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“Have you run out of fresh tie and sock combos?” Aspen asks so innocently, as if I didn’t know her better. Chase can’t contain himself this time, earning a glare from me—time and place, asshole.
“The naming ceremony is about to take place, and I still have no idea what to do with the bunch of you. Never have I had to deal with such insolence-” Aspen snorts, causing Lorcan to glare daggers. I fight the urge to step in front of her, needing to remind myself that Lorcan isn’t a threat. He’s a father and a king trying to ensure his kingdom remains in good hands. This time, I share a sympathetic look with Aspen, willing her to give him a break.
“I wasn’t raised to conform to vampire law,” Aspen raises her hands. “I raised myself, which means I must rely on my instincts to see me through each day. You say I’m being insolent; you treat me as a child because I’m not centuries old. And maybe you’re right. But I know myself. I know who I am and what I want.” Breaking away, Aspen puts herself halfway between Lorcan at his desk and the three of us watching intently. Her gaze glints while I drink in her appearance for the first time, completely stunned.
White hair falls over one shoulder in loose curls, the other side braided back from her beautiful face. Light makeup has been applied in true Nova fashion, highlighting Aspen’s navy eyes with a silver shimmer. Her full lips are a pale, icy blue to match the most exquisite gown hugging her body. Glimmering jewels embedded in the lace, from her chest to the lengthy train, sparkle around hints of pale blue and white. Ice-like spokes create a flourish across her breasts, leaving her shoulders bare. White gloves stretch to her elbows, her hands planted on the flare of her hips. When she moves, I see a hint of her standard white sneakers poking out from beneath.
“I don’t mean to be disrespectful,” Aspen breathes, addressing Lorcan. “The rules you’ve had to put in place have ensured the survival of your…our species. Your role is built around making tough decisions; one of those was to seek me out. To trust me to rule alongside a mate. There’s much I don’t know, but I know my own heart. I want to be loved, worshipped, and protected. So, if you’re asking me to choose, to pick one to be content with for eternity, you’re not going to like your answer.”
The air thickens as a swell of pride puffs out my chest. Had it been any other female, she would have bent to Lorcan’s will. Compared myself against my brother’s and made the logical decision for her future. But since the day I met her, Aspen has ruled with her heart. Never allowing the pressure to adapt affect her feelings towards us. In this moment, regardless of Lorcan’s response, we’ve all won. Ture equals, only invested in her complete happiness.
“Walk with me,” Lorcan commands, leaving no room for disagreement. He walks ahead, and Aspen just after, her head held high as they pass and exit the room. I share a look with Torsten and Chase before rushing to follow. We’re led to Lorcan’s personal bed-chamber, the scent of Rowena’s mother all over his bedsheets. My nose wriggles, and a harsh exhale leaves me.
We’re back to this bullshit of self-destruction. Bronwyn is tough to tolerate at the best of times, but when she thinks she has Lorcan wrapped around her little finger, it’s insufferable. No matter how many times he picks her up and drops her like a cheap whore, in an attempt to forget how his soul is splintering briefly, she’s convinced she’ll be queen one day. Only Lorcan won’t be around long enough to see it happen.
Opening the double doors leading out to his balcony, Lorcan allows Aspen to pass before holding a hand up to the rest of us. He wants to be alone with her, and if we weren’t personally invested in the outcome of their conversation, we would have respected his decision. Instead, as the doors are drawn closed, we rush to the other side and hide within the curtains to listen in. Chase bends low, his head knocking against my dick and putting me in a precarious position.
“You’re a stubborn mule Lorcan,” Aspen starts, and I slam my face into my palm. “So, you must forgive me for bearing the same trait.”
“I do, to a degree,” the king sighs. Through a crack in the curtain, I watch him approach Aspen by the rounded stone wall lining the balcony and stop at her side. A full moon beams down from above, coating the pair in a white glow. Two lost shadows against the night, hunting for a way to build the connection they should have never been denied.
“Orianna once told me everlasting love requires an equal amount of compromise and sacrifice. I gave her both. In fact, I gave her everything I had, losing the grasp on my responsibilities in the process. Some of us aren’t meant for the life we choose.” Lorcan’s head lowers, his hands gripping the short wall.
“Was she your true mate?”
“Without a doubt.” Lorcan nods, not a breath of hesitation. Angling her body towards him, Aspen raises her hand to touch his shoulder and then thinks better of it.
“I’m thankful that for whatever brief period of time, my mother knew what it meant to be loved. To the point where I’m regretful, I was her biggest sacrifice.” Lorcan begins to speak, but Aspen talks over him. “But I must believe her choice was to give me the best chance at a free life. Not one bound by these walls and ancient rules meant to restrict me. I’m a wolf, Lorcan; I don’t do well behind stone walls.”
“Is this your way of telling me, should I deny your request, you will leave?” My own heart jackhammers in my chest. She’s serious about this. Across the glass planes, Torsten’s chest rumbles behind the opposite curtain, his eyes beginning to glow with golden flecks. His muscles ripple with the desire to smash something, but a swift whistle brings his attention to my raised hand. If nothing else, I’m still his commander, and it’s engrained in him to obey me. The next time Aspen speaks, I note out of the corner of my eye that she’s turned to sit on the wall, directly facing the double doors.
“Half of my soul requires freedom, and she finds it in Chase’s laugh. In the way Torsten’s tough exterior comes crumbling down whenever we’re nearby. In Jaxon’s soothing presence. They are my freedom. That’s the compromise I’m offering, should you be determined, I must stay.”
“What of Sawyer?” Lorcan hits back. A long pause follows, Aspen’s face falling to shadow.
“What of him? He told me he was my guardian, promised to keep me safe, and left after one kiss.” An uneasy feeling churns in my gut. I see what’s happening here, the king has seen a last-ditch attempt to change Aspen’s mind. Whether his intention is for Aspen to stay with one of us or leave with him, it won’t work. I’m more loyal to Lorcan than anyone in this castle, but I’ll follow Aspen to the ends of the earth. Wherever she is, that’s where my home will be.
“Do you remember the night you told me about that kiss? How I reacted?” Lorcan presses on. Aspen nods. “There’s much I need to tell you.” I can merely stand here, gripping Chase’s shoulder to hold him in place, and listen to Lorcan relay the meaning behind a moon bond, how Sawyer has been chosen for her by a higher power, supposedly rendering her emotionally unavailable to any other. A crack jerks beneath my grip, Chase’s collarbone snaps at the extent of my rage, but he doesn’t so much as whimper. The fury radiating from him rivals my own.
“I can understand you feel guilty choosing one male,” Lorcan continues, “but there is a shifter out there who already has your heart. This is a decision for your head. We need a ruler, and as much as I love Rowena, she isn’t up to the job. You’re strong, Aspen, you have what it takes to be a powerful ruler. I’ve indulged your fantasy thus far, but this is merely a blip in time compared to your long existence.”
A blip?Did my own king just refer to the depths of my feelings for his daughter a blip? Chase stands now, and despite all of his bravado, his hand slips into mine as his head lowers onto my shoulder. Ragged breaths expand his back, a battle for control taking place. Torsten shoots to my shoulder, patting Chase’s head whilst muttering.
“She’s going to choose us.” I nod, willing myself to believe him. The past few weeks have revealed many things, most of all the lengths the four of us are willing to go to make Aspen’s harem work. Her happiness is our only purpose. If I thought either of my brothers felt even a fraction less of the love for her than I do, I’d have taken the tough role of weeding them out. But it’s simply not true.
“If Sawyer is my moon bond mate, then where is he?” Aspen asks, and collectively, the three of us tense.
“His soul is bound to yours. You tell me,” Lorcan dares her. Golden eyes lift to meet ours through the glass, indecision evident in her brows. I shake my head, barely registering her muttered words in time.
“I’m sorry. I have to know.” My heart leaps into my throat, barely having time to react as Aspen throws herself over the back of the stone wall. We don’t waste time on the door handle. Smashing through the glass, the three of us rush to the railing, spotting no trace of Aspen in the grass mound or town below.
“What have you done?!” I shout, bumping chests with Lorcan. My hands form fists at my sides, my eyes wild with anger.
“Careful,” Lorcan growls, snapping his fingers. A line of royal guards appear on the balcony, rushing to aid the king’s command. “I can easily leave you all in the dungeon to rot for real this time. I need an heir, and some false sense of love won’t stand in my way.”
Chapter23
Aspen
