Chapter One #2
“Ah.” He slanted his head toward me. “I thought it’d be a nice place to put you to rest. An eternal sleep among the flowers.”
“What?” I squeaked.
Onyx released a low chuckle. “Forgive my jest. Your expression amused me.”
“So you don’t plan on ripping off my head and hanging it from that branch like a war trophy?”
“Killing you holds little appeal for me,” he coolly said with a dismissive flick of his hand. “For now, anyway.”
“For now, he says,” I mumbled. “That makes me feel so warm and tingly. Thanks for that reassurance, Lord Onyx.”
His lips curved, holding a touch of mischievousness. It then fled, as though carried away by the stream beside us. “You were frightened of me earlier. In the throne room.”
I recalled how he’d sat on his obsidian throne, his gaze hard and tone sharp enough to cut glass. He had demanded to know why mercenaries from Nocturne were targeting me, as Stryder and the others had attempted to breach the barrier around the Shadow Realm the night before.
“Well, it’s not every day I’m summoned by a demon lord for questioning. On top of that, you said you hated the royal family. I expected to lose my head as soon as I told you who I was.” I faintly smiled. “Guess it’s a good thing you were friends with my dad.”
“Even if you weren’t Elias’ son, I feel my decision to spare you would have remained the same.
” Onyx peered at the domed ceiling with a pensive expression.
“Since the moment I first saw you in the dark wood, I’ve been intrigued.
My interest in you has grown since then. Fate keeps placing you in my path.”
Because we’re destined mates. And it terrified me.
“Fate can be funny like that,” I said, trying for a lighter tone to disguise my nerves.
“Can’t predict what that fickle jerk will do next.
Almost like they’re making it up as they go, like an author who throws random crap into the plot whenever they’re stuck to see what sticks.
Tension, swoon, or steam. Can never go wrong with too much smut though. When stuck, let them fuck.”
Onyx blinked at me. Another male had fallen victim to the chaotic, oftentimes random as hell, thoughts in my head.
“But anyway.” I cleared my throat. “Tell me more about my dad. What was he like?”
“More mindful of his words, for one,” Onyx responded, giving me a side-eyed look. “Unlike you and your endless rambles.”
“It’s a gift and a curse.” I exaggerated a sigh. “A true skill. Not everyone can do it.”
A smile touched his lips. “Elias held the same air about him as you. Lighthearted and full of hope. As a tamer, he held sway over demons; however, I believe it was his gentle spirit that made them not only obey him… but love him as well. Especially the Fenrir.”
“Like Oreo,” I said, thinking of the cute puppy.
“Yes. Another thing you have in common.” The skin around his eyes grew taut. “When news reached the Shadow Realm of Elias’ death, their mournful howls could be heard all through the surrounding mountains.”
The backs of my eyes prickled.
“Knowing you’re his son makes me believe you can be trusted. But know this.” His gaze met mine, hardening at the edges. “If you betray my trust, Evan Clark, I will show you the monster the stories make me out to be.”
“Is that why you wanted to talk to me today?” I asked, folding my hands together on my lap and pressing my thumb against my opposite palm. “To threaten me?”
“Threaten? Not at all. I only wished to inform you of what would happen should you ever make me regret welcoming you here.”
“So… a threat.”
The hardness in his eyes lifted, albeit slightly. “If you say so.”
“I hope you know that I won’t hurt you or anyone else here.” I squirmed on the bench, hating the thought of him thinking me capable of such a thing. “Unless something I bake gives someone a belly ache. Too much sugar will do that. But it’d be an accident, I swear.”
More of his ice chipped away. “Perhaps I’ve become soft in my many years, but I believe you.”
“How many years are we talking here?” I asked, scrutinizing his face. He looked in his upper twenties. Early thirties, maybe, but definitely no older than that.
“Nearly three centuries,” he answered.
My eyes bugged before I remembered my manners and composed myself. “You… uh… look good for your age.”
“Quite different from a human, yes?”
“Just a little,” I answered with a short laugh. “In three hundred years, I’ll just be a sack of dust and bones.”
“Yet, I’m sure you’d still find a way to bless everyone nearby with that mouth.”
“Rude.” I crossed my arms. “I was going to bake you something special as thanks for letting my men come here, but now I don’t think I will.”
“No?” A spark of humor lit his eyes.
“No,” I confirmed. “You can starve.”
He laughed. “Oh, how I envy your lovers then. I’m sure you spoil them with all the sweet treats.”
“A little, yeah.” Warmth filled my chest. But so did an ache I couldn’t pinpoint. It worsened when looking into his eyes. “I may be swayed to bake you a treat or two. If you behave.”
“Behave?”
“Yep. Bad boys don’t get muffins.” Nerves rolled in my gut. “When they get here, they might not be the friendliest bunch. I don’t know the details about the human and demon war, but I know things are… tense.”
“Tense is an understatement,” he said. “The war ended long ago, yet our kinds have remained in conflict, never truly knowing peace. But rest assured, I vowed to give your lovers safe passage and intend to keep my word. Until they give me reason not to.”
A clear warning. Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.
“War is so dumb,” I said, a wobble in my sternum. “Killing each other gets us no closer to peace.”
“You speak of peace.” He shook his head. “A nice idea but an impossible one.”
“It doesn’t have to be,” I said shakily. “The fighting has to stop somewhere. Why not let it stop with us?”
“Your father said those exact words to me once.” His gaze remained on me. “I’ll tell you as I told him. There’s too much painful history between our kinds to be forgiven, too much bloodshed.”
“We won’t know until we try.” I raised my chin as a sudden defiant urge crashed over me. I wasn’t the bravest when it came to confrontations or battles of wit. But on this, the chance at making peace between us, I strengthened my resolve.
Onyx breathed out. A tired, defeated sound. “Your optimism, while admirable, is foolish. Demons and humans will never live together in harmony. No amount of wishful thinking will change that.”
“Well, not with that attitude it won’t,” I mumbled.
When his eyes returned to me, that earlier amusement shone in them. “You’re awfully feisty, aren’t you?”
“Only when it’s deserved,” I shot back without missing a beat. “And from where I’m standing, er, sitting, you deserve it.”
His brow arched. “Is that so?”
“Yep. You’re being stubborn.”
“I’m being stubborn?” Onyx grabbed my jaw in a gentle hold and leaned in closer. So close I felt his breath tickle my lips. “I call it being logical. We’re too different.”
Fire flickered to life in my core, the flame small but rising. Nervous energy coursed through me, but so did a strange sense of… comfort. It was something I felt around each of my men, tipping the scales even more toward him being one of them.
“There your heart goes again,” he softly murmured. “Whipping and thrumming like a hummingbird’s tiny wings.”
Raindrops tapped against the glass, no longer a torrential downpour, and the rumbles of thunder were more distant, less boisterous. The same couldn’t be said for my heart. The beats were fast and heavy enough to beat out of my damn chest.
“I…” The urge to kiss him slammed into me. My gaze lowered to his lips, and I swallowed hard. “I need to walk around for a sec. My butt’s numb.”
Onyx released a deep chuckle, and his hand fell from my jaw. “Be my guest.”
I scurried off the bench and walked over to the stream.
With my back to him, I took several deep breaths and tried to shake off the restlessness that begged me to jump Onyx’s bones right there in the freaking greenhouse.
My fear of being with him aside, it felt wrong to do anything without talking to my men first. Lake knew already, but the others didn’t.
The crystal clear water of the stream flowed past trees and shrubs of all types. On the other side of the stone path stood patches of colorful flowers and tropical plants.
“I suggest refraining from touching some of the flowers,” Onyx said from his spot on the bench. “They bite.”
I flipped around to him. “They… what?”
His lips twitched. “Human meat is their favorite delicacy.”
“I’m not on the menu, sorry.”
He chuckled, the rumble low and sexy, and rose from the bench. My tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth as he joined me near the stream. His presence was so palpable that my skin tingled. Long black hair fell to the middle of his back, the strands shining like a raven’s feathers.
Fuck, I wanted to bury my fingers in those strands and see if they were as soft as they looked.
No, Evan, bad Evan. There would be no touching of the demon lord. I clasped my hands in front of me to reinforce that thought.
“You asked earlier why I brought you here.” The middle of his brow creased. “Coming here has always brought me peace, even in moments when it felt like my world was shattering into a thousand pieces. I hoped it’d do the same for you. You’ve had a rough few days.”
The desolation in his tone seeped into my chest. I saw beyond his fierce reputation. Saw the lonely male who’d been so hurt by life that he’d sought solace among flowers.
“Thank you,” I said, throat tightening. “It really is peaceful. Everything’s so vibrant.”
“You sound surprised.”
“Guess I am. A little bit.” I extended a hand toward a low hanging tree branch and touched one of the green leaves. It had a rubbery texture. “The rest of your castle is so… um.”
“Derelict and rundown?”
“No,” I told him, gently bumping his arm. “Haunted and kind of creepy, maybe, but not rundown.”
“Haunted?” A glimmer of humor returned to his eyes.
“At least by spiders.”
When he laughed, the musical sound settled over my heart. Made it ache. Once realized, the fated mate bond awoke feelings in me that’d been dormant. The longer I spent with him, the stronger those feelings became—a deep longing that couldn’t be soothed.
“The place needs a little love,” I said.
“A little love, hmm?” Onyx’s brows pulled together. “You believe that’s enough to chase away the cobwebs and bring warmth back to these icy walls? What if this is all they’ve known? All they’ve ever been?”
My sternum squeezed. I got the feeling we weren’t talking about the castle anymore.
“I have matters to attend to before your companions arrive.” Onyx turned toward the main path, throwing his icy walls up once more. “Come. I’ll escort you back to the kitchen.”