Page 116 of A Kingdom of Magic and Rain

“How are you feeling? Do you need some water?” He reached for the carafe on the bedside table.

“I don’t need water.” I sat up, moving with ease as my body felt agile and strong. “I only need you.”

He paused with his hand on the glass. His fingers turned white from how hard he was gripping it. The glass might have shattered if he hadn’t released his hold, taking a measured breath. “Lady May is right. You’ve been through a lot. You need time.” A smile pulled at his lips. “We now have an eternity together. If you want to spend it with me.”

“I do.” There was no hesitation. “And I want to begin right now. I don’t need time. I want to seal the mating bond.”

“What?” The word was full of yearning, but came barely above a whisper.

“I want you to claim me as yours, and I want to make you mine.”

My declaration was his undoing. His restraint broke, and he hauled me to him before crushing his lips to mine. The raw and desperate way in which he kissed me dragged a thready moan from me, but the sound got lost in his rough groan. He began drinking from my lips, and I felt every stroke of his tongue in every part of my new body. He devoured me, and I responded in kind. Kicking off the covers, I straddled him, gasping when his hardness pressed into my softness.

He chuckled before pulling away slightly to peer at my face. “My mate,” he said with ardent adoration as his gaze slid to my neck. “To seal the bond, we need to exchange a few drops of blood.” I ran the tip of my tongue over one of my fangs, which was now longer than before. I was curious about my new appearance, but finding a mirror would have to wait. For now, I was more than content to settle for seeing my reflection in his dark eyes. “I’ll have to bite you right here.” He touched his fingertips to the side of my neck. My hyper-sensitive skin hummed at the contact. I gave a slight nod, trembling with anticipation. He trembled, too, as he leaned in. Another gasp escaped me when I felt the subtle prick of his fangs on my throat.

“I love you.” His breath was a warm caress a second before he pressed in.

I cried out as arousal flooded me, pooling in my core. Adrian added to the fire when he glided his tongue over the puncture marks to collect a few drops of blood. Shuddering, he grew even harder underneath me.

“Do it,” he rasped, turning his head to the side to expose his throat.

I quickly ran my tongue over my fangs again before I brought them to his neck. As I slowly sank them in, a rough sound tore from him as he bucked against me.

When I swiped the drops of blood that escaped, the taste exploded on my tongue as my world became a kaleidoscope of colors.

Mine. The knowledge wrapped around my heart like an inseverable thread.

“Mine,” Adrian whispered at the same time.

“Yours,” I told him before I sealed my lips to his.

The kiss instantly turned feral as we tore at each other’s clothes until there was nothing between us but skin.

“Mine,” Adrian growled as I positioned myself above his throbbing length.

“Yours,” I moaned as I lowered myself on him, our bodies becoming one to match our hearts.

“Finished, milady,” Inara said as she met my gaze in the vanity mirror.

She had gathered a few strands of my hair on either side of my face and secured them up with clips of floral and leaf design. After I had thanked her and she had slipped out of the room, I remained seated in front of the vanity, studying my reflection as I had done countless times over the past two weeks. I looked as if a sheen of shimmering stardust had been cast over me. My hair shone like liquid gold, brighter than before. My lips were fuller now, a rich rose color at all times, even without a lip tint. My eyes, which had always been my most outstanding feature, were even more so now. When I had reopened them after my transformation was complete, the hue in my right eye had changed from gold to silver, nearly matching Adrian’s.

Not only did I look different, but I felt different. Silberium was now a part of me, constantly coursing through my veins. It granted me unmatched power without causing me any harm. Its levels hadn’t increased in the past two weeks, which gave me hope that I wouldn’t need to expel the excess magic as Adrian and the ones before him had been forced to do.

“You are a being of both worlds now, mortal and Fae,” Lady May had said of the new development. “My hope is that the balance between the realms will now be sustained inside your new body. Only time will tell.”

Her theory had proven true. Adrian hadn’t felt the ancient magic in his blood since the day I had been changed. Aubrielle continued to heal. Emeraldia also continued to restore, even without me releasing Silberium into the land.

When I had told my parents about everything that had transpired and the life-altering consequences of those events, they had been relieved that I had survived and overjoyed for my eternal future with Adrian. I felt a pang of sorrow every time I thought about them because I would watch them grow older and die; Sebastian, too. He had decided that trying the same spell that had been performed on me was not an option for him. Even though I had survived, there were no guarantees. He had resolved to enjoy his time with Mirielle as a mortal until such time when the Stars called him up to join them.

I often thought about the Stars and the closeness to them that I had experienced when I had almost died. I cherished the memory, but I never regretted leaving the celestial idyll to return to Adrian. The choice had been easy to make. I would make it again and again.

I smiled at my reflection, taking in my rosy cheeks and supple, glowing skin. When my gaze dropped to my neck, I lifted my hand and skimmed my fingertips over the spot where Adrian had bitten me to seal the mating bond. The claiming marks were long gone since I healed so quickly now, but I could still feel them thrum under the surface of my skin any time I thought about him. Dropping my hand from my neck, I reached for the jewelry box and found a pair of gold earrings to complement my cream and gold gown. Looking in the mirror, I put the earrings on before studying my now-arched ears. When a knock interrupted my perusal, I glanced in the direction of the door, detecting who my visitor was from her herbal scent.

“I came to get my journal from you. I need to write down the events of the past few weeks,” Lady May said as she strolled in.

“Of course. I’m done reading it anyway.” I retrieved the journal from the vanity drawer and handed it to her. “I’ve been wondering something after I read it. Everything that had unfolded would have been prevented if only you had denied Oberon’s request to bind him to all the Fae land. Why didn’t you? Why do his bidding?”

Her face shut down as if an invisible barrier had slammed around her stoic features. The reaction gave me the impression that she wasn’t going to respond, but to my surprise, she did, “I could never deny him.” Impossible sadness laced every word. Not sadness—grief.