Fae's Fate: Fated Mates of the Fae Royals (Summer Court Book 7)

7. Malachi

Had I almost kissed my best friend? I jerked away from her before she scolded me for crossing the line of friendship. I could never lose her. No matter how much I wanted her. How much my body throbbed with the incessant need to have her under me.

“Stay here,” I said.

“No, I’m going with you.” Ciara pursed her lips and tilted her chin.

She was so stubborn. And infuriating sometimes. Her guards rushed forward. I’d forgotten they were with her. They must have followed us out of the library when I’d carried Ciara out, but I’d been too worried about helping her overcome her panic attack to care about anything else. Had they seen how close I’d come to kissing her? I could kick myself for getting carried away with the enchantment of the moment beneath the moonlit sky and how beautiful she’d looked. But then she was always beautiful.

“Stay with us,” Emer said. “We’ll protect you.”

There were no other sounds apart from the woman’s scream. What had happened? Did I get Ciara out of the library in time to save her from an evil we didn’t understand? Why was Earth so precarious for the Fae to visit?

Ciara tapped her fingers on her crossed arms. “Well, someone has to find out what the scream was about. We can’t stay here and wonder.”

“I can’t hear any fighting sounds,” Ivo said. “It’s our duty to protect you so we should stay here where we know it’s safe.”

“People don’t scream for no reason,” Ciara said.

“Do you hear any more screams?” I asked.

“No.” She shook her head. “My sister is in there. If something bad is happening, then I need to help her.”

I raised my eyes skyward and hauled in a centering breath. “We all go together.”

The guards argued but there wasn’t any point in us staying out here debating about helping. If they needed help, then we’d help. It was simple. I wouldn’t run and hide, and neither would Ciara unless it was necessary. First, we needed to find out what we were dealing with.

The three of us formed a circle around Ciara as best we could. Another guard would have been preferable, so they’d protect her from all sides, but I recognized she would use her powers to protect herself if needed. But after the way they’d flared from her without her control back in the Summer Court, it wasn’t the best thing for her to use her powers right now. We inched forward, closer to the library entrance.

The lights were still on. Excited voices echoed below. I raised a questioning eyebrow at Ciara. She shrugged. It didn’t sound like anything nefarious was happening in the library. So why would a woman scream?

We inched down the stairs at a snail’s pace placing one foot in front of the other and not making a sound. Then we’d catch whoever was down here by surprise.

But as we arrived at the end of the staircase, we found nothing amiss. The people were still sitting at the table or browsing the bookshelves. Apart from Alister and his daughter Fiona who were talking energetically with a young man. I couldn’t see Aislinn or Fallon. Had they harmed them?

“Alister,” I called out and waved him over.

Alister lifted his head, patted the young man on the shoulder, then walked over to us.

“Why did a woman scream?”

Alister smiled. “Sorry, my daughter was over-excited to see her son again. Brandon has been away studying for years.”

“Years?”

“Oh, yes. We take our training seriously. We do not allow any humans near the Infinite Spring until they’ve undergone extensive training, so the spring doesn’t tempt them to drink from it,” Alister said.

“What happens if they do?” Ciara asked.

“They become warped and power hungry.”

“Like the Trappers?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“I suppose now we comprehend how the Trappers started.” My fingers itched to write the words down. For there to be a place other Fae could learn what had happened in the past. A way for them to avoid them in the future too.

“We have an entire section on the Trappers,” Alister said as though reading my thoughts.

“One day, I’ll read them but for now we must focus on the Spring’s problems.”

Fiona and her son walked over to us.

“Brandon, allow me the great honor of introducing you to Fae Princess Ciara.”

Brandon’s smile stretched across his face so far, a surge of possessiveness flared inside me.

“A pleasure to meet you,” Brandon said, his voice as smooth as running water.

I peeked at Ciara. She returned his smile and tucked her hair behind her ears. Did she find him attractive? What did it matter, he was human, but the thought of her with any man made me want to carry her out of here and hide her away in the palace tower back home. I rubbed the ache in my side near my heart.

“I’m Malachi,” I said, butting in before my jealousy got the better of me and the flare of my powers I sensed building in my hands escaped in a bright burst of light.

“Nice to meet you,” Brandon said holding out his hand.

I placed my hand in his and my powers throbbed even harder. I had to get control of my jealousy. How would I be when Ciara found her fated mate? I didn’t want to think about it.

“And they are?” Brandon asked.

“My guards,” Ciara said. “Emer and Ivo.”

“We would never harm a Fae,” he said.

“The King is cautious, and we can’t blame him,” I said.

“I suppose not,” Brandon said.

“I’m getting back to the books,” Ciara said, stepping away and walking toward the table.

It wasn’t like me to be distrustful, but I’d never left the Summer Court and I trusted everyone back home. Here on Earth was a different matter. Here was where the Trappers almost annihilated us to extinction. Of course, I was cautious.

“I guess we’ll see you around the library?”

Brandon smiled. “I’ll be here helping.”

He walked over to the table and sat opposite Ciara. Great, just what I needed. More of a reason to be jealous for no damn reason. What was wrong with me? I rubbed my neck and the base of my head. The pressure building there made me rush over to Ciara’s side and settle beside her. The sensation eased at once because being beside her calmed me in an instant.

Aislinn and Fallon walked out of a row between the shelves looking a little sheepish. A faint pink stained both their cheeks. I’d learned newfound mates were insatiable for each other. Would Ciara be passionate with her fated mate?

Why was I torturing myself yet again? When it was me who thought of having her naked, skin glistening from the pleasure I’d given her. Those thoughts were always in my head.