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Theodor kept his head in his palms, his mind going back to that night all those years ago. A century was no time for an immortal, a blip in their life span, but Theodor had felt each day since then as fresh as the first.
Mozraath touched his shoulder, and Theodor sighed at the peace his friend tried to project toward his confused spirit, but it didn’t work. Mozraath’s demon half was stronger than the angel in him. He had light and darkness inside and out, and his demon side would often win in his moral battles.
Mozraath was more apt to provoke Theodor rather than to appease him, and over time, Theodor had come to respect that. He needed honesty and bravery in his close circle. He had a vast court that handled the business he ordered, but he was the king now, and finding someone who didn’t kiss his ass for position or power had been hard to come by.
Mozraath had been cast out of the Unseelie realm. It was forbidden for certain species to mate, and when they did, it was often their offspring that took the punishment. That was how he and his friend met well before Theodor even began his warrior training.
Mozraath may have had demonic tendencies, but Theodor could not have wished for a truer friend or a more loyal servant. He’d told Mozraath bits and pieces of the truth when he and his father had returned from traveling to the Arctic World to conduct business with Boraleashe. Theodor didn’t know how to tell anyone that the first time he’d met his father’s war brother of the north, he’d made a complete fool of himself.
“Tell me, Theo,” Mozraath prodded. “What happened between the two of you when you went to Amárach?”
Theodor jolted at the vivid memories of the ice castle, the chill he felt clear to his bones, and Boraleashe’s cool palm on his heated skin. Theodor closed his eyes and swore he was back there.
“When my father and I visited Boraleashe, he was not in a good way.” Theodor frowned. “We didn’t know what exactly was happening, but I remember it was the night of the Snow Moon. A time where the ice lands are susceptible to all kinds of magic… and omens.”
“But is Boraleashe not the Titan of the North? Can’t he protect his land from such sorcery?” Mozraath asked.
“He tried to spare his kingdom.” Theodor grimaced, remembering finding Boraleashe on his knees, deep in the woods during a raging blizzard, begging the Snow Moon to show him mercy.
“Spare them from what?”
“From famine and strife.”
“But…” Mozraath looked confused.
“A titan’s heart is the nucleus of their kingdom, Moz. We must fall in love… there’s no avoiding it.”
Theodor went to the balcony and stared down at the happy people of Fhomhair. Their lands were full of light and prosperity, a result of Notalus’ newfound love. The Titan of the South was content and recently wed. The Realm of Autumn would be at its most affluent.
“I know, my friend.” Mozraath stood close to his side, always on his left so Theodor had a view of the angelic half of his face. The side that was smooth with creamy, alabaster skin and soft blond hair. The other half was marred with scars and a swath of jet-black hair covering his one black pupil.
“I saw him in those woods, vulnerable and pleading. So unlike a titan, so very unlike Boraleashe, and something strange pulled at my chest.” Theodor clutched his hand over his heart. “I couldn’t stop the pulsing I felt right here. Panic and exhilaration slammed into me so hard that it knocked me off my feet. I sat there on that freezing ground, staring in shock, overtaken with chills… and desire.”
Mozraath’s different-colored eyes widened so large Theodor thought they’d bulge out of his skull. “You… did give your heart to him?”
Theodor gave a single nod, nothing more, because there was never an explanation when the universe spoke. Their kind of love happened when fate deemed it so.
“And what happened?” Mozraath prodded.
He turned to face his friend, hoping his face was impassive and his voice unfazed. “What do you think? He rejected my love like an idiot, leaving his core defenseless… and the Snow Moon Demon cursed him and Amárach.”
Mozraath shook his head. “Not possible. If you touched Boraleashe’s heart, he can’t deny you. He’d suffer greatly…” Mozraath clasped Theodor on his shoulder, gazing into his eyes. “And you would too.”
Theodor eased away from the comfort and went back inside his chambers. His space had been cleaned, and even the floors looked polished. Theodor had never seen Mozraath clean or lift a finger to mop a floor or fluff a pillow. His best friend used his magic for mundane tasks like those.
“That’s why you’ve procrastinated on naming a consort?” Mozraath ran his hand over the dark, shorn hair at the nape of his neck on his right side. “I can’t believe you withheld something this big for so long. You are the King of the Autumn Realm now. You can no longer think like a prince.”
