14

“Let’s go get some ice cream,” Darby suggested when it was all done. “And then you can practice cleansing a place when we come back.” He gave me a look to please listen to him.

“I think it’s smart, and no one will take offense,” Iolas said under his breath.

Fair enough.

And it wasn’t that people had been hanging outside. It was the upset and… I needed to practice before it was the castle for the ceremonial everything after I became queen. It would be so much harder to do while grieving, and I needed to know it like the back of my hand. I’d had a lot of it down when I’d done the Craftsman estate, but it was like anything else.

If you didn’t use it, you lost it.

We went and sat to have a sundae, and I decided to handle something else that was weighing heavy on me. I pulled something out of my wallet and slid it over to him, not sure how to really bring it up or broach the topic.

He glanced down at it and studied it for several tense moments. “I have a few questions or things I’d like to make sure I’m clear on, but it’s for my own—I don’t want you to get offended or upset, okay?”

“Okay,” I accepted.

“You didn’t feel pressured to do this or someone told you something that led to this?”

“No, not at all,” I promised. “The opposite actually. A few advised it was too soon since we’re not married and your security can cover anything if there’s a problem and be reimbursed, but that’s ridiculous to me. It’s—why would I trust them more than you? I trust you with everything. If you want to go crazy, then fucking go ahead.”

He snorted and shot me a dry look, but I simply shrugged.

“I love you, and this is all very real for me, Darby,” I whispered. “This isn’t you living with me in a house that wasn’t really mine but we made it home. You’re now living with me for real in my family’s home. This is the happy ending for us even if there are more steps.” I swallowed loudly. “Or is it just me?”

“No.” The word was firm and definite, not open for discussion at all. He met my gaze, and his eyes were full of emotion. “You are my forever. I just… My mind works—I needed to know how you got here or what—” He blew out a harsh breath. “I’m ruining this amazing gesture just like I ruin so much.”

Tears filled his eyes which shocked me.

“I’ve done so much more wrong. I’ve doubted you at every turn because I wasn’t your fated mate instead of realizing how blessed I am because you picked me instead of the gods. I’m as emotionally abusive—no, it’s not a competition. I’ve emotionally abused you and—”

“What are you talking about?” I gasped, switching seats and moving next to him. I forced him to look at me. “Who the fuck told you such nonsense and…”

He’d gone to talk to someone. It was on his face, and I caught a few thoughts.

“You spoke with Julian’s therapist?” I asked.

He nodded. “Apparently, we all are going to. Besides Neldor, and he wants to speak to a grief counselor in Faerie first but doesn’t know how.”

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.

“Tams, don’t,” he said firmly. “You have real trauma in this area. I’m embarrassed that I didn’t go sooner and I don’t. I thought—I didn’t realize how much I could do wrong.”

“You do so much better than you realize,” I argued. “We’re all allowed insecurities and issues, Darby. I wouldn’t have made it without you.”

He gave me a soft kiss. “That can be true and it still be true that I weaponized my insecurities against you. I hurt your relationships with them because you were worried we would fall apart because of my issues. That wasn’t fair to you, and I made things worse. I’m sorry for that. I’m really fucking sorry.”

I swallowed loudly, understanding what he was saying. “I know. I’m sorry you fell in love with someone who had multiple mates.”

“I’m not,” he rasped. “I’m blessed . I’m blessed and the luckiest man ever that you love me and choose me .” He gave me another kiss. “And I’m not going to be a duffer and argue about money or worry about it when you have so many other issues you’re always having to deal with.” He rubbed his thumb over my skin. “I just need to know where your head is.”

So he didn’t take advantage of me. I saw the worry in his eyes.

“What’s mine is yours, my prickly pear,” I whispered. “We do have a lot, and I don’t want to worry about this. You’re going to protect me and already have, and I know you’ll be paid with Gieger’s firm working for me, but this is more.”

He let out a slow breath and leaned his forehead to mine. “Okay. Okay, agra . Thank you.”

I smiled as I sat back in my seat and focused on my sundae… And he put the black card in his wallet.

The one with his name on it that was attached to my account.

He winked at me as we kept eating. “Can I be a git and ask something I’ve always wondered?” He smiled when I nodded. “Can you really buy a vehicle with a black card? I saw that on social media and—”

“I have no idea,” I admitted. I shrugged. “I just know that thing got work from all the catering ordered to help the ‘gift’ from the dragons. I had to order another one, it wore out, and that was when I made the adjustment for you to have your own card.”

His eyes flashed shock. “That was months ago.”

I gave another shrug and focused on my sundae. “I’m chicken a lot more than I would like to admit. I didn’t know how to do this, and the others have money. I offer and they brush me off but…”

“But what, agra? ” he whispered. “Please tell me. I want us to be able to talk about anything and everything.”

I did too, swallowing down the awkward feeling. “They buy their details food. I didn’t want it to become a thing that you don’t because you don’t have the money. They shouldn’t use their own money to feed my people, but they do. And it’s a good gig, but people can be brats, and then it would like get around that your detail isn’t treated as well and—”

“And probably not by my detail because they’re all awesome,” he muttered, bobbing his head. “Yeah, I could absolutely see that. Fairies look for reasons to hate me. Some of them because of what I am.” He smiled at me. “Thanks, Tams.”

“Always.” I snorted. “You wanted to become a lawyer to protect me. Of course I would protect you too.”

“I might do a bit of shopping,” he said nervously. “Some comments have reached my ears that I’m the lacking mate. Appearance-wise. I mean, not looks but—”

“I know,” I said gently, having caught the same. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I let it—”

“Don’t ever apologize for the petty of others,” he said firmly. “I wasn’t really listening either—we tend to ignore it all, and I hate that shit.” He let out a slow breath. “But I want this forever and you do too. We have to listen to some of it or let others filter it out. Rafe and Wyn are right that this is a valid one, and I was going to bring it up.”

I nodded. “A few suits so you look—you’re always handsome to me. But I’m going to be queen. My fiancé should have nicer clothes.” I huffed. “You know, if you did, then they’d probably bitch I was wasting money.”

He snorted, fully agreeing that a lot of times we just couldn’t win.

But I was glad we were a united front of this and on the same team.

We grabbed a lot more ice cream and headed back to my studio to get started. I walked around and cleansed every inch of the house now that all of the crates were out. I frowned when I found Darby setting up more easels in the great room that I used for painting.

“You’re way more powerful, agra ,” he reminded me. “You’re not going to be limited to a dozen paintings at a time. It’s smart to prepare for that.”

“Thanks, Darby.”

He winked at me and kept working while I did. The caretakers were kind and said they were going to run some errands and get some shopping done since I was there. I cleansed their rooms just because I was there and doing it, but I didn’t go in far or like snoop. It definitely wasn’t an inspection or anything.

Darby had twenty-five easels set up and canvases loaded when I finished. He was putting together more drying racks in the storage room when I checked on him. I’d asked Katrina to order them a while ago and then hadn’t done anything with them or been back.

He cleared his throat when he realized I was there. “If I was as cool as you, I’d let out my feelings about the festival while it was fresh in my heart. Not to sell, but it would probably be cool for Faerie to see how a fairy sees their normal if they didn’t grow up with it. Hopefully, it could help them to appreciate it like I did.”

“You are so amazing. Thank you, my mate,” I whispered. I moved by him and gave him a heated kiss before heading back to unwrap and open paints. A lot of them had hardened even in the containers because of how long they were left, but I had a ton more.

And my magic automatically mixed the colors I wanted.

Darby was awesome on so many levels. Mostly because jumping right into painting our relationship was tricky. Doing it after not having done this for so long was even more complicated. Plus, with so much more on my mind and emotions—this was a great way to get back into it.

Apparently, my magic agreed.

The canvases were full of the different stalls when my magic finished and it was clear that it was the first round only. I chuckled. “I need more easels.”

“I’ll have Cara order them,” Darby said from the spare room. “Remember to hydrate. I’ll come get them to dry.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, agra ,” he chuckled.

He really was so perfect.

He handled that as I practiced my control using magic to move ten blank canvases at a time from the garage and get them one by one onto the now-empty easels. I opened more paint in between and then leaned more canvases against the wall because… Why not? I didn’t really need the easels since I wasn’t actually painting with a paintbrush, right?

Darby chuckled when he saw it, nodding that it made sense.

“How did that feel?” he asked when I let out my magic and another round of canvases was full.

“Amazing,” I breathed as I rolled my neck and reached above my head. “I feel so settled. Even letting out this happy memory and the fun that night—it’s all tied together. The emotions built inside of me that I hadn’t been able to go see this before. That I’m not like them and have missed so much. What I’ve been through to get here and how many don’t appreciate it.”

“I can smell it,” he admitted. He moved closer but was careful of my wings as he placed his hand on my side and slid it over my stomach. “But I’m going to grow a set and push my mate to do what she needs. You need this as much as you need to cleanse. I know—it works with Hudson and Julian. That’s become your thing just like flying with Hudson and now Neldor.

“Or kitesurfing with Lucca—snowboarding now in Faerie with him. I’m glad. I want you to have all of those things. But I want us to keep having this. They can join—I would never—I can share. This is ours, and I’ve hated myself for not pushing you to take this time and let this out. I just hate feeling demanding, but I will fight for you, agra .”

I nodded and leaned into him. “I always mean to, but it’s like I blink and it’s a month later.” I turned and faced him, brushing my lips over his. “And it is our thing. You’ve always supported this and never even chuckled that it was—you always saw it for what it could be for me and bigger than what most supes thought it was.”

“Because that’s who you are,” he breathed against my lips. “You make it all bigger than any of us fools could ever imagine.” His kiss was more intense this time. “Keep going and get more out before I put something hard inside of you, agra . Because I’m going to. Over and over again.”

I blinked at him in shock.

He simply chuckled. “You are sensual when you paint, Tams. It’s almost like watching you climax. It’s a release of pent-up tension. Yeah, it turns me on.” He moved his lower body against mine to prove his point.

Okay then.

I did two more rounds of painting and then started to close all the paint up while Darby tried to find more places for the paintings to dry. He ended up just laying them all flat on the floor in one of the spare rooms after putting down plastic tarps.

“You’re wrapping up?” he hedged when he came back out and saw me putting the last of the paint on the storage shelf.

“I ran out of canvases,” I chuckled, glancing at him over his shoulder. “Now, you had something to show me? Did I hear that right?”

“Is everything closed up?” he checked. He was on me the moment I nodded.

I kissed him as he lifted me under my ass and wrapped my legs around him. I teleported us to the portal to Faerie, and someone must have activated it for us because I felt the tightness in my chest of going through. Once we were in Faerie, I teleported us to our new suite in the castle, letting him decide how things played out.

“No one disturb us,” he told whoever was there and listening before carrying me into his room.

I kicked the door closed behind us and then teleported across the room to throw him off balance. I held up my hand to hold him off and started stripping. “I’m taking care of everything, my sexy mate.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Are ya now, agra? Are ya gonna take care of me?”

I licked my lips and nodded.

“Put up a barrier then because ya gonna be loud for me too,” he ordered, his voice huskier than normal. “But I also want to pin you down and have you in my bed the first time.” He swallowed loudly. “I want that for us as we move forward and leave the bad behind.”

I did too. I shivered and walked over to him naked, softly brushing my lips over his. “You’re right, it’s so much better when you’re in charge. Especially of me.”

“You’re pushing all of my buttons,” he growled.

“Me?” I smirked at him as I started undoing his belt. “Should I get on my knees and apologize for that?”

He chuckled darkly. “Never apologize for pushing my buttons, Tams. Just don’t leave me hanging.”

So I didn’t. I sank to my knees and took him in my mouth. I kissed and licked all up and down his dick before sucking it as hard as I could while he gently thrust.

Very gently.

We didn’t even do that much, and they knew it was still worrisome for me, so they were all very gentle with me and considerate.

“ Agra , gonna finish,” he warned, groaning when I simply sucked harder. “Aye, swallow it all like my perfect mate.”

I did, letting a little dribble onto my lip because it always turned him on. Sure enough, more heat filled his eyes and he wiped it up with his thumb and had me lick that clean.

“Get on the bed. You’re going to do everything I say, aren’t you?”

“Yes, Darby,” I whispered, really into this. It was like the next level of the rune and something we’d sort of played with before so much had gone wrong, but… We were so different now. I knew we weren’t going to make the same mistakes.

Unfortunately, we’d make new ones, but we’d work through those too.

That was what being in love meant.

I sat on the bed, smirking at him because I knew that wasn’t what he’d meant.

He simply snickered. “You’re making me want to be mean.”

“I’m just doing what you said.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “Scoot that pert ass to the middle of the bed and spread your legs wide. Then take two fingers and tease that bare, delicious pussy for me to watch.”

Well fuck , I was clearly in over my head to play this game.

Nice.

I did as he wanted, watching as he got naked for me. I stopped when he went to take off his glasses. “Someday I want to invent a rune for you for supe contacts.”

He froze. “I thought you said I was sexy in them.”

“You are. I love the way you look in them.” I cleared my throat. “But you can’t see us being together as well. I want that. I want you to see all of me when you take me.”

“I’m so fucking in love with you,” he whispered, shaking his head and moving over to the dresser. He opened the cabinet on it and pulled out two disposable contact containers that I didn’t know he still had. He quickly put them in and then moved over to me. “I thought about asking for you to invent a rune to correct my vision, but you were the one who said—”

“Nothing is wrong with you and I would miss the glasses,” I whispered as he joined me on the bed. “Unless they’re hurting you or giving you headaches.”

“But a rune would be nice for functions and definitely moments like this,” he whispered as his fingers joined mine. “I guess I should really see everything up close before they break down on my eyes.”

So he did. He lowered his face to my pussy and licked me everywhere, warning me not to come.

It was maybe one of the most challenging things I’d ever done because Darby was really, really great at eating me out. Seriously.

“Put your hands above your head, agra ,” he instructed, smirking when I immediately did with a whimper. “You are so perfect, and I love you so much.” He gave me a soft kiss. “Thank you for forgiving me and taking me back. Thank you for giving me the chances I didn’t deserve.”

“Thank you for appreciating them and not wasting them.”

Again. It was in the air between us, but it didn’t need to be said when we both knew it.

“Never again,” he swore before thrusting hard inside of me. He smirked when I orgasmed. “I didn’t say you could finish, Tams. I’m really going to have to punish you later with that rune.”

The stupid vampire set me up and we both knew it. I felt too good to get mad, riding the waves of my orgasm while he took me. His hand tightened where he held my wrists down and I arched into him.

“It’s not the power you give me over you that makes this so fucking amazing but how you respond, agra ,” he moaned as he thrust in deeper. “You love it. You fucking love it when I pin you down and take you as I want.”

“I do. I do when it’s you, Darby,” I confessed. “It’s how stern you always are but soft with me. It’s always undone me and—please, I’m right there again.”

He leaned down and pressed his lips to my ear as he took me faster. “My wife can orgasm whenever she wants. Are you my wife?”

“I’m your wife,” I screamed as I finished, not even upset he did it in that moment.

It made it hotter somehow because we both knew where we were in our relationship. I even played it up for him and said a few other things about being his good wife or his naughty wife—honestly, I was so lost in my head that I wasn’t really sure.

“You’re my dirty, horny wife?” he chuckled when my orgasm finished.

Or I’d said that.

Fuck.

I flushed lava hot, but he didn’t let me hide, moving faster and faster as he kissed me.

“You really are. I’m your dirty, horny husband. I get hard watching my sweet wife do something so innocent as painting. I can’t help it. You are just so perfect and—tell me to come inside of your body, Tams. Tell me I should.”

I begged him to, and he finished inside of me so hard that I felt it. When he was done, I went to hug him and pulled against his hand so he’d let me go.

“No, you’re right where you should be and all mine,” he chuckled before kissing me softly. “And I’m going to have you again. At least twice before I have your ass too.” He smirked at me. “Any objections?”

I lifted my head and gave him a peck.

He simply winked and changed what position we were in. Another round and I felt what was like a knock at the barrier and recognized Neldor’s magic, so I took it down.

“At least takes breaks to hydrate,” he drawled before coming in with a pitcher of ice water and a few glasses.

“I think she needs a Gatorade, not just water,” Darby chuckled.

“It’s tea from here, you super stud,” Neldor snarked.

I was trying not to laugh, but when I heard Julian chuckle from the other room, I did as well. Could our days always be like this?

I didn’t mean the sex, but… Yeah, that too.