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He plucked a flower from the wall, squeezing it in his fist, his features unreadable. “Goodnight.”
I turned on Helian, not bothering to watch if he left our bedchamber as I climbed back into bed. I knew my mates would handle it. I tensed at the rustle of our bedroom curtain and then Helian’s retreating footsteps echoing down the hall. I should’ve been proud of myself for standing up to Helian, and yet my heart ached at the look of despair in his eyes.
My mates shifted back into their human form and slipped beneath the blankets with me.
Finn kissed my shoulder, his lips lingering on my skin. You handled him well, he projected to me through thought.
Tears welled in my eyes as I struggled to breathe through a constricted throat. Then why do I feel terrible about it?
Don’t. Ash snuggled against me, rubbing warmth into my arm. He doesn’t deserve any pity.
I know. I swiped away tears and looked into Ash’s wolf-touched eyes. I’m not trying to convince you to forgive him, but did you know that night he set off the bomb, King Fachnan was going to send you instead?
Ash grimaced. Finn told me. He brushed a strand of hair out of my eyes, but do you think we would’ve listened to Fachnan?
You would have to save me, I answered. Fachnan’s dragons already dropped the bomb into Malvolia’s camp, but it didn’t go off. Helian retrieved it, but they wanted to send one of you.
Ash arched a brow. And you’re saying they didn’t ask us because Helian volunteered to go instead?
I nodded. They said as my mates you could’ve found the ball faster because you could scent my magic.
We can, Finn said.
Ash took my hand in his, a predatory gleam in his eyes as he brushed a kiss across my knuckles. It smells like you, honeysuckle and earth.
I swallowed back my sorrow and inhaled the fragrant flowery smell that permeated the air. Helian went in your stead because he didn’t want you to die, and this isn’t the first time Helian has risked his life for yours.
A long pause stretched between us, and I dwelled on memories of Helian and me making love while traveling up the Fallax Islands. Then I thought of that magical night I’d spent in Ash’s and Finn’s arms before everything fell apart. These were the mates I wanted to spend my eternity with, and I shouldn’t have to choose between them.
Ash finally cleared his throat. “So you want us to forgive him?” he asked aloud, his voice gruffer than usual.
I rolled into him, cupping his unshaven, abrasive cheek. “I just want you to have an open mind.”
Ash silently nodded.
Finn placed a hand on my back, turning me toward him. He kissed the tip of my nose, his eyes sparkling with adoration. “We can do that.”
I breathed out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
Chapter Twelve
Helian
Once the satyrs were assured I was no longer demon-touched, they were kind enough to outfit me with a clean robe and even an old, rusty sword and shield. They offered me nowhere private to sleep, though, saying I’d have to sleep in the common bunk area with the single satyr males, about a hundred of us sharing the same bunks and shitter. No thanks.
After trudging back up the long, steep ramp, I breathed in warm, fresh air when I surfaced. Carrying a lantern with me, I trudged through a worn path in the jungle, hacking a few wayward limbs until I found the abandoned temple with vines growing up the bamboo columns that held up the thatch roof. The temple had only three walls, the side facing my path exposed, either on purpose or else the wall had fallen. I imagined it was purposely that way so that a dragon could easily climb inside. I knew Radnor was in there, and not just because his snores echoed across the jungle. I sensed my bonded drake was sleeping inside, which explained why he didn’t answer my calls.
My feet dragged and sweat pooled down my back and brow as I climbed up the mossy steps to the temple. A fire was lit in the pit in the center, dark smoke from the flames licking the ceiling. Radnor opened one golden eye when I ascended the final step.
“Hey.” I dropped my sword and shield at my feet. “Mind if I sleep with you?”
I thought your demon was gone. He opened the other eye as he sat up with a yawn. Why do you not sleep with your mate?
“She hasn’t forgiven me.” My shoulders sagged with the admission, and I feared my family would never forgive me.
Radnor’s nostrils flared as he blew out twin puffs of smoke. The female species is heartless and stubborn. I don’t understand why we bother with them.
Maybe I would’ve agreed with him last week, but how could I fault my mate when I’d so callously turned her away. “I don’t think An—Tari is heartless and stubborn. I’ve hurt her. I don’t blame her for guarding her heart.”
