CHAPTER SIX
Bane
“So she left you alone,” Axe repeats, a smirk playing on his lips. He lifts his glass of ale but doesn’t take a sip. “In her bed.”
Although he’s not my brother by blood, he and Kai are brothers by loyalty. Although, right now, I’d love nothing more than to strike him down with lightning.
Their father, Zython, the Incubus King, took me in when my father died. My father’s name was Renford, the Demon King, and the day he died was also the day I lost my birthright as heir to the Demon Kingdom. My stepmother exiled me and set her son, my half brother, Xan, as heir.
Xan has now stepped up as king, taking my birthright away from me.
And I’ve been living in Chaos, the Incubus capital, as an honorary prince ever since.
“Damn, that’s cold,” Kai murmurs, trying to keep a straight face. He put his fork down next to his plate and glances between me and his brother sitting next to him. I make sure my mental shields are up. Otherwise, the asshole will try and poke around in my head. His mind reading is really fucking inconvenient at the best of times. “It’s like a reverse one-night stand. She brought you back to her bed and then kicked herself out.”
I’m going to kill them.
“Did you not… perform well?” Axe questions, the two of them now throwing back their heads and laughing. “How long did you last? Oh fuck, did you tie her up with your ropes and scare her away? I told you to wait until at least the third date before you drop that kinky shit on them.”
The ‘kinky’ shit they are referring to is my love of using intricate knots to tie up my lovers. I like taking my time and drawing out the anticipation, getting them nice and wet, and hitching up the tension as I restrain them. I have no doubt Saylor would be into that, going by her reactions last night. I’m a perceptive male, and her body was showing all the signs of arousal. She loved everything I did to her last night.
And we’re only just getting started.
“Don’t you worry about my performance,” I mutter, shaking my head at them.
I take pride in pleasing my women, and now that I’ve found my mate, she’s never going to go sexually unfulfilled.
“Did you do her doggy style?” Axe asks, and I slap the back of his head. Hard . “Talk about my mate again, and Kai will be stepping us as heir.”
No one gets to disrespect Saylor, even if they are fucking joking.
“Ouch,” he mutters but takes the hint and doesn’t say anything further.
August steps into the dining room, looking a little worse for wear. His gray tunic is wrinkled, and his usual easy grin is absent. August is another adopted brother. He’s Astrid’s childhood best friend and protector turned Incubus Royal Guard, and I’ve come to really like and respect the fae ex-mercenary.
Once, we both wanted the same woman.
Now, his mate is locked away in our castle, and mine is on the run again.
How times have changed.
“Look who decided to join us for dinner.” Axe grins, lifting his glass. “How is Milana settling into her new accommodations?”
She was once in a nice cell but has now been upgraded to a fancy, highly warded bedroom.
“The second I let her out of there, she’s going to escape and join whatever is left of their army.” He sighs, pulling out a chair with his foot and sitting. “I’ve spent hours trying to talk to her. I’ve slept outside her bedroom door. She hates me, blaming me for her father being killed.”
Kai winces, rubbing the back of his neck. “I mean, we did kill him.”
“ I didn’t,” August mutters, taking the seat next to Kai and opposite me. He rakes his hand through his curly, brown hair and eyes the food. “I don’t know, maybe I should just let her go.”
“And what, meet her on the battlefield?” Axe replies, frowning. “Rion could still be alive. There was no body. And yes, Queen Pandora’s dead army killed most of theirs, but they could still be rebuilding, especially if they get their princess back.” His lips suddenly kick up at the corners. “Trust you to be mated to a rebellion princess.”
Rebellion.
The words haven’t been used before, but he’s right. Declan, Milana’s father, was a warlord who ultimately led an army against us.
And now they know we have Milana.
It’s a recipe for disaster.
“It could be worse,” Kai adds, leaning back in his chair. “Your new brothers-in-law could be Salem, Sage, and Silver.”
Axe chuckles, and even August grins a little.
“And Shadow,” I add, remembering Saylor’s words. “She has another older brother.”
“Shit,” Axe mutters, dragging the word out. “What did you do to piss off the fates?”
“She’s worth it,” I reply, my mind flashing back to her last night. Fuck, she was perfect—a match for me in every way, but then I think back to how I found her, and my teeth clench. What is my little wolf doing right now? Where did she rush off to? She better not be fucking stripping or making out with other females. I didn’t tell my brothers about that incident. Them hearing that she left me alone in bed was bad enough. They’d definitely get a kick out of where I found her last night and what she was doing.
But a few good things came from the situation.
One, I now know where she lives, and two, I was able to check out her house and surroundings to make sure it was safe.
While there, I set up some of my own wards for her, more substantial and stronger than the ones she had. No one will be able to enter her house unless she wants them to. I knew she lived in the Shifter Kingdom, but I thought she’d be in the castle.
I also fixed her broken window.
I wonder if she noticed.
I was surprised to find out she has her own home, one on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by lush green fields and big trees. She’s a wolf, so I should have known that’s what she will need.
Speaking of needs, I still haven’t fed, and I’m hungry.
Food helps, but it doesn’t stop the urge. I need blood, and I won’t be able to hold out much longer—a few days maximum.
“When’s the last time you fed?” Axe asks, studying me. I realize my fangs have extended, and I quickly retract them. “You didn’t feed from Saylor last night?”
I’m the only one of us who has to drink blood. Most demons and vampires are alike in that way, and although I didn’t get the common red eyes, I still need blood to survive. It doesn’t matter whose blood, but I know that when it’s your fated mate, it’s different. Her blood is going to be the sweetest to ever land on my tongue and give me a strength I can’t get from anyone else. Does Saylor know that she’s going to have to feed me for the rest of our lives? That or allow me to drink from someone else, although I don’t know if I’m even physically capable of that. The thought makes me feel sick. I only want Saylor, and that includes her blood.
I don’t reply, but that is answer enough. “You need to feed, Bane. Tonight . Otherwise, I’ll go get Nova. You know she’ll be more than happy to help you.”
I wince, picking up my glass of whisky and taking a sip. Nova is one of the three females I had on a sort of rotation for sex and blood, but she was the one I saw the most.
After Astrid told me about my mate, I stopped seeing any of them for sex, but I still used all three for blood up until I met Saylor on that battlefield.
I’ve never claimed to be a saint, but when I’m in a relationship, I’m in.
And I couldn’t get more fucking in with my mate.
“It’s Saylor, or it’s no one,” I snap.
“Then do what needs to be done,” he fires back. “You don’t need to be weakened right now, Bane.”
“I fucking know,” I mutter, standing up and leaving the dining table.
Nothing I need right now can be served there anyway.