6. LONNIE

6

LONNIE

THE OBSIDIAN PALACE, EVERLAST CITY

" W hat are you thinking, little monster?" Bael asked urgently.

I blinked up at him dazedly, feeling slightly disconnected from myself. As if I were in my body, and not. Intellectually, I suspected I had to be in shock, but in practice… "I don't know."

"Talk to me." Bael growled, seeming unable to keep the anger from bubbling up to the surface. "What the hell did she say to you?"

I sighed. "A lot. I know I need to explain it, but I'm so exhausted…"

"Alright," Bael said quickly, changing tactics as quickly as the wind. "Then how about a bath?"

"Do I look that bad?" I asked, with little conviction, as he carried me toward the sweeping stone stairs.

"You're covered in soot," he replied diplomatically. "If I didn't know you were under all those black spots, I'd think you contracted the plague."

"I can't," I replied flatly.

"Can't what?"

"Contract the plague."

We reached the top of the landing, and Bael marched down the hallway, his expression a cross between concern and determination. His tone was light, almost humoring. "And why is that?"

"The Fae don't get sick."

Bael came to an abrupt halt, his posture going rigid. I looked up, startled, and saw that we were mere steps away from a familiar door. It seemed that Ambrose's rebels had been busy repairing the castle, and had managed to reattach the door to Scion's tower bedroom. Whether Bael realized the room had been repaired, or was just returning there out of habit, I wasn't sure, but I was glad to be back on familiar ground.

"What did you say?" Bael asked sharply.

I sighed, and shook my head to clear it of some of the cobwebs. "Let‘s go inside. I have a lot to tell you."

My bath had nearly turned cold by the time I finished relaying Bael with all that my mother had revealed. He sat beside the tub, his back leaning against the wall, watching me. It was a familiar position, reminding me all too clearly of one of the first conversations we'd ever shared. This time, though, I did the majority of the talking, and Bael sat in rapt attention.

"I knew you weren't human," he said finally. "Magical blood always wins out, and believe me little monster, you've been practically leaking magic from your pores since the day I met you."

"You did," I conceded. "You weren't entirely correct, though. I'm still half human."

"That's irrelevant," Bael said immediately, waving my words away.

I frowned. "I think it's extremely relevant."

"Why?" he cocked his head to the side, looking wary. "Do you dislike the idea of being fae?"

I bit my lip and trailed my fingers over the surface of the lukewarm water, thinking. "I don't know," I said finally. "I suppose not, but I still feel human."

"How would you know what that feels like?" he asked, pragmatically. "If you feel the same as you always have, and you've always been fae?—"

"Half," I corrected.

"Whatever. If you've always felt the same, how would you know that's your human side you're recognizing."

"I don't know," I shrugged. "The only thing I know for sure right now is that if I'd learned this a year ago, I would have been horrified."

He laughed humorlessly. "I think that might be an understatement."

I winced, thinking of how angry and hateful my mother had been when we spoke. I wanted to think she hadn't always been like that, but a large part of me knew that she had. She'd been blindly hateful her entire life, and had taught me to be the same.

"It's confusing," I mused, trying to find words to describe all the complicated feelings swirling inside my head. "I think my mother was right to hate those who treated her the way they did, and to fear the court. We both know humans weren't treated all that well here."

"True," he reasoned. "Fairies like my Uncle Penvalle did horrific things to anyone weaker than them, but that sort of thing isn't universal. I've personally never cut out a servant's tongue, or whatever other horrible things you've accused me of."

I glanced at him. "You've killed humans, though."

He cocked his head at me. "Yes, and so have you. You've also killed Fae, and Unseelie, and quite a few monsters, all the while believing you were entirely human."

I nodded, but my response got stuck somewhere between my throat and my mouth, and I couldn't think of a single thing to say. Fortunately, Bael carried on, saving me the necessity of holding the conversation.

"I think you should stop focusing on which parts of you are human or fae, and start thinking about what you might be able to do now that you know what your full potential is. You have source magic, which is far beyond anything Scion, or I, or any other faerie can do."

"Yes, but what does that mean?" I practically whined. "I don't understand anything about how to control it, and so far, it's done nothing for me except nearly kill me time and time again."

"We can find a way to help you control it," Bael said confidently. "Now that we know what your powers are, I'm sure there's someone who knows what to do. Hell, we have journals in the library going back all the way to the time of Aisling. We'll find something."

"I suppose," I muttered, peevishly.

Bael looked at me sideways, and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong, little monster? You've just discovered that you have more magic than probably anyone else alive, and you don't seem the least bit excited."

I sighed, and pulled my knees up to my chest, wrapping my arms around them. I leaned my head forward against my knee, so I could only just see Bael through the sheet of my wet hair. "It's stupid," I muttered, "But I can't stop thinking about what my mother said about how I always attracted power."

"What do you mean?"

"She said, from the time I was small, that nothing with magic could stay away from me. And that makes sense, I remember how Underfae always followed me, how I could never manage to blend in with the other servants. My entire life, everyone was afraid to be around me because invariably we'd attract the attention of faeries."

"So?" Bael asked, clear confusion in his voice.

"So, don't you think it's suspicious that I should end up here? Your family has controlled Elsewhere for thousands of years because you have the strongest magic ever recorded. I'm only half magical, and somehow I'm the mate to not only one, but th—I mean two of the most powerful royals alive?"

"What are you saying?" Bael asked, slowly.

"What if it's not even real?" I burst out, lifting my head back up to look at him. "What if you wouldn't even be here, except that I'm…compelling you, or something. If all magic is made from the source, and I'm literally the source, maybe you're just like the afflicted, or the underfae. You can't help but try to be near me."

I sucked in a deep breath, having said all that without stopping. I blinked, and suddenly Bael was directly in front of me. He stood so fast, I saw nothing but a gold blue, and then he was standing beside the tub, reaching down, and pulling me to my feet. A cascade of water fell down around me, drenching Bael's clothing.

"Listen, to me." His intense yellow gaze bore into me. "I love you and it has nothing to do with your magic."

"You can't know that," I argued.

"Yes, I can," he said fiercely. "Because if somehow my presence was hurting you, I wouldn't hesitate to walk away. You're not compelling me to do anything, little monster. I want you, always, whether you're the fucking queen of the fae, or just some fragile servant with a smart mouth."

The corner of my mouth tipped up. "What if I'm neither?"

"That's fine. Go anywhere and be anything you want, as long as I can go with you." He grinned wickedly. "And as long as you promise to keep that smart mouth."

I grinned, and stood up on my toes to kiss his lips. He responded enthusiastically, and I wound my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me.

I suddenly became very aware that while he was completely clothed, I was naked and dripping wet. I pressed my body flush against his, soaking the front of his tunic and causing the fabric to stick to his muscled chest. In an instant, I felt him harden against me.

With a growl, Bael lifted me off my feet and carried me out of the tub. He didn't bother to walk all the way to the bed in the next room, and merely pressed my back up against the wall. I wrapped my legs around him and held myself up, as I helped pull his soaking wet shirt over his head. Bael growled low in his throat, then leaned forward, fastening his lips around my right breast. His too sharp teeth bit into my nipple, sending a spark of combined pain and pleasure rocketing through me. My pulse pounded low in my core, and I tipped my head back against the wall, whimpering in pleasure.

Abruptly, Bael stopped moving.

I blinked in confusion, pulling back far enough to look at him. "What's wrong?"

He grimaced, his eyes squeezing shut for a moment before he schooled his features back into a smile. "Sorry, little monster. Headache."

"Oh," I frowned, half in disappointment, half in concern. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. It'll pass in a minute. Recently I've been getting them a lot, but they never last long."

My eyes narrowed. "That sounds like it could be something serious. What if–"

In answer, Bael pressed a firm kiss to the curve of my neck, making me forget my words mid sentence. He licked over my skin, sending tingles skittering all over my body. At the same time, he ran one hand up my bare thigh to cup my core.

I made one more half-hearted attempt to question him about the headache. "Are you sure you didn't want to lie down?"

"Actually, yes." Bael smirked. "That sounds perfect."

He carried me across the bathing room and out into the adjoining bedroom. I laughed when I glimpsed his determined expression in the vanity mirror, and caught on to what he was thinking.

Bael dropped me unceremoniously on the bed and I landed on my back in a tangled pile of soft silk sheets. He stood beside the bed, looming over me, his catlike eyes tracking over every inch of my body.

I smiled, and reached out a hand. "Aren't you going to join me?"

Anticipation gripped me as he knelt on the floor, wrapping his long fingers around my calves and pulling me all the way to the edge of the mattress. My breath caught in my throat as his lips pressed against the sensitive skin on the inside of my thigh, sending shivers through my body.

I moaned, my hips rising off the bed of their own accord at the very first touch of his tongue. He pushed my legs wider apart and licked me slowly, dragging his tongue up my center, causing waves of pleasure to wash over me.

I moaned again, and twisted my hips, desperate for more friction. In answer, he splayed his fingers over my stomach, pushing me back down and holding me against the bed all the while administering slow, tortuous pleasure.

With each slow, deliberate swipe, he teased and tantalized me, building up the intensity. With a slow and deliberate motion, he pressed his lips against my throbbing clit, drawing out every keening sound from my lips.

I reached down gripping his shoulders, pulling his face up and toward to look at me. "Fuck me now. I want to come with you inside me."

A low, rumbling growl escaped from the depths of Bael's throat as I tugged him to his feet. With a swift motion, he undid his belt with one hand and leaned forward, his hands pressing down on either side of my head as he loomed over me. His powerful presence filled the room, casting a shadow that seemed to engulf me in its darkness.

I stretched my body, arching my back as far as it could go, meeting his intense golden stare. Without hesitation, he thrust inside me with such force that a deep gasp escaped my lips. "Like this. You want me to fill you when you come?"

Every nerve in my body tingled with pleasure as he filled me completely and the intensity of our connection ignited like fire between us. "Yes," I demanded. "More."

He slammed into me again and withdrew slowly, seeming to enjoy my whine of protest.

His body collided with mine once more, the force causing my back to arch and a whimper to escape my lips. He withdrew slowly, savoring the moment as if it were the ultimate pleasure.

"Faster," I insisted, rolling my hips to increase the friction between us.

Bael's hands tightened around mine, his grip firm and commanding as he held them above my head. His lips grazed across my breast, sending shivers down my spine.

His hand left my wrists and found its way to my hair, tugging back my head so our eyes could meet in an intense gaze that sent electricity through my veins.

Hot. Destructive. All consuming.

Our eyes locked as he pounded into me, hard and frenzied, and my entire body coiled tighter and tighter like I might snap at any moment.

My mouth fell open in a silent scream, my legs instinctively wrapping tightly around him as I trembled from within. He plunged into me again with a force that left me breathless, all the while muttering curses in a language I didn't understand.

My body gave out, surrendering to the intense pleasure that coursed through me. I collapsed onto the bed, my limbs splayed out and trembling from the aftershocks of my orgasm. Beside me, Bael rolled onto his back. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he tried to catch his breath. Our eyes met, and for a moment we simply gazed at each other in silence, basking in the aftermath.

"It's getting harder and harder not to claim you," he said, still looking at me with an intensity that made my stomach feel as if it had turned inside out.

I opened my mouth to reply and closed it again, merely nodding. I was afraid to voice the truth: that I also felt the pressure to complete the bond, and sooner or later we'd have to confront it.