Chapter Twenty-Two

Bastian smiled at mefrom across the table as we ate dinner, making my chest flutter with nerves and a tentative happiness. I had no idea how this would end up working out, but he was willing to try and so was I.

Sky kept winking at me from his spot beside Bastian, making my cheeks flush. I didn’t know what Sky said to Bastian the other night, but whatever it was seemed to have worked. I shoved the vulnerable voice in my head whispering it was too good to be true to the back of my mind. Once Bastian had a taste of what it was like to be part of us, he’d stay. Right?

He still didn’t feel wholly mine yet, it didn’t feel real.

Saber scooted closer to whisper words in my ear. “Give it time, love. Things will settle eventually. He’s already half in love with you.”

I shivered as Saber’s breath tickled my ear and turned to press a grateful kiss on his lips. His hand gripped my thigh beneath the table and he wrenched me closer to him, his mouth opening and tongue licking my lips. What was supposed to be a quick, sweet kiss turned hot and passionate and had me gasping into Saber’s mouth.

He pulled away with a final nip to my bottom lip, leaving me dazed and turned on.

“Here.” Aster handed me a glass of brandy with a smirk, heat flaring in his eyes. “Looks like you could use this.”

I cleared my throat and accepted the glass with a burning face. “Thanks.”

Low chuckles rang out around the table and I scowled at the lot of the assholes before knocking back half of the drink. Whist’s thigh pressed against mine, sending heat racing right beneath my skin and I shivered, trapped between him and Saber, a pairing I had yet to experience.

I pursed my lips as I stabbed a spear of asparagus with a fork. There was still so much to experience with them, so much to discover. Saber and Whist were close, but they rarely spent any time alone together. Saber only really spent time alone with Sky or me. He was the one who faded into the background, quiet and watching, eyes seeing something the rest of us couldn’t. It was his artist’s soul, dreamy and otherworldly. I loved to watch it shatter when he brought his focus to me, the cobwebs clearing from his gaze, the smoke clearing until I was all he saw.

I smiled at the few drops and splatters of paint he’d missed when he washed up, the sight always stirring something inside of me. The same way it did when Aster played the piano, when Whist was wrist deep in soil or chopped vegetables, when Sky was training with his blades, when Bastian was buried behind a tower of books. In the moments we were safe and happy, the simple moments we grabbed onto with fierce hands to spend on the things that brought us pleasure.

What would it look like if we had a lifetime of those simple moments? Would we bore each other, grow tired of each other? Or would it be a life spent with art, music, laughter, food, books, and love?

“What are you dreaming about, love?” Saber asked.

“The future. Or, a version of it anyway.” One I hoped we could have. One I planned to fight for with everything I had.

“What does your future look like?” Sky asked.

I ducked my head. “Our future.”

“What does our future look like?” Aster asked.

“Happy.”

Saber nudged me. “Not going to give us more than that?”

“Nope.”

Sky pouted. “Minx.”

I glared at him. “Asshole.”

“Tell us,” Aster begged.

I shook my head. “Nope. You’ll have to wait and see if it comes true.”

Bastian leaned across the table. “I’m determined it will if it puts that look on your face.”

“What look?” I asked.

“Peaceful.”

I blushed again. Did they have some sort of wager going who could make me blush the most tonight? There was a strange tension surrounded us, like everyone knew Bastian had accepted the bond and we were all waiting on the edges of our seats to see what that meant for us tonight. I wasn’t sure he was ready to join all of us in the bedroom or if he wanted me to himself.

We needed to have an open conversation about where things were headed. With so many of us and only one of me, it meant we had to work harder to divide time and attention. It meant communication was even more important.

But I had no idea how to broach the subject.

Apparently, Aster did and was somehow reading my mind. “Now that the dragon has finally joined us, we need to discuss a few things. And we definitely need to start planning for a bigger place. It’s getting a bit cramped.”

Whist shrugged. “A bigger place can come later once things with the king have been dealt with. Especially until we know whether or not we’re making our home in the dragon lands.”

Bastian set down his glass of wine. “I’m confident my people would welcome you there as ambassadors like Indigo suggested. And we have plenty of available quarters for larger families.”

Aster nodded. “Right. Excellent. But in the meantime we need to have a conversation about our expectations and boundaries. I don’t want anyone in this relationship uncomfortable or pushed too far.” He gestured to the assassins. “The four of us have known each other long enough and well enough, we have few boundaries left between us. But with the additions of you and Bastian, we need to be clear about what everyone wants and expects.”

Bastian opened his mouth and then closed it with a frown.

I found myself at a similar loss for words, unable how to express what I wanted or expected. It was hard to talk about this sort of thing while we sat around the dinner table.

Sky shrugged. “As long as I get time with Rhapsody, I’m up for anything.” He smirked. “Anything.”

I shivered. “Should we set some sort of schedule?” I didn’t love the idea, but it seemed to be the best way to keep things fair and even between them. I’d already noticed how easy it was for some of them to slip through the cracks when there was drama with one, like with Sky when he was acting strange.

Aster played with the stem of his wine glass. “A schedule would work. At least in the beginning as we continue to get to know each other and how we work together. Eventually, it probably won’t be needed.”

Bastian finally gathered his thoughts enough to respond. “I’m satisfied curling up with the lot of you every night. I don’t care about a schedule.”

We all stared at him in surprise.

“What? I’m a dragon. We like to hoard and sleep on our treasure.” His lips quirked with a grin.

“Do you prefer only female sexual partners or are you interested in males as well?” Sky asked with a wink.

Bastian winked back. “I’d be willing to play around with any of you. I’ve had my share of male lovers before I met my wife.”

My kindreds really were perfect matches. For me and for each other.

Sky grinned. “Maybe we don’t need a new place so much as a new gigantic bed. Then we can turn the rest of the bedrooms into something else. An art room for Saber, a weapons room for me, a library for Aster and Bastian, an indoor garden for Whist.”

“But what about you and Saber? Don’t you want alone time together?” I loved the idea of cuddling with all five of my kindreds every night. It’s what we’d been doing since we returned from the dragon lands, only Bastian sleeping by himself, even though the others had moved their stuff into different rooms.

“Who said we won’t get it? Fucking doesn’t have to always be in a bed, you know.” Sky leered at me.

Aster laughed. “I’m satisfied with a bigger bed. The one we’ve been using is a bit uncomfortable and will be even more so with Bastian inside it. I’ll have one brought in tomorrow.”

We looked over at Whist and Saber who both smiled. They were in. I hoped they were choosing it for themselves, not for me.

Before the conversation could continue or move to the bedroom in question, a pounding came from the door. We exchanged frowns before Whist rose to answer.

A squad of royal guards pushed inside. “We’re here for the dragon.”

If ads affect your reading experience, click here to remove ads on this page.