Chapter Seventeen #2
“It’s quite uncanny,” he softly said. “How familiar you are.”
“You keep saying that.” My voice barely rose above a whisper. “The first day we met in the dark wood and then again last night at dinner.”
“Because you remind me of someone.”
“Who?”
“A boy I met long ago. He had hair and eyes much like yours.” Onyx stopped walking and faced me, smoothing aside my bangs.
Again, his touch caused a flurry of tingles that ran rampant over my skin.
“I came across him one day in the forest. He was sitting near a stream with a bundle of treats in his lap, humming to himself.”
“Don’t tell me you ate him.”
“No.” His lips twitched. “I watched him for a while in silence. Curious, mostly. He then said, ‘I know you’re there,’ and told me to show myself. Here was this young boy alone in the forest, calling out to me without fear. His bravery surprised me. Impressed me as well.”
“What happened next?” I asked.
“He offered me a treat from his bundle,” Onyx answered with a sad smile. “A piece of honey cake. He said he had a sweet tooth but that his father forbade him from indulging in them, so he often took them from the kitchen and ran off to eat without his knowing.”
“You like honey cake?”
“That was the first time I tried it,” he said. “It’s been my favorite sweet treat ever since.”
“Noted.” I smiled up at him. “So, you and this boy ate honey cake. Then what?”
He merely glanced at me before continuing forward.
“You ended up eating him, didn’t you?” I stepped after him. “I knew it.”
Onyx offered me a slanted smile over his shoulder. “Worried I have a taste for human flesh after all?”
“Well, if you do, I know your weakness now. I’ll just bake honey cake and throw it at your perfect face.”
His musical laugh filled the corridor. The sound gathered in my belly.
A short walk and several turns later, we stepped through a doorway and into one of the most beautiful rooms I’d ever seen.
“Holy crap.” I admired the arched ceiling, tall windows, vast counter space, and the four ovens that were just like the ones from my café.
One wall was made up of natural rock, giving off medieval vibes, but the sleek décor and appliances were modern.
A perfect blend of both worlds. “This is amazing.”
“I’m pleased it’s to your liking.” Onyx stopped at one end of the counter and watched me flutter around the kitchen.
My attention then landed on something that had me feeling like a little kid on Christmas morning.
“No way!” I rushed over to the large dome-shaped stone oven in the corner. “This thing can make pizza and bread like nothing else can. Even heat distribution and moisture retention. Makes the best crispy crust. And the desserts are to die for too. Apple crisps and berry cobblers.”
“Should I leave and give the two of you some time alone?”
I snorted and turned around to Onyx. “Sorry. I geek out over these things.”
“Never apologize for being excited.” The tenderness in his eyes was unexpected. It was enough to make me forget all about the awesome stone oven. “I envy your ability to find such joy in the mundane. Very little excites me these days.”
“Ah, come on.” I bounced over to him and grabbed his hand. Surprise flickered across his face. Hell, I surprised myself by doing it. His skin was slightly cool against mine. “There has to be something that excites you.”
“I suppose there is one thing.” He slid his other hand to the curve of my neck and leaned in. Breath feathered across my lips. “A silly little human who fate keeps placing in my path.”
Heat seeped into the center of my chest and made me feel… strange. A familiar type of strange. A feeling I had no right experiencing with him.
“Oh, is that the pantry?” I tore my gaze from his and stepped over to peek inside. The pantry overflowed with goodies. Certainly well-stocked. “Hope you don’t mind if I help myself.”
“Be my guest.”
Cinnamon raisin muffins sounded amazing.
I grabbed what I needed and placed the ingredients on the counter before hunting for a mixing bowl, a pan, and a kettle.
Utensils came next, followed by a visit to the refrigerator—almost identical to the one in my café but like three times as big.
Before starting the batter, I filled a kettle with water to make tea.
The air stirred at my back.
I froze at the stove, the kettle inches from the burner. The lightest of pressures trailed over my shoulder, like the glide of fingertips.
“Lord Onyx?” My voice slightly trembled.
“I sense something in you, Evan Clark.” His soft exhale tickled my nape. “Something I’ve yet to find a name for.”
“Nuisance, maybe?”
The breath of his answering chuckle gave me goose bumps. “You’re unlike anyone else I’ve ever met. Full of wit and charm. And with a nature sweeter than honey. I don’t know what to make of you.”
“The feeling’s mutual.” I carefully placed the kettle down and turned to face him. He stood so close that I felt the heat of his body. “I don’t know what to make of you either.”
A strand of black hair fell forward as Onyx leaned in closer, head tilting. “Tell me what really happened the night of the ball.”
“What do you mean? The king was poisoned, and I was wrongly accused, thrown into a cell, and then I… um.” I couldn’t tell him about Cedric’s deal with Stryder without piquing his curiosity and being hit with a ton of other questions I didn’t know how to answer.
“Escaped?” he prompted.
“Yeah. That. I escaped.” I nodded. And kept nodding. God. I’m such a horrible liar. “One thing led to another, and we were ambushed. That’s when Lake took me and ran.”
“See… that’s where your story falters.” A shadow passed over his face. “Your wolf was hit with a laceration spell. Only someone with powerful dark magic could’ve cast it. To my knowledge, no one in the castle apart from your spy possesses dark magic, not even the king’s unit of mages.”
Oh crap. I couldn’t say a word. Anxiety had me by the throat.
His eyes narrowed. “The Royal Order, though searching for you when my demons scouted the forest, aren’t the only ones pursuing you, are they?”
My heart rate quickened. Still no response. Any attempt to deny his words would only result in a nervous ramble or worse: me accidentally confessing everything like the narrator in The Tell-Tale Heart.
“The mystery of you deepens,” he said, pressing closer. Our bodies touched now, igniting an electric spark that traveled from the top of my head to the tips of my toes. “I wonder what I’ll find once I unravel you. Piece by piece.”
A chill danced down my spine. That chill contradicted the hot flush in my cheeks. I inwardly cursed all of my favorite dark romance books that had me crushing on the villain. Onyx radiated power and danger… and yet, my heart raced and my legs were one second away from flying open.
Not literally. Just in my slutty fantasies.
Even more troubling than my questionable taste in past book boyfriends was the sudden smell in the air. Cedar and woodsmoke. There was a jolt in my chest. And a jarring realization.
Onyx had his own unique scent.
But that means… oh no.
My knees nearly gave out. The edges of my vision tunneled, and my breaths sharpened. I wanted to run far away from Onyx. Away from a truth I’d suspected but had been too stubborn to believe.
“You’re trembling.” He skated his fingertips down the side of my throat, which only intensified my trembles. “Does it come from fear of what I may learn about you… or desire?”
“I…” I wet my lips, shaking like a leaf caught in an autumn breeze.
Heavy steps came from the hall.
“My lord!” Seraphina rushed into the kitchen and quickly bowed her head in a show of respect, even in her haste. “Scouts have reported an attempted barrier breach.”
Onyx drew back from me. “Knights?”
“No, milord. Dark mages. Three of them.” Her yellow eyes flickered to me. “They’re here for you.”
Ice filled my veins.
“Seraphina, escort Evan back to his room,” Onyx said, calm and collected but with an underlying note of danger in his tone. That danger being to anyone who dared defy him. “Then join me outside.”
“Yes, milord.” She bowed to him before approaching me.
As she took hold of my arm and began leading me from the kitchen, I turned to Onyx. “What are you going to do?”
“That’s no concern of yours.” A veil draped over his face. It reminded me of how Rowan had been in the beginning, always hiding behind his dark fortress. Keeping everyone at arm’s length. “But I suggest you stay in your room like a good little human and don’t go wandering the halls again.”
***
Rain steadily tapped against the windowpane. Waking that morning to an overcast sky felt like a bad omen.
After Seraphina brought me to my room, I had tossed and turned in bed for hours, thinking of the mercenaries and what would happen once Onyx learned the truth. Would he use me as a bargaining chip like Cedric had and hand me over to Stryder for a price?
It was also possible he’d just kill me once realizing I was part of the royal family. One he swore vengeance against. Reason still unknown.
Anxiety swirling, I gathered the blanket more around me and stayed on the bed like an Evan potato. “Any signs of life out there?”
“Ghost is outside.” Lake stood in front of the window, observing the world below. Once waking, I’d told him everything that’d happened last night—about my time with Onyx and the mercenaries. “He seems to be enjoying the rain.”
I smiled, albeit weakly. “You know, once I got past the shock, I found him and the other horses really beautiful.”
Lake glanced over at me. Softness shone in his purple eyes. “I admit I was shocked by their appearance at first as well. But they’re gentle creatures. Sensitive. When you called Ghost handsome and gave him a name, it made him happy.”
“I love how you can sense those things.” My heart swelled. “You’re so attuned to plants and animals. Able to tell when they’re happy, sad, or hurt. You’re kind of amazing.”
“As are you.” He stepped away from the window and came over to sit beside me on the bed. His shirt was unbuttoned, falling open and revealing his toned abdomen and the dusting of silver hair on his chest. “I sense something in Lord Onyx when he’s near you.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, taken aback.
Lake studied me with a reverent gleam in his eyes. “His soul purrs.”
“Um. Come again? Did you just say his soul… purrs? Like a cat?”
“More of a lion, I’d say.” He adjusted the blanket around my shoulders, pulling it closer to block the slight chill in the room. Logs crackled in the hearth, but the rainy day had brought a small cold front with it. “He’s drawn to you.”
“You’re unlike anyone else I’ve ever met.”
Remembering Onyx’s words from last night awoke a string of butterflies that filled my chest. I rubbed at it, terrified of what those traitorous flutters could mean.
“Have you considered that he might actually be harem member number six?” Lake asked.
“Oh my god.” I slapped my hands over my face with a groan. “Don’t just say it so casually. If he is, it would be a big deal. Like epically big. Dangerous too.”
“Dangerous?” He cocked his head in that way I loved.
“Hello. Demon lord, remember?”
Lake thought for a moment. “I can be dangerous too. I ripped out someone’s throat.”
“That’s different. You were protecting your family.”
“Still… Lord Onyx has been good to us.”
“You trust him?” I asked, surprised.
“I wouldn’t say that.” He gave a slight shake of his head. “Yet, he’s earned my respect. The demi-humans here are happy. A monstrous tyrant wouldn’t have created such a peaceful place.”
“I guess you have a point.” As the rain picked up, I focused on the window, watching the swirls of water blur the glass. The memory of Onyx’s fingertips on my skin caused heat to burrow in my core. “How would you feel if he was? You know… one of my fated men?”
“Cautious.” Lake rose from the bed and went to stoke the logs in the hearth. “But I was cautious of Rowan too. I treat everyone that way until I know I can trust them.”
I drew my legs in closer to my body. “Onyx has his own scent.”
Lake’s gaze darted back to me.
“Cedar and woodsmoke,” I added, still in disbelief. “But maybe I’m wrong, you know? Maybe he just stands too close to the fire and the smell has, like, seeped into his skin or something.”
“If that were the case, I’d smell it when around him. And I don’t.”
No matter how much I tried to deny it, I felt the truth of it in my gut. Onyx was one of my fated mates. His unique scent. The way my body responded to him with just a simple touch. I’d been through it five times now and knew the feeling all too well.
“Goodbye, cruel world.” I flung the blanket over my head and rolled to my side like a curled-up worm. “This is Evan Clark. Signing out.”
“A shame the captain can’t see you right now,” Lake said with a touch of sadness in his voice. The mattress dipped as he sat back down and placed a hand on my hip. I lowered the blanket to find that same sad gleam in his eyes. “You’re awfully cute when you’re this dramatic.”
“Come here.” I lifted the blanket, encouraging him to join me in my cocoon. He lay down beside me, ears drooping. I gently petted the top of his head. “We’ll see our men again soon.”
He responded with a small whine. “Do you think Lord Onyx would allow them here?”
My hand stilled in his hair. “Rowan and Briar would be welcome, I think. But Maddox and Callum have fought demons for years. Onyx might not let them in.”
Lake moved his head, silently asking me to continue petting him. “If he is one of us… one of your men, that is… he might be willing to consider it. To make you happy.”
“Unless he decides to hand me over to Stryder instead. Or kill me. Turn me into an Evan kabob and fire roast me.”
His lips twitched, showing a peak of his canines. “And he’ll glaze you with maple. Or honey. Like the boar skewers from back home. Sweet and savory.”
My stomach growled. “If we don’t get breakfast soon, I might turn into a cannibal and eat myself. Which one of my legs is your least favorite? I’ll start with that one and work my way up. Not eating my hands though. I need those for baking muffins.”
A rough sound left him. He laughed so hard it shook the bed.
That laugh then died away as he snapped his head toward the door. A hard knock followed a beat later.
“Make yourselves presentable,” came Fane’s voice from the other side. He’d learned his lesson about barging in. “You’ve been summoned for questioning. Lord Onyx awaits you in the throne room.”