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But when he reached us, he was simply an elven man with dark hair and soft eyes. He had a bag of food in hand. I lifted a brow in question.
“If you brought me a salad again, I will make sure you sleep with one eye open for the rest of your life.” I pointed a summoned dagger at Arven.
He laughed. “I have learned my lesson. You are no dainty woman. You are a fighter, and fighters need protein.”
He tossed me a foil-wrapped burger. The smell of bacon and jalapenos warmed my nose and made my stomach growl. As I ravenously unwrapped it, Arven offered Taliesin an apology as he did not come with anything to offer the old fae.
Tal gave a half smile and bowed his head. “No offense taken. I simply came to get Delphine to stop throwing rocks at my Queen’s window.”
Arven’s jaw dropped. He gave me an admonishing look, to which I just smiled and bit into my burger.
“Menace,” Arven muttered under his breath.
“Mutton-head,” was the only thing I could think to throw back at him.
Tal left us alone so we could eat our greasy picnic on the edge of the lake. We sat in silence for a long while. The two of us hardly had anything to say to one another despite everything that’d happened during the day. As the sun drifted towards the horizon and the paper bag of fries emptied, we grew restless.
“Want to go burn down Locke’s warehouse with me?” I asked, casually.
His sigh was deep and rumbling like he couldn’t help but growl with frustration. “As much as I’d like to, my hands are tied here. If I make a move against him, then it will be seen as an act of war.”
That meant I couldn’t ask Cerri or Rhoan for help, either. Their hands would be bound to their crowns as well. For a moment, I considered inviting some of Cerri’s friends. I knew the big blonde would happily help set fires. It seemed to be her favorite thing to do.
I stood and brushed off my pants. “Then leave it to me. I’m going to set all of the beasts free and torch the place.”
But not before I grabbed a few of my family’s things. Those crates belonged to me, and there was no way I would leave them behind.
Arven watched me with an expression I couldn’t read. There was concern pinching the corners of his eyes. His lips were pursed like there was something he wanted to say. He seemed caught between falling back and pushing forward.
I leaned into him and bumped his shoulder with my hip. It was such a familiar gesture that I had to pause after. What was becoming of us? Had we really gone from mortal enemies to fast friends? It seemed like there was no reason not to, now that I knew he’d never been my enemy to begin with.
Locke had planted that idea in my head to keep me away from Arven. The other elven lords thought that I would make Arven the strongest of them all if I became his wife. That wasn’t really on my to-do list at the moment. I’d rather be his friend first.
But my attention dropped to those pursed lips. Arven reached out and put a hand on my hip. His touch was feather-light and warm enough to melt me almost completely. My knees trembled just a little and made me wonder what might happen if I let Arven touch more of me.
“Be careful,” Arven said.
He didn’t pull me back. He didn’t try to convince me that this was a bad idea. Instead, he supported my desire for childish revenge. I didn’t want to spill blood right now; I just wanted to take something from Locke.
And Arven was all right with that.
“Meet you back at your domain?” he asked.
I nodded. “Have the shower ready for me. I’m going to smell like smoke.”
* * *
It took lessthan an hour to stealth into the warehouse by myself, steal the crates of my family’s belongings, unleash the beasts, and set the warehouse on fire. The wooden crates were so dry that they went up in flames with ease. I’d barely even needed the gas can that I’d brought with me.
Hidden on a nearby roof, I watched Locke’s men scramble to catch the wild beasts now running rampant. One got impaled by a kirin, which was justice in my opinion. Who looked at the kirin, a majestic Chinese beast that resembled both a unicorn and a dragon all at the same time, and thoughtI’m going to cage that?
It was satisfying to watch everything Locke built fall into chaos and ruin, but he wasn’t here. My anger simmered on low and still threatened to boil over at any moment no matter how I tried to keep it contained. Evnetually, I stood, put my hands on the crates I’d stolen, and stepped in-between to return to my domain.
While I wanted to immediately sit down and open the crates, Arven had done as I’d asked and had a shower ready for me. He pulled me close, sniffed my hair, and nodded before gently pushing me towards the bathroom.
My heart fumbled. It didn’t know how to process the quiet care I’d just received. I’d never had anyone to rely on before—at least not for a very long time. To come home and have someone ready with what I needed left me standing blankly under the hot spray of the shower because I couldn’t even function enough to process it.
My brain shut down. Something about the care finally shut off my fight or flight. I dried off after the shower, shoved my feet into a pair of fluffy slippers, and pulled a robe over my shoulders. In the living area, Arven waited with more food.
