55

IVY

I WAS given another three days of peace before I was expected to return to the academy. Three days to relax, let my magic settle again after the explosion, and enjoy the proximity of not only my newly bonded mate, but all of them.

Hawk didn’t stay, but I hadn’t expected him to. Though we needed to talk about what we both already knew, it was clear he needed time.

And I was okay with that.

One more day , I thought, sucking in a long breath. I released it slowly as I considered all the things we needed to do.

No more thinking, Adrian said, joining me in the shower. His smile, charming and flirty, made my heart stutter. And when he dropped to his knees before me, I couldn’t stop the flutter of my pussy as he hooked one of my legs over his shoulder. He explored the space between my thighs with his mouth, trailing soft kisses over my flesh before reaching my core. He flattened his tongue over the seam, and I threw my head back on a moan.

It was hard ignoring the pent-up lust within me. The need to be with all my mates. Now that we were together again, it was like a heavy pressure on my chest that required release.

Circling my clit with his tongue, Adrian toyed with my entrance. His finger entered me slowly, and I tightened around him. Were you not taken care of, Sweetheart? Do you need me to make this better for you?

I bit my tongue as he sucked on my clit. Pressure built in the pit of my stomach, my need to come building. Adrian...

He growled against my pussy, and the vibrations intensified the feeling of his mouth on me, his fingers inside me. He drew the digit out and added a second, plunging inside my wet heat, curling them. I whimpered, my hips rocking against his face.

That’s good, Sweetheart. Use my face. Come on my tongue .

I dug one hand into his hair while the other braced me against the shower wall. The smell of lavender-infused steam filled my lungs.

Adrian’s fingers matched the pace of his tongue, each flick a pump that pushed me closer and closer to the edge. I was so close, I clamped around him in warning.

Just a little more... I said.

Adrian sucked my clit hard, and I came on a cry. Pleasure rolled through me from the release, and my magic loosened like a tense thread within me. He didn’t stop fucking me with his fingers until the last wave of my climax.

My charming mage rose, a pleased smile curling his lips, chin wet with my release. Tugging my limp body into his arms, he pressed a hard kiss to my pliable lips. I didn’t even care anymore that I tasted myself.

“You know, eating me out right before breakfast with the others…” I said, curling my arms around his neck. “We won’t want to leave the suite at all.”

Adrian cut me off with another searing kiss. “If you think I won’t do this when we return to Oberon, then you don’t know me well enough, Sweetheart. And I don’t care about the others. It’s you I want to take care of.”

I raised my brows, heart skipping a beat. Dammit, I was lucky. More than lucky, actually. Blessed would be a better word to describe the feelings rushing through me. Pressing my lips into a firm line, I untangled myself from him so I could stand under the water. The heat was scalding, but I relished in the way it loosened the tension in my shoulders.

Or maybe it was the recent orgasm. Both felt pretty good.

The door to the bathroom opened as Adrian joined me under the spray. My prince pulled me in front of him when Rowan appeared in the doorway, Elias coming in shortly after.

My breath caught at the sight of my mate, shifted into his human form. Dark stubble lined his jaw, unshaven after nearly a week of being the wolf. His dark eyes found mine, and he stroked the bond lovingly, reassuringly.

I wanted to rush to him, but Adrian pulled me in front of him, hard cock pressing into my ass. “Do you two mind?”

“Do you?” Rowan asked. “You’re using Ivy as a shield. A very pretty, sexy shield. But a shield nonetheless.”

“Because you don’t know how to knock!” Adrian hissed. “What are you two doing? I thought we’d discussed boundaries .”

If it weren’t from the serious looks on their faces, I would be laughing. Dying of laughter, in fact. Because this was ridiculous and not something I ever thought I’d have to deal with in my lifetime.

Sharing a bathroom with three younger siblings? A breeze compared to this, apparently.

“What’s going on?” I asked, trying to ignore the reaction my body was having to the three of them. I also couldn’t help but be proud of myself for not shying away from them.

Elias’s stare burned through me, but despite the hunger in his eyes, he remained serious. “There’s news. Sir Theon is here.”

My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach. Behind me, Adrian went rigid. “What is it?” he asked.

“It’s best that you two...finish what you’re doing and meet us out in the family room,” Elias replied stiffly, eyes darkening.

Both men left after that, the door to the bathroom shutting quietly behind them. “What do you think happened?” I asked quietly.

Adrian pressed a kiss to my shoulder before sighing. “I don’t know, but it doesn’t sound good. We don’t want to keep them waiting.”

I swallowed hard, heart thundering. We finished our shower in record time, no more fooling around. I didn’t even try to blow-dry my hair; I threw it up into a messy bun and dressed in something easy that didn’t require fuss. With worry eating me alive, I didn’t even pay attention to what I was putting on.

By the time we were done, everyone was already waiting in the family room. Well, not Thea and the kids. The last couple of days with them had been quiet, but they’d been kept mostly occupied by their tutoring and other lessons. I sent Maeve a look.

Thea took them into her room for this. They won’t want to hear what Sir Theon has to say, she said, motioning for me to join her on one of the long couches. Adrian took my other side, and I welcomed the protection the two of them offered, but it put me directly across from Sir Theon.

“Ivy. You’re looking well,” he said, offering me a smile. Beside me, Adrian stiffened, but I reached into his lap and took his hand.

“Thank you, Sir Theon,” I replied. “What’s going on?”

The Queen’s mate sighed, and he bowed his head. “There have been some...developments, regarding the shadow organisation hunting you.”

It was my turn to stiffen. “What do you mean? What happened?”

“There was an assassination attempt on Queen Greer in the early morning,” he said, his voice dripping with pain. “With her weakening state, she wasn’t capable of fending him off.”

Adrian’s hand tightened around mine. “Is...is she alright?” he asked quietly.

Sir Theon looked up at that and nodded. “She’s...resting. Alive, thank the Goddess. But we suspect there are agents within these walls that are no longer loyal to us. We may have to consider a complete lockdown of the palace. The danger is more prominent than we thought, and the Queen’s Wing has never been compromised. Not in the last fifteen-hundred years since this palace was built has an enemy infiltrated her rooms.” Sir Theon paused and scrubbed a hand through his shoulder-length hair. “We don’t know if she was the intended target, or if you were, Ivy. We speculate that it might have been an attempt to harm you after the explosion.”

I blew out a shaky breath. Adrian gave my hand a reassuring squeeze as the rest of my mates tensed. “What does that mean, exactly? For me—for my family?”

“We are reconsidering you travelling between the academy and the palace is safe,” he replied. “It seems unwise, especially since they are getting more confident in their attacks.”

I understood what he wasn’t saying. He—and everyone else—wanted me at the academy full time. They wanted me to abandon the children. “No. I can continue my studies here with tutors. I’ll even spend more time on them if I’m here. I’ll go back once there isn’t a threat to my family, but I will not leave them. ”

He sighed and pressed his hands together, leaning forward. “We aren’t asking you to leave them,” he said quietly, sternly. “But we also don’t recommend them remaining here, either. Not if the palace is compromised.”

My stomach clenched with panic. “What are you suggesting, then?”

Sir Theon glanced at Adrian briefly before meeting my stare. There were lines of stress around his green eyes—eyes that were the same shade of emerald as Adrian’s. “We think it might be best to...relocate them to a safe location where they’ll be protected by a smaller, more specialised team, while you remain at the academy.”

“Alone?” I clarified, clenching my free hand in my lap. “You want me to send them somewhere, alone, without me?”

Maeve took my hand and forced my fingers to uncurl. I’d barely noticed the bite of my nails digging into my palm. “Ivy, we can make a plan.”

I sucked in a sharp breath. Panic was closing in. I’d made a promise to them that I wouldn ’t abandon them. That I wouldn’t leave them like Kerry. But wouldn’t I be doing that if I let Sir Theon send them away? If he couldn’t trust them to be safe in the palace, then they certainly wouldn’t be safe anywhere else.

Sir Theon sat back with a sigh. “We are trying to do what is best for all of you, please believe that,” he said. It was a little too patronising for me, but I bit my tongue. “Our options are extremely limited. Especially because it appears our enemy is closer to us than we first expected.”

“They are always listening. That is what the Seer warned me of when we left to find Ivy,” Maeve muttered as she stroked my hand. “What does she have to say?”

I might not have taken much stock into psychics, but what little I knew about Sable had me a little more confident in her abilities.

“She has given her opinions. Even suggested a possible place for them to be relocated to.” He eyed me warily for a moment before continuing, “Adrian’s brother, Griffon, and his mates have a semi-permanent residence few know about on one of the islands off the western coast. One of his mates is a siren princess, so there is protection there from not just the land, but the sea. Griffon is set to leave for his home in the next few days, and we believe the children and your friend should go with him.”

My heart raced and tears burned the corners of my eyes. For a long moment, I couldn’t speak. Guilt swirled within me, but more than that, anger and frustration. Every time I think I might be making progress, this False King swoops in to take another thing away from me.

First my magic in the explosion not even a week ago.

And now my family?

Were they really safer on a faraway island? I knew the ones he was talking about—we’d studied the maps in our Political Climates class. There were dozens of small islands off the coast that were mostly private and owned by the wealthier aristocrats. Heavily warded and charmed for that reason alone. Some were protected by packs of shifters. Others just homes. Very few weren’t inhabited these days. And most were heavily surrounded by sirens and other mer-creatures because of the beaches that lined the coast.

But apparently the area was beautiful. The children—minus Thea—loved the beach. I closed my eyes, suddenly feeling more tired than I had when I’d woken.

It won’t be forever, Elias said, his presence in my mind comforting. We would never have brought this up if we didn’t think it was right.

I swallowed thickly and opened my eyes. The weight of their gazes was solely on me. But this wasn’t just a decision to be made by me.

We were a family—all of us. We had to treat it as such.

I glanced at Maeve first. “What do you think? Like, really think about this?” I asked.

Maeve pressed her lips into a firm line, eyes searching mine, but I needed to know the truth. She gave my hand a comforting squeeze. “Logically, letting them leave with Griffon would be their safest option. They would be harder to track, and Griffon and his mates have notoriously made it clear they will never let the children of their siblings stay with them. No one would suspect them of hiding three girls in their manor.”

“My brother is also one of the kindest, strongest people out there,” Adrian said. “He was there throughout my entire childhood—no matter what he says about children. He was there for all of us. And he’s powerful. His father is Onyx, and he’s been around for over two hundred years, so have his mates. They’ve mastered their powers.”

“Tell me about them,” I whispered. “Are they as good?” Because I knew, just from Adrian alone, that his siblings had to be as good as him.

“His mate Senna is a princess of the Abyss Court. She’s extremely powerful because she comes from a long line of sirens, but she’s also incredibly generous and kind. Which might be strange after your time at the academy, since most Fae have sticks up their ass. But not her. Some might see it as a weakness. But not you.” He pulled me closer into his side, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. “Declan is his other mate and a shifter. Eagle. And he might be a little stern and quiet, but like Griffon and Senna, he’s great. They would never hurt the children—and they would never let anything happen to them.”

My eyes went to the ceiling. I tried to keep the tears from falling. No matter what I did, they were never going to be safe with me. At least, not until whoever the asshole hunting me was stopped.

I hadn’t asked to be Queen. I hadn’t asked Nyx to name me as her Daughter . I never wanted any of this.

But I also couldn’t bring myself to regret any of it. It felt selfish, but I couldn’t ignore the fact I loved my mates. Loved this new world.

Blowing out a shaky breath, I dropped my stare to my hands. One claimed by Maeve, the other by Adrian. Both holding me tight, like they were afraid I’d break.

“They have to leave in a couple of days?” I asked, my voice not quite sounding like my own.

Sir Theon nodded. “Yes.”

“Okay.” Standing, I dropped Maeve and Adrian’s hands. “Let me...let me tell them. Thanks for looking out for them.”

I tried to push the numbness aside, but it crashed into me. There was nothing more I could do.

~

Days passed in a blur. A blur of begging. Of fighting. Of silence.

We had dinner with Griffon and his mates as a way to introduce everyone, but I couldn’t blame the kids for the way they behaved. The snapping. The tears. The only thing keeping them from full blown riot was the promise that they’d have Thea and her parents as soon as they reached Avalon.

I could tell my best friend wasn’t entirely pleased with being shipped off, but she didn’t fight me. She understood why it had to happen this way.

Maisie burrowed herself in my chest, her arms tight around my neck as I carried her towards the bulky SUV. Ginny walked ahead with Eloise, both too quiet, while Thea, Elias, and Rowan carried the bags.

Waiting by the SUV was Griffon; he looked nothing like Adrian, and yet, I saw the similarities in the finer details of his face. But Griffon had dark hair that spilled down to his mid-back, and broad shoulders hidden by a cable-knit sweater. He looked like a warrior and a librarian, which might have been contradictory under other circumstances. But he had kind features, and nice eyes, which eased some of my worries.

He nodded to me from where he stood. Despite everything, I was more than grateful to him and his mates. Senna took his hand, and there was sympathy in her eyes as she watched our sad little procession. From the small conversation we’d had, I’d managed to have her promise not to bring up the siren thing to the children. While Eloise knew and was okay to learn more, Maisie and Ginny were still too young. The princess hadn’t liked it—I’d noticed the hope of sharing her world and culture with them—but she’d agreed.

It was strange, knowing that she shared such a huge thing with my little sisters. The siren princess looked like moonlight, with silver hair and almost white eyes, pale milky skin and scales lining her cheeks and collar bones. Would my sisters develop scales? It was such an odd thing to wonder, but I couldn’t help the thought.

We stopped at the SUV, and Maisie’s arms only tightened around me. “Please. I don’t want to leave. I’ll be good. I promise.”

I swallowed back tears as I hugged her harder. “You have been perfect, nugget,” I whispered, my voice thick with emotion. “But the bad people...They aren’t going to stop trying to hurt us. And protecting you—that’s my job, okay? I have to make sure you and your sisters are safe.”

At those words, Eloise spun towards me. “We would be safer with you. ”

“No, El.” I shook my head. “They want me gone. I ’m the only thing standing in their way. And after what they did to Mom? They’ll have no problem using you to hurt me. And I cannot risk that.” Her bottom lip wobbled, though she tried to hide her pain.

Shifting Maisie’s weight to one arm, I opened the other to Ginny and Eloise. It didn’t take long for them to join us, and I breathed in this moment like it was the last.

Because it could be.

And then I said goodbye, praying to Nyx it would be the last time I had to, and watched as my family was taken again.