’s family has a place in the countryside between here and the palace. It’s safer there, since both of us have surrendered. But if you need me...whenyou need me back at the palace...” Blaise said, her eyes fixed on the match as she pretended not to be totally invested in my answer.
“I don’t see any shame in surrendering, and you two willalwaysbe welcome in my Queendom. Head of the Guards?” I suggested, and her eyes snapped to mine.
“You fucking know it,” Blaise said, and Valentina giggled.
“Honeymoon first, babe. Kas isn’t the only one getting lucky this week.”
“Aw, I fucking love you two together,” I said, grinning so wide my face hurt when Blaise gave Val a sexy little grin. I’d had my suspicions and my hopes, but this was fantastic. “You might want to lay low for a while, though.”
“Hence the countryside,” Val said, still managing to roll her eyes at me.
“But first, I have an idea. I found out where the dragons are being held,” Blaise whispered, and Val’s eyes shone with mischief.
“No,” she said though, pointing at me.
“No, what?” I asked, laughing.
“You can’t come. You have shit to do here. And by shit, I mean Kas.” She smirked at me just as Blaise whooped, pointing down into the pit.
Jillian had somehow managed to lose both fucking matches during our short conversation.
“Wait, when did they even switch to the magic round?” I asked, blinking down at the mist swirling around the swearing, screaming bitch.
“You really should be more observant, princess. But who cares? Your boy toy just won,” Blaise said.
“Do you surrender?” Merden cried down at Jillian, the force of her words laced with a magical suggestion that was hard to miss.
“No,” Jillian screamed back, sounding a few steps past sanity. “I want to be with my brother. I want Janus. I will never suffer the shame of surrender!”
Blaise snorted. “Good for her. I plan to suffer for weeks in the sweet, sweet solitude of Val’s bed.”
“Solitude? Think again, dummy. It’s going to be you. Me. And endless orgasms,” Valentina said with a huff.
“Like I said, good for her,” Blaise murmured, lowering her mouth to Valentina’s and kissing the sour smirk right off her lover’s lips.
The vampires around them - Val’s family from the look of it - began to close ranks and shield the two of them from the rest of the crowd, and I knew it was time to head out. Merden was directing servants to bring dinner now, and it looked like the fights were finally done for the day.
Pushing my way toward the rope ladder leading out of the pit, I made sure I was the first face Kassian saw when he climbed back up amid plenty of raucous cheering.
“You’re about to be so well rewarded for that fight,” I said, giving him the kind of look a man dreams of his whole life.
“Fuck me,” Kas said in a hoarse whisper, grinning wide at his own joke as I pulled him through the jostling, celebrating crowd.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
KANA
I pulled Kassian right past my rooms, then his, taking him directly out a side door of the Vault and into the silent, snow-filled gardens.
They were still overgrown, more forest than garden now, but I remembered a clearing near a pond, sheltered from the wind and offering a smooth bed of evergreen needles with an overhead window into the night sky.
“I want you in the wild. Under the stars and the slivers of the new moons,” I told Kas as we stood next to each other, looking down into the dark pond and watching the stars reflecting in the water. With so little moonlight, the stars were vibrant and demanding, twinkling like they had a message for me if I could only decode it.
