Chapter Thirty-Three Zara

Chapter Thirty-Three Zar a

"Yeah, so, that was sudden," I murmur to my remaining warlocks, not for the first time, as we file in a line up the steep tower stairs to Zephyr's royal bedroom. "Really hope V doesn't hole up somewhere all night and brood. He's definitely flown way beyond any range I can sense him. You?"

I direct this question over my shoulder at Ronin, who's still flushed and windblown from flying back in a rush with Zephyr and me on Xhevith, right after V and Max took off in their mating flight. After we did what we needed to (minus the whole demon thing) at the Faerie Ball.

With my two most vicious alphas sidelined in a mating flight and that elusive demon still at large, my remaining guys wanted me here, in the relative safety of the Unseelie palace.

"Same." Ronin's hands flex around my waist, because he's kinda hugging me for comfort as we climb. "When V lit out like a blooming house on fire and I lost the link, that snake of his was sexed up as fuck."

"I trust, if Maxim does manage to catch up, our dragon's better angels will prevail." Lucius sounds kinda winded from running back here through the streets in wolf form, because we don't have enough dragons (with Max gone) for everyone to fly. "He simply must control his dragon. If Vasili's serpent truly is biologically capable of incubating—carrying eggs that are fertilized by another male dragon—Maxim must allow that to be Vasili's choice."

"Max bloody well better." Ronin snorts. "Or we'll have a whole new set of problems in this harem, won't we?"

"I believe in Max," Neo pipes up stoutly, "and his better angels. No one gives him enough credit. He's not a jerk. He really isn't. He's just really nice and decent. "

Speaking of nice and decent.

Neo's back there with Lucius, carrying my dominatrix boots and gloves that I've already peeled out of. Just having him with me, and so totally calm about whatever monumental thing's going down with V and Max, is a definite comfort.

The reason our bookworm sounds breathless is because Ash just carried him back from the Faerie Ball on the wing. It was a super sweet thing to do, Ash carrying him like Superman with Lois Lane. The whole dynamic makes me hopeful that Ash might actually be courting our bookworm.

Ash has already split downstairs to check the doors and locks, the same way Lucius does at the domus . But it's gonna be interesting to see how my Seelie Prince acts with Neo tonight.

I've definitely been tracking that Ash has been hanging back in the sack. He still hasn't fucked any of us (except Zephyr on the side) since I came back to Avalon.

But Neo's the gentlest point of entry into our whole polycule.

If our Seelie Prince makes any kinda overture tonight (which I'm definitely hoping for), Neo will be totally welcoming.

We climb past a tall arched window that opens over a shimmering expanse of starlit sea. I pause to peer out, but there's nothing to see. Under a moonless sky that glitters with a million stars, the ocean is flat and impenetrable as a sheet of hammered steel.

Though I do wonder if anything that might be lurking in the water (like our missing kraken) is peering back.

A delicate shiver races down my spine and makes my scalp prickle.

Oh, hell to the no.

I really hope that's just nerves, and not my erratic dash of Valyrian foresight acting up. Foresight is one of my recessives (I mean, until now).

Unless that's one of the genes my new crown switched on.

I reach up to touch the Unseelie crown, just to confirm it hasn't floated off my head, because that big pointy Evil Queen coronet feels light as thistledown.

Yep. Still there.

I'll definitely be showing up for finals at the Icarus Academy tomorrow as the Unseelie Queen.

And Cleo can kiss my royal ass .

I fucking dare that bitch— and V's Mads Mikkelsen doppelg?nger of a dad—to try and take this crown.

"Well, shit, Goblin King. None of us expected what went down tonight, did we?" I frown at the empty sky (no snake, no dragon), then glance over my shoulder at my warlocks. "Did I make the wrong call? You guys think we shoulda gone after those two?"

"Vasili emphatically wished to be left alone. That much, he and his serpent made quite clear. Nor would Maxim's dragon have welcomed our intervention. A shifter's need to breed is a biological imperative." Lucius gives us all a patient nudge to keep us climbing after Zephyr, who's leading the way to the bedroom.

"Yeah. Guess those two are gonna need to work through it. Hopefully before we fly home in the morning for finals." I reach behind me to lace my fingers through Ronin's hot Leo grip.

Together, my guys and I keep climbing.

"Well, we all know V's… complicated," Neo says tactfully. "I mean, there's stuff he wants that he's not comfy asking for. He just needs space to explore that and make his own choices."

"If you imagine Maxim's dragon will give Vasili any sort of choice, you clearly don't understand the breeding frenzy that consumes a rutting dragon." Zephyr's strained voice drifts down from the head of the stairs.

We're finally at the top of the tower facing our closed bedroom door. Now my Unseelie sweeps an impatient arm outward. A violent gust of wind whips past us to blow the door open, so fierce the hinges almost splinter.

"Easy, love," Ronin murmurs. Takes me a sec to realize he's actually talking to Zephyr.

He's talking to Zephyr the way he talks to us.

His mates.

A little bud of hope for those two has taken root in my chest. That hope has been growing all day while I watched them interact. Now, hearing the gruff affection in Ronin's voice, that little bud unfurls and flowers.

Clearly Zephyr hears it too.

The Dark Fae King glances back, his eye startled and wary.

I come right up behind Zephyr and slip my arms around his waist. I'm still holding Ronin's hand, so he's half-pulled into the hug too.

Behind me, Ronin's breath hitches.

He's waiting for Zephyr. To see how he reacts .

Under our hands, under all supple strength sheathed in dragonscale, the Dark Fae King's strung so tight he's almost trembling. When our snake launched into that mating flight, it took everything Zephyr had to keep Xhevith from rising.

This dragonrider mate of mine basically had to cock-block his own dragon.

Even now, with Vasili way out of range, Xhev's sexual frustration has to be a lot for his empathically linked rider to handle.

I lean forward to graze the pointed tip of Zephyr's ear with my lips. "You okay, Your Radiance?"

"Xhevith craves your snake." His tense whisper spills out on a shuddery breath as I trigger his Fae erogenous zone. "My own… attraction… to the warlock is a complicating factor. Xhev wants him so badly, I fear, because I'm rather drawn to your Vasili myself."

"Think he's your Vasili now too." Ronin leans forward with a low murmur so he's embracing both of us. Now I'm pressed between Zephyr's lean back and Ronin's broad chest in a really good way.

Ronin laces both hands through mine so we're both touching Zephyr's taut waist.

"Go on in, love," Ronin breathes. "Let's give that dragon of yours something else to crave."

That little flower of hope in my heart blossoms.

When Zephyr pulls in a long breath under our fingers, then closes his hands over ours, a thrill of happiness skitters through me.

These two finding their way back into each other's hearts is gonna heal a major fissure in our polycule. We all need that.

To be healed.

"Are you certain?" Zephyr whispers, soft as a baby's breath. "Nothing we do will ever bring back your sister Gwendolyn."

"What happened to Gwen wasn't your fault." Ronin's voice thickens. "Wasn't mine either. It was those bullies who hazed her. Damien and Cybelle. Those rotters got what was coming to them, didn't they? They're both toes-up."

In the trembling silence, no one moves.

We all know what this moment means to Ronin, who's been tormented by misplaced guilt over Gwen's tragic end the whole time I've known him .

"So, yeah." Ronin lets out a long sigh that feels like a mountain of anger sliding off his shoulders. "I'm… okay. I mean, I'll always miss her. But I think I'm finally okay."

Under our linked hands, Zephyr's breath spills out in a ragged exhale.

Then my Dark Fae fires into action and drags us both into the bedroom. Neo tumbles in breathlessly after us, with Lucius right on his heels.

"Don't lock the door," I manage to get out. "Ash is still coming—"

Then Zephyr twists under my hands so he's facing me. With me pinned tight between my two guys, his mouth collides with Ronin's in a blazing kiss.

It's awkward and fierce and joyful. I wrap my arms tight around Zephyr's waist and laugh.

Behind me, Neo tucks up against Ronin's back. Our bookworm starts unzipping and working Ronin out of his dragonscale like a helpful house elf.

I turn my face into the hot column of Zephyr's neck, pull in a lungful of burnt amber and dragon musk, and work my Dark Fae's zipper open all the way past his navel. I'm totally not above copping a feel of his sleek chest and tight abs. Or dipping a hand inside his Avenger suit to find his taut cock jutting from a lick of green pubes.

"My bride. This is all your doing." Zephyr surfaces from Ronin's kiss like a drowning man surfacing for a gasp of air. His mouth fuses with mine in a kiss that tastes like cloves and nutmeg. His tiny fangs press into my lower lip in a stinging suck.

I stroke his hard cock, already so hungry he's pulsing. While he gasps and arches into my touch, I spread the first eager spurt of precum all down his shaft to get him good and ready.

Because I know this isn't gonna take long.

Neither one of these guys is in any mood to wait.

Both my guys are writhing against me and feeling me up, we're a hot tangle of hands and mouths and moaning.

Especially when I grab Ronin's hand and wrap his fingers around Zephyr's dick.

Both guys groan like I'm torturing them.

Laughter sparkles and bubbles up inside me in a geyser of joy.

I love this so much.

Having those two finally together and happy .

This moment has been such a long time coming.

"Fuck me, love," Ronin whispers into my ear. "He's blooming right, you know? You made this happen for all of us."

"You deserve it," I whisper back, leaning into him. "You both deserve to be happy."

Ronin's already hard and straining under all that dragonscale.

And I am here for that shit.

Muscle flexes in his arm. He's relearning the feel of Dark Fae dick he hasn't touched in years. Still smiling, I work a hand under Ronin's pumping fist to cup the tight silky bulge of my Unseelie's balls.

Zephyr swears at the moon and explodes in a frenzy of action, peeling out of his armor at lightning speed.

Ronin's process is more complicated because he's never done it before—peeling out of dragonscale—even with Neo doggedly tugging the Avenger suit down Ronin's torso.

Ronin twists and struggles to help him. "Bugger this armor—"

"I'd advise you to get used to it." Zephyr unzips me in a single pull and pushes my own dragonscale roughly off my shoulders. "'Tis what a king's consort wears in Avalon. I intend the entire Unseelie race to know you're mine."

My Unseelie's hands cup my tits and his tone darkens. "That intention applies to all of you. You are, all of you, mine."

I'm still kinda giggly, but his purposeful touch plus that dark declaration of intent makes my knees melt. For a guy who's never been with any other girl except me, and who's only been fucking me for a little while, he's a really fast learner. Zephyr's clever fingers tease my nipples and tug my rings. Then his mouth closes over my nipple in a hot suck that shoots straight to my clit.

I moan long and loud. Cradled in my hand, his balls clench tight.

"Oh my gosh, that's so hot," Neo sighs. "Ronin, stop trying to help and let me just pull this off you, okay?"

While we all strip each other down between kisses and strokes and plenty of bump-and-grind, I find a good strong lock with Lucius in our bond.

My headmaster's definitely watching, but he's not actively joining. He's shed his tie and jacket to get comfy, but that knot he's packing is still tucked behind his zipper. He's prowling barefoot, like the beast he is, along the wide window ledge that circles the room .

His wolf is close to surfacing.

This is their time with you, my queen, Lucius whispers through our bond. Their time to be with each other. Tonight I'll stand watch and keep you all safe.

"You're the best, Teach," I say on a smile. "You make me feel safe just by being here. Join in whenever you want, okay?"

"I'll take that under advisement," Lucius murmurs.

By now the rest of us are naked (Neo too, because him being nakey and snuggly is never a bad thing, even when he's trying to give Ronin and Zephyr their space).

I enjoy the fuck outta having Ronin buck-naked and flexing against my back, with one hand wrapped around Zephyr's cock and his other palm pressed against my clit to give me plenty of friction to grind against. And I love the way Zephyr devours my tits and bites a searing path down my neck and trades desperate kisses between me and Ronin like he legit can't get enough of either one of us.

When I feel like the moment's right, I squirm out from between the two of them.

For a sec, the whole scene freezes.

Those two are like two wild animals that just stumbled on each other in the forest. Zephyr's lean and streamlined like a lynx, feral features stark behind the green slash of his eyepatch, with Ronin's fist still wrapped around his dick. Ronin's like a panther with topaz eyes flaming, his tattooed chest powerful under a sleek spill of midnight hair.

"It's okay," I whisper. "You won't hurt each other."

Slowly, Ronin's hand drifts toward Zephyr's face. My Unseelie stands totally still, like he's not even breathing, while Ronin's hand lands gently against his cheek.

Very carefully, giving Zephyr plenty of space to pull away, Ronin strokes Zephyr's sharp cheekbone with a reverent thumb. At last, Ronin's thumb eases under the cruel press of the eyepatch Zephyr never removes.

Now even I'm not breathing.

Gently… so gently… Ronin eases the eyepatch aside.

Without it, Zephyr looks years younger.

Clearly Ash did a bang-up job healing him with his Seelie magic after the infamous accident. Just a slim pale scar crosses the silky eyelid that's closed over Zephyr's empty socket .

Zephyr's remaining eye closes and his green brows draw tight.

"Tell me the truth. Am I… hideous to look upon?" he breathes in a thread of voice.

"You're fucking beautiful." Ronin's voice breaks. "Inside and out. Oh, love. I'm so… so sorry… for hurting you."

He leans in to place the gentlest kiss on Zephyr's scarred eyelid. Then Ronin bows his head and presses his forehead to Zephyr's.

Zephyr's unsteady hands lift to cradle Ronin's face.

My Dark Fae doesn't make a sound. But he doesn't reach to replace the eyepatch either. That moment of acceptance is the sign Ronin's been yearning for.

The sign of Zephyr's forgiveness.

When their mouths drift closer and meet in a searching kiss, my eyes flood with a rush of grateful tears.

"Shoot, princess," Ash breathes in my ear. I jump a little, because geez, I never even heard him come in. "Guess you really are a goddess. You healed Sparrow in ways I didn't even think were possible."

"They're both healing," Neo says softly. "Ronin needs healing too, just as much."

Ash is silent, his massive frame still and thoughtful against my back. I turn away from the slow tender kiss Ronin and Zephyr are sharing and look up (way up) into the guarded cast of my Seelie's craggy face.

The starlight gilds his spiky pewter hair and turns his silver eyes to pools of mercury. I rise on tiptoe and reach up (way up) to thread my fingers through his hair.

His glowing eyes shift from Zephyr to me. Finally, his muscled shoulders ease and his face unclenches.

"Guess I'm all the way in the deep end of this polycule pool now, ain't I?" he rumbles, deep in his chest. "Same way Sparrow is."

"That's right, big man. You're one of us." I stroke the hard plane of Ash's cheek and trace his chiseled jaw. Then my hand drops to circle his thick throat and tightens in a way that makes him hiss.

"You gonna take good care of your queen tonight?" I croon.

I'm not often a domme, but that shit always turns my big Seelie into a sex puddle. Right on cue, he drops to his knees and stares up at me with his whole soul shining in his worshipful gaze.

"You just tell me how you want me, princess," he rasps .

"I want you up against the wall right here, in front of all our guys, with your thick dick buried so deep inside me I can taste you in my throat," I tell him, low and husky. "And I want Neo railing your ass until you wail. He's been such a sweet boy. He deserves a reward, don't you think?"

"Geez Louise," Ash almost whimpers. "Think the two of you together just might do me in."

Neo hovers behind him, flushed with excitement, eyes wide and shining behind his glasses. Gently his big hands settle over Ash's shoulders, tattooed with those Seelie angel wings.

"Don't worry about a thing, Ash," Neo says sweetly. "We'll both take really good care of you."

I'm already unlacing Ash's dragonscale Conan the Barbarian getup so Neo can slip the vest off his big shoulders. As soon as he does, I cup my hand under Ash's chin and lift him to his feet. Neo reaches around from behind to open his breeches. Ash's supersized cock springs free, ruddy and thick in a nest of pewter curls. The double row of silver studs from his Jacob's Ladder gleams down the underside of that proud dick I'm already wet for.

I need both hands to wrap around that shaft of his. But I know just how he likes it—gentle at first, till he's settled, my fingers gliding over his piercings and kneading his shaft.

Then he just wants to please me.

I look up into his anguished face, eyes closed, brow furrowed, lips parted with pleasure. Neo peeks around him to see my face, then reaches between Ash's thighs to cradle his balls and stroke his taint.

Sweat breaks out against Ash's brow and a low groan rips out of him.

I finally take pity on my poor Seelie Prince. "Okay, big man. Put me up against the wall."

Ash's silver eyes flash open. His pewter wings unfurl from his back and spread wide.

With a single flex of his massive biceps, he catches me under the thighs, hoists me effortlessly into the air, pins my back to the wall, and spreads me wide.

That's how my titanium pussy takes all that girth, with his big hands cupping my ass, my sweaty tits pressed to the hard flexing plane of his chest, and me gasping over every studded row of piercings as they ease into my slick and hungry hole.

When he finally works himself in to the hilt and gives a few gentle pumps to get me used to him, my gasps build to cries of need. That's when he kisses me. A deep consuming kiss that immerses me in the bright warmth of sunlight and the sweet tang of Florida grapefruit and the bracing bite of ocean air.

My cunt squeezes him tight and my hips ride his shaft. His wings beat gently with every thrust. Neo takes his time with him, working his dick into Ash's ass, so sweet and careful, he keeps checking with Ash to make sure he's not hurting him (even though Ash totally wouldn't mind).

And while I'm pinned to the wall and clinging to Ash's mighty shoulders and writhing with pleasure as the three of us find our rhythm, I've got a bird's-eye view of Ronin and Zephyr wrapped in each other's arms. When they topple together into our bed, their tender rain of kisses turns fierce and desperate.

When they finally fuck, their bodies join face to face, with Ronin flat on his back, hands cradling Zephyr's savage face, tears glittering in his amber eyes. Zephyr licks and kisses his tears away and whispers to Ronin, intimate words meant just for the two of them.

Ronin's intense joy in this mating hums through our bond and permeates the whole tower. With a telepath like him, we all share his cresting pleasure and his sense of wonder to be reunited with this special first love.

To forgive and be forgiven at last.

Afterward, we're all wrecked.

Pretty sure Neo's still buried inside Ash when those two finally conk out face down in the big round bed. Neo's never dommed anyone before, so the whole experience of having a big guy like Ash trembling and breathless and hanging on Neo's tentative commands is a heady experience for my sweet wide-eyed bookworm to process.

Zephyr crashes in a hot mess, sprawled half over Ronin and half over me, with his green hair wildly disheveled, his eyepatch abandoned on the windowsill, and his bare face peaceful and dreaming in the starlight.

Lucius lets his wolf out and stretches across the doorway, so no one can get in without waking him. The familiar susurrus of his snuffling snores normally sends me straight to dreamland. Especially when my entire body is sex-drunk and sluggish and sated from my sexy reunion with Ash.

But I can't sleep.

Not with two of my warlocks still MIA.

My body still hums with restless energy. I'm quivering like a plucked harp.

Rather than disturb the others, I wiggle carefully out from the middle of the sleep heap, grab Lucius' discarded button-down (which falls to my thighs) and my new Dark Fae crown, then pad out to the shadowy stillness of the adjoining den. Softly I close the door behind me so I don't wake anyone up.

After all that fucking, my guys need their sleep.

The balcony doors are locked with some complicated twist of silver but, hello, I'm a cat burglar. Even working by touch in the dark, I'm out there in no time.

Standing barefoot on the balcony, I button Lucius' shirt closed against the cool breeze blowing from the sea. The crown I park firmly on my head.

Right where it belongs.

I've only had this thing a little while. But I've already fucked in it. Wearing it feels, I dunno, deeply and profoundly right .

I shake my head just to enjoy the sensual feel of my tumbled curls whispering around my shoulders and brushing against my back. My thighs are still damp from Ash's copious cum, one of Neo's sweet little love nips tingles against the swell of my tit, and my greedy pussy feels stretched and finally satiated.

Over the past day or so, they've all had me.

All seven of my guys.

If I'm gonna get pregnant, they've all had a shot.

I rest my hands on the balustrade and pull in a deep breath of the Avalon night. The briny scent of ocean and the haunting sweetness of night-blooming lotus seep through my senses.

The slow rhythm of Xhevith's snores rumbles from his lair, somewhere under my feet, because that dragon's totally sex-drunk (since he gets off when Zephyr does) and they're both finally sleeping.

I scan the empty skies for any sign of my missing guys, which is an exercise in complete futility. I'd know if they were anywhere close. Finally, not ready to give up, I close my eyes and extend my other senses.

A turbulent rush of emotion, distant but potent as fuck, floods through our mating bond.

No doubt about it, Vasili's given Max a real chase. Like, for hours. Because that's how long they've both been gone.

But Max is a dragon on a mission. He's been hunting Vasili, one way or another, for a really long time. Now our determined dragon's finally tracked our wily snake to ground.

Those two mates of mine, they're together.

And they're… blissful.

Both of them.

Whatever that looks like when we all get back, whether those two manage to fertilize a clutch of dragon eggs together or not, whether that means Vasili has to hole up somewhere in a nest till they hatch or however it works (because this is totally uncharted terrain for me, plus Vasili is Vasili and he literally never behaves the way he's supposed to)… however this thing goes down, we're all gonna figure out the features of that new landscape.

Together.

Same way we always do.

What's more, I can see exactly where those two are. Like they're a painting dashed in lurid strokes of black and red and silver against the canvas of my closed lids.

V's been hiding out like a bandit in the little cave with the hot spring and the cave art Neo and Max found together last spring. That hideaway's near where my guys are fucking now in dragon form, locked together and spiraling through the open air under the looming shadow of that dormant volcano, with V's silver coils wrapped tight around Max's black bulk, my snake's fanged jaws buried deep in Max's throat to totally dominate him in a brutal mating bite (the first bite Max has ever taken)—and Max's forked dragon dick locked deep and pulsing in V's genital slit.

And the fact that I can physically see that shit, painted in hectic streaks of color, like a Fauvist expressionist painting you'd find hanging in the Met?

I'm manifesting a totally new arcane power we studied with Mistress Aggie in Science of Witchcraft class. It's a form of witchcraft that's linked to my Valyrian DNA. So I guess that's the gene my new crown just switched on.

The gene that encodes for clairvoyance.

Now all I need to do is think about Icarus Island—and I can see that shit. In fact, my brain lights up like a pinball machine. I can see the Horn of Ceres, glowing and pulsing with magical power, which I recognize from a pic Neo drew for us. Technically, that thing's not even underwater. The artifact is resting on a ledge in this sea cave grotto that I actually know.

In fact, I've dived that site more than once. I'm a certified diver, and that shimmering blue grotto's one of my favorite boat dives.

Maybe Nikolai Romanov, as a trustee on the school board, pressured the Dean to choose an aquatic site that's supposed to help Cleo win the Dean's Challenge.

But the site the Dean chose tells me she hasn't totally turned against me after all.

In fact, the Dean might actually be my secret ally.

Against the screen of my closed lids, Cleo's psychic presence pulses like a ruby sun. Yeah, she's hunting for the artifact. For her, the Dean's Challenge has already started. Xiao and Nikolai—V's dad—they're hunting with her (even though they're not supposed to). But she's nowhere close.

She's hunting in the wrong place.

I'm off my academic suspension and free to join the hunt at noon tomorrow. Now, thanks to this crown and my new Spidey senses, I know exactly where to hunt. That means I've got an actual fighting chance to win this fucking challenge.

My whole body tingles and sings with an electric hum of triumph.

The hair swirls around my shoulders and the shadows lighten to violet. Psi fire spills from my eyes like Fourth of July pinwheels.

Fuck. Me. Sideways.

Just wait'll I tell my guys.

Grinning like a psycho, I spin away from the sea toward the open balcony doors.

That's when a form takes shape in the shadows.

Right there against the wall, where the darkest shadows gather.

This whole time, I've been alone on this balcony. Now, with zero warning, a strange guy is lurking there .

He's big, at least as tall as Ash, and just about as broad through the shoulders. A sleek curtain of midnight blue hair parts around pointed ears and swirls around the muscled flex of his shirtless body, all the way down to his sinewy hips. In a sharp Dark Fae face, clever eyes pulse a wicked purple. A sleeve of ink encases one brawny arm from wrist to shoulder in a tapestry of indigo scales. Sleek black armor clings to corded thighs. I can't be sure in the starlight, even with my shifty senses, but this guy's barefooted, and looks like his toes are webbed.

He's like a blue-haired version of Jason Momoa from Aquaman standing on this balcony. He's even gripping a trident taller than he is in casual threat.

"All hail the Gemini queen." A deep baritone rumble, like a real radio voice, rolls from his cavernous chest.

Every hair on my body rises. Fight or flight instinct gooses my vitals. I mainline an adrenaline rush like it's heroin. My inner dragon uncurls from her sex-sated sleep with a long hiss of menace.

Despite the adrenaline headrush, my thoughts are crystal clear. Even if I summon my guys through our bond to help, this POS has more time than he needs to act.

He's bided his time and chosen his game.

Nothing to do now but play it.

I plant my feet wide and fold my arms across my chest. Like I'm not just wearing a guy's shirt and a crown, with Seelie cum dripping down my thighs.

"So I'm guessing you're our missing demon." I make my voice hard like the badass I am. "Mordred, right? You here to make a play for this crown? Because if you are? Fair warning. That's not gonna end well for you."

His head tilts and his lips curl in a cocky grin I wanna smack right off him. "You know what I am."

"Yeah, you're like this half-Fae, half-kraken, Clash of the Titans demon."

"That ain't all I am, baby. What else." He leans his big trident against the wall and prowls toward me like sex on a stick. I swear to fuck, this guy walks like sin. (At least there's not a tentacle in sight.) "I wanna hear you say it. What else am I, Zara Gemini."

I clear my throat and say huskily, "Incubus. And don't try sexing me up like you did in that dream last night either. I'm onto you and your shit. This time I'm fucking wide awake."

Of course, this piece of work keeps right on coming.

But he takes his time, with a casual confidence to his swagger that goes way beyond cocky. "I could make you sleep. Make you beg. Make you burn. Do whatever the hells I want with you. But I ain't here to nick your crown, baby. And I ain't here to haul you off down below to my watery bed."

"Well, that's a relief. Then maybe I won't need to wipe what's left of you off this floor when I'm finished." He's not getting me trapped against this balustrade either, so I levitate a few inches and let my power rise. It rushes through me like an elixir, making my hair float and my fingers spark. "If you're not here for the crown, Aquaman, what the fuck do you want?"

He rumbles a deep chuckle, but at least he stops moving. "Hells, I want a lotta shit. Too much to spill all at once, true? How 'bout we start with this. Straight up, I'm here to hop on the harem train. Lend some demon muscle to you and your warlock homeboys."

My mouth falls open.

My levitation witchcraft (which is still a new thing for me) exits the building in a rush. I drop to the floor with a thud.

"S-sweet baby Jesus." For fuck's sake. I'm actually stammering. "A-are you trying to say…?"

I can't finish. The sentence is literally too awful to finish.

But Mordred the demon, Zephyr's mortal enemy and therefore mine, finishes that horrible sentence for me.

"Not trying, baby. I'm telling you true. I'm here to join your harem."

THANK YOU!