“Don’t fucking say it!” I warn her, reaching for the pants next to me. “Not now.” “Well, you know I can’t be a Goddess-damn witch. I’m just as disgusted as you are.” She grabs a pair of shoes and thrusts her feet in them. Thankfully, she’s turned away from me while she does this, so I manage to get
*Blanca* Vomit rises up my throat as I wait as patiently as possible for Kieran to leave the tent. I can’t allow myself to think about what happened last night–what we did. If I do, I’m likely to throw up everywhere. Tears sting my eyes for so many reasons, I couldn’t possibly name them all. Here
His eyes cut right through me, squeezing my heart even harder than his fingers bite into my wrist. I don’t bother to try and wrench my arm away from him. “I told you I won’t,” I whisper. “I didn’t do this.” He tosses my wrist out of his grasp and wipes his hand off on his shirt like it’s covered
*Kieran* “Wh-what?” my father stammars as he stares at me standing in front of his desk, holding Nessa’s hand in mine. “Nessa is your… mate?” His face is ashen, his jaw slack, and in his eyes I see the disdain I feel in my heart–along with a great deal of uncertainty. I, too, know how that feels.
“Well….” Mother has one finger under her bottom lip, twisting it there. I know that look, but whatever evil thought has just slipped into her mind, there’s no way my father will let her say it aloud. He stops her with a deep growl in the back of his throat, and she drops it. For now. “You must be
*Blanca* I awake sometime in the middle of the night. When I first got back to my room, I took a long shower and scrubbed my flesh raw. Then, I got dressed in as many layers as I could and fell into bed, exhausted. My mind had gone crazy, even in my dreams, trying to sort out everything that had ha
As soon as I reach for the doorknob, the one on the right hops up. “Hey! You can’t go down there.” “Sure I can,” I tell him. “I’m the princess. I can do whatever I want.” “No, you can’t.” The one on the left is up now, too. “We have it on strict authority from the king himself not to let you down
*Kieran* The library smells like binding glue and old paper. I have no idea why anyone would ever want to spend more than a few moments here. When I was younger, our governess used to herd all of us in here–Anwen, Candace, Finn, Ingrid, and me. We’d sit next to her and listen to her read from story
“What?” Ingrid scowls. “You’d think assassinating your own father would be enough to prove that you didn’t agree with him. Throw Mother in the dungeon with Hollis, when we get around to that stage.”Anwen winces.“We’re not throwing Hollis in the dungeon,” Kieran says tightly. “Not least because, in
CandaceI sit at a makeshift table in the center of Kieran and Raven’s tent, surrounded by people with various claims to being my family, all talking over each other about the mess I’ve made. Even Kash, my father, is here, for reasons I might never understand.“She didn’t do anything wrong!” Ingrid
“I couldn’t fucking tell you.” I wipe my mouth on my bare arm.“Give me one good Goddess-damned reason why not.” His voice is sharper than I expect, and I glance at him.Zain and I have always been close. Having an actual guy friend was useful growing up, but every time something actually important
Hollis“We will not discuss this in public.” Father scowls at the chaos of the crowd then turns and storms out.Like a dog on a fucking leash, I chase after him with the rest of the Snowcrest delegates. My ears are ringing, my heart’s damn near pounded itself to mush against my ribcage, and my eyes
Diplomatic tensions are dissolving, he tells me over mind-link. Snowcrest is furious. Other kingdoms are saying that we’re traitors. We have to go.Snowcrest is furious? I ask. Or King Andri?They’re the same right now, he snaps. Anwen’s working with Alpha Cole to dissolve the crowd, so you and I ju
Candace“No!” I shout as I’m ripped away from Hollis. Like anyone will hear me over the chaos the crowd has broken out into.It’s worse than any other ritual—or maybe this is the only one I’ve been in the crowd during. Scents buffet me from every direction—flowers, trees, body odor, stale alcohol. S
But this is nothing like anything I’ve seen her face before. She stayed, stood her ground, stared at us until she saw the mark. Until she realized, for the first time, that we might not be on the same side.Goddess above, I am so fucking stupid.By the time the sun starts to rise, I realize I’ve mad
HollisI lock eyes with Eva. Tears shine in her green gaze. That, I can handle. But the pained pinch of her eyebrows when Candace picks her head up is too damn much.“This isn’t what it looks like.” I yank back from Candace without a second fucking thought.Eva’s gaze drops to my cock, standing at a
He rams himself forward and goes taut. Salty, musky liquid pours down my throat, hot and still tasting of him. I moan around his length and swallow as much as I can.Mere moments later, he pulls back, grabs me, and lifts me into a kiss. His taste blurs between us. I shove my tongue between his lips,