chapter twenty-three
ELYSIA
Laughter echoes across the rooftop garden, a gentle balm against the grief still clinging to us all from the market yesterday.
Music hums beneath it, glasses clink, and familiar voices blur together into something warm and alive. Snow drifts lazily from the night sky, light enough to melt on contact but not yet blanketing the ground.
Firefly lanterns and rune-lights are strung overhead, their golden light blending with the soft luminescence of enchanted trees and flowers, casting a dreamlike glow over all of us. And thanks to the heating runes woven into the rooftop stones, the air stays pleasantly warm despite winter’s bite.
Stone benches overflow with half-empty bottles of wine, whiskey, and rum. Glasses gleam beside them, catching the shimmer of light, and an array of food sits nearby, all of it too elegant for a group that’s already halfway drunk.
It was Odette and Sirena’s idea to celebrate surviving our first four months of soulbonds, and since it’s Cole’s last night here before returning to the Academy, it became the perfect excuse for an evening of indulgence.
Sirena insisted we all dress to the nines, declaring that if we’re all going to risk our lives, we might as well look good doing it.
I chose a backless silk dress in midnight blue.
It falls just above my ankles, the fabric whispering against my skin when the wind stirs.
The long, slit sleeves hang off my shoulders, the fabric trailing around my wrists.
My hair is half up, half down, loose curls with silverthorn vines woven throughout.
I’m sitting with Sirena, Thane, and Kaden near the water fountain, the sound of trickling water mixing with our laughter.
Cole abandoned me minutes ago, predictably drawn to Brynn…
persistent as ever. I can’t help but smirk, wondering how long it’ll take before she finally gives in to his relentless charm.
“Do you ever think about what you’ll do when the war ends?” Sirena says beside me, her arm linked in mine, head resting on my shoulder.
Thane speaks up, his fingers lacing through Sirena’s as he leans his head back against the fountain wall. “If I survive all this, I’m building us a cottage far from the kingdom's centre. No duty, no battles… just quiet.”
“And chickens,” Sirena adds without missing a beat.
Thane turns his head to her, a smile tugging at his lips. “You want chickens?”
“You’re damn right I do. I’m naming one after Cole.” She nods toward him as he makes his way to us across the rooftop. Thane’s chuckle rumbles low in his chest.
I snort into my drink, amusement bubbling through me. “Make sure it’s the loudest one.”
Laughter ripples through us, then Kaden’s voice cuts through the haze, steady but edged with something quieter beneath.
“I’d move away too.” He says, swirling the liquid in his glass. “Take whatever coin I’ve earned under The Council’s thumb and find a place that actually feels like home. Maybe…” He hesitates, a faint smile ghosting over his mouth. “Maybe have a child or two.”
The words hang there for a heartbeat too long. Everyone stares, shock echoing on all our faces.
“What?” he snaps, brows furrowing.
Thane lifts both hands in mock surrender. “Nothing, man. Just in all the years I’ve known you, I didn’t take you for the father type.”
Sirena laughs, resting her chin on Thane’s shoulder. “Yeah, kind of figured you’d brood your way up the ranks, not rock a cradle.”
Cole lowers himself on my other side with a grin. “No, no, let him dream. Can you imagine it? Kaden Reinheart… father of the year. Reading bedtime stories about knife technique and wielding shadows.”
Kaden shoots him a flat look, and Cole raises his glass in mock salute.
“Remind me to never share with you lot again.” He grumbles under his breath before walking off to refill his glass. Thane follows him, no doubt to get a refill himself and to provide damage control for what I am sure will be scowling for the remainder of the evening.
“Do you want children?” I ask, turning my head toward Sirena. My hair spills over my shoulder, trailing across the rooftop like a lazy river catching starlight.
She smiles softly, that familiar spark lighting her eyes.
“I want everything with Thane. Marriage, a cosy cottage, children running wild through a garden of moonlillies, farm animals…” Her smile shifts, soft and wistful as her gaze drifts across the rooftop to where Thane leans against a stone railing, laughing with Kaden.
“He’s been the love of my life for as long as I can remember,” she pauses, returning her gaze to me with a soft smile.
“When we were eight, and The Council first took us in, I wouldn’t eat.
Too wrapped up in my grief to even look at food.
Thane knew I had a sweet tooth; we grew up in the east quarter, before…
” she trails off for a heartbeat before smiling again.
“One night, he snuck into the kitchens and stole a cinnamon bun. He brought it to my room and refused to leave until I ate half with him; it was the first thing I’d eaten in a week.
I think…” she laughs softly, cheeks tinged pink “…I think I fell in love with him right then. I’ve been hopelessly smitten ever since. ”
Her smile is gentle and unguarded, the kind that makes you forget what sadness feels like for a moment.
Thane, who must have caught the tail end of her story, finishes crossing the rooftop and sinks down beside her. His knees brush hers, smile lazy and full of adoration as his hand hovers above his heart.
“I’m pretty certain that was also the moment you fell in love with cinnamon buns.” He teases.
Sirena laughs, giving his side a soft nudge with her elbow.
Thane turns to me, a gentle smile on his face “She laughs like the gods built the sound just to tempt me.” He says, low and teasing, but there’s reverence in his tone.
Sirena rolls her eyes, though the blush creeping up her neck betrays her. “Oh, shh. Next week, you’ll be whining when I beat you in every sparring match again.”
He grins, leaning closer until their shoulders touch. “Angel… I’ll let you win, just to see that smile.”
“You say that every time.” She fires back, smiling softly.
“And every time…” he murmurs, flicking her nose. “I mean it.”
“You two are disgustingly perfect,” I say, smiling into my glass before taking another sip.
Cole pulls me to my feet, guiding me toward the stone bench lined with half-empty bottles and clean glasses. “Yeah, no offence…but those two are nauseating,” he says over his shoulder.
A small laugh ripples up my throat as Sirena flips Cole her middle finger in response to his comment.
“Another glass, milady?” he teases, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth as we reach the stone bench.
I roll my eyes, but hand him my glass all the same. “Fill her up.”
He pours, humming some off-key tune under his breath. “So… you think I’d have a shot with Brynn?”
That earns him a raised brow, a smirk tugging at my lips.
He shrugs, grin widening. “What? She’s got that whole intimidating beauty thing going on. I’m intrigued.”
I chuckle, taking a sip as he fills his own glass. “If anyone could charm Brynn, it’s you. Plus, she seems to like you. I can definitely sense some chemistry there.”
“Speaking of chemistry…” He hums thoughtfully, swirling the whiskey in his glass. “You planning on talking to Ronan tonight, or are you sticking with the whole avoidance thing you’ve had going since that googly-eyed, gift-giving swoon fest at the market?”
I swat his arm, hard enough to make him spill a drop. “It was not a swoon—”
“Mm.” He cuts in, grin feral. “Jury’s still out.”
I shoot him a glare sharp enough to cut. “As I was saying,” I drawl, “It was not a swoon fest. He noticed I needed a new sheath and didn’t have the lunars, so he bought it. That’s it.”
He opens his mouth again, and I lift a finger without even looking at him. “Don’t.”
He chuckles into his glass.
“Also, I’m not avoiding Ronan,” I continue, quieter now. “I just… needed a little space.”
He studies me over the rim of his drink, “Uh-huh,” he says, utterly unconvinced. “Sure you did… space to daydream about a certain shadow wielder’s hand on your thighs—”
I shove at his arm before he can finish, and the impact only makes him laugh harder. I flip him off for good measure as he dissolves into laughter, utterly shameless.
“Asshole! I have not been day— you know what, no… I’m not rising to it. I don’t owe anyone an explanation for what they think they saw between Kaden and me.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Sparks.”
I roll my eyes, but the nickname softens the moment. “Thanks for the drink, Cole.”
“Anytime,” he says, voice light as he walks towards Brynn once more. “Wish me luck.”
I offer him a thumbs up with a grin, slipping away from the centre of the rooftop. The air cooling just slightly as I walk deeper into the garden, the muffled laughter fading behind me.
The trees and florals glow serenely under the night sky, the scent of willow trees and wisteria threading through the night.
The noise of celebration feels a world away by the time I reach the old wisteria tree standing tall under the moonlight, its petals drifting in lazy, glowing spirals of white and violet.
I breathe in, finally alone, the quiet pressing close like a balm against my skin.
Or so I think.
A flicker of movement catches my eye, a shadow against the trunk. My breath catches before my mind can name it.
Kaden.
He’s leaning against the wisteria’s trunk, half in shadow and half drenched in violet light. He looks up when I approach, expression unreadable, eyes burning through the dark.
“Didn’t take you for the type to flee a party,” he says, voice low and rough-edged.
“Didn’t take you for the type to show up to one.” I shoot back, setting my glass in the grass beside me as I lean against the trunk.
“Touché.” His mouth lifts, but there’s no humour in it. “You always run when it gets too loud?”
“Sometimes silence is easier than pretending to enjoy myself… I just get a little overwhelmed sometimes and need a minute.”
He nods in understanding. “For once, we have something in common.”
For a moment, neither of us speaks. The night hums with the music and laughter spilling faintly over the rooftop, the breeze smelling like a mix of wisteria and him.
I glance up at him, at the way the moonlight cuts along his jaw, his loose black shirt is unbuttoned at the top, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, hair tossed. He looks and feels stressed.
I clear my throat, “You came out here for quiet, too?”
He shakes his head, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “No…” a pause, his eyes flicking to me briefly before he lets a slow exhale out of his nose. “I came out here because every time I look at you, I forget how to breathe.”
My stomach twists.
“You’re drunk.” It isn’t a question; I can feel his buzz mixing with my own.
“Maybe.” His gaze drags over me, deliberate and slow. “But that doesn’t make it untrue.”
The air between us tightens as he steps closer, not close enough to touch but close enough that I can feel the warmth radiating off him, can smell the cedar wood and cinnamon clinging to his skin.
“You drive me insane…” he says, voice rough. “Every word out of your mouth, every defiant look, every time you undo your damn hair. Fuck… you’ve gotten under my skin, it’s maddening.”
I should walk away. Gods, I should run… but I don’t.
I tilt my chin up instead. “Good. I’d hate to be forgettable.”
His lip twitches up into a small smile as his hand moves to my hair, brushing a strand out of my face, fingers skimming my cheek before coming to rest on my jaw. His thumb drags slowly across my lower lip, and my breath stutters as the touch burns warm and electric, sending a shiver up my spine.
My gaze drops to his lips without my permission, and I find myself wanting to lean in, to taste him, to feel his lips on mine.
His head dips a fraction, lips brushing mine without quite touching. Close enough to make my knees weak, to taste the wine on his breath. “Kissing you would be catastrophic.”
“Obviously,” I breathe, but I don’t believe it.
His eyes are glazed and hooded, restraint stretched thin and trembling as that same tension vibrates through me.
My pulse picks up and pounds like a drum in my ears as his hand comes to my waist, pulling me against the solid lines of his body. He inhales sharply with the contact, a groan slipping from his throat.
“Gods, you feel incredible.” His lips whisper against mine.
“Kaden…” Whatever warning I meant to give disappears on a stuttered breath as his lips whisper against mine again. My hand rises to rest against his arm, fingers clenched in the fabric of his shirt in a poor attempt to anchor myself.
My tongue drags slowly over my lower lip, and his attention locks on the movement instantly, pupils blown wide as a rough sound claws out of his chest. His grip bites into my waist with bruising pressure, like he’s anchoring himself, holding himself back by force alone.
Then something snaps across the tether, and his restraint shatters.
“Fuck it.”
His hand fists in my hair, dragging me against him as his mouth crashes to mine.
It’s raw and consuming, all tongue and heat and desperation. He tastes like wine and lingering mint, like something I’ve wanted for far too long.
My body arches into his without hesitation, fingers clawing into his shirt, demanding more till I’m starved for breath.
“Elysia…” he groans into my mouth, the sound vibrating through my chest and straight to my knees.
“We’re going to regret this,” I whisper, forehead pressed to his.
His breath shudders as his hand tightens at my waist. “Maybe,” he murmurs. “But you can go back to pretending you hate me tomorrow, and I can go back to pretending I don’t feel a damn thing.” His voice drops, “Tonight, just let me pretend you’re mine.”
Something in my chest gives way as my heart stumbles, traitorous and aching.
And then his mouth is on mine again, like he’s afraid I’ll disappear if he hesitates too long.
My lips eagerly part as his tongue slides along mine with expert, teasing strokes that have my breath catching in my throat.
His teeth catch my lower lip, biting just enough to hurt, and the sound that tears from my throat is completely unfiltered.
My back hits the trunk of the tree, my body trapped between it and the hard lines of his frame.
Bark scratches at my skin… but I don’t care.
Not about the sting, not about the consequences.
Just this moment.
This minute.
This man.
His hands shift to my thighs, lifting me with ease as I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him into me.
Closer. I need him closer.
Hearing my thoughts, his hips rock into mine, and I gasp at the friction. Arousal coursing through me in a sharp wave, far stronger than it ever has before. The answering groan that escapes his throat is deep and desperate, making me ravenous.
I’ve never been this out of control over a single kiss in my life. It’s insanity… delicious, maddening, unravelling insanity.
He pulls away and places teasing kisses along my neck, fire trailing in the wake of his lips on my skin.
“Fuck.” He rasps, the sound torn from him. “Tell me you don’t want me.”
“I don’t want you.” The lie scrapes its way out of my throat, brittle and unconvincing.
He smirks against my neck, teeth grazing my pulse before his mouth explores mine again with punishing ferocity. “Liar.”
A broken sound slips from my throat as he kisses me like his life depends on it, his hips rocking into mine with brutal intent. Every press of his body, every slide of his tongue sends electric sparks skittering through my nerves, that familiar coil knotting tighter, aching for release.
“This means nothing,” I gasp, clinging to the words as if they could justify the madness unfurling between us.
“Nothing,” he agrees far too fast, already recapturing my mouth, hungry and relentless.
His hand moves under the skirt of my dress, fingers trailing the inside of my thigh, infuriatingly feather light when his kiss is anything but. My back arches into his touch as another moan escapes my lips, whispering against his.
His fingers trail higher, higher until they skim the hem of my underwear. But his fingers stay where they are, making teasing circles on my inner thigh. I whimper, arching myself against him, a silent plea for more.
I need more.
“Kaden. Please.”
He groans against my lips, the vibration shooting down my spine and straight into my core. His grip tightens around my thigh, his other hand flicking my underwear to the side with ease.
“Say it again, Elysia. I want to hear you beg for it.”
“Please, Kaden.” A gasp leaves me as his mouth moves to my neck, teeth sinking into flesh. “Please, I need more. I need you.”
A low growl rumbles up his chest as his grip tightens, lust pulsing through the bond. Then finally, his fingers move and stroke my slickened core.
A helpless whimper escapes my lips at his touch, and an answering groan works up his throat. “So damned soft. So fucking wet for me.”
He recaptures my mouth possessively, tongue expertly stroking against mine as his fingers work teasing circles against my clit, that coil of pleasure tightening with every second.
I dig my nails into his shoulders, my body arching into his touch as he makes tighter and tighter circles against that bundle of nerves. My head rocks back at the pleasure building inside me, screaming for release.
His voice slides into my head, rough and laced with arousal. “Fuck, I bet you taste as good as you feel.”
Pleasure shudders through me at his insinuation like a living, breathing thing.
“More.” It’s all I manage to muster through my gasps, mind link forgotten as I revel in the way his touch sets me on fire. All I can do is whimper against his lips as he slides one long finger inside of me.
He sucks in a sharp breath between his teeth as his voice fills my mind, “So fucking tight.”
He works it in and out, his thumb still making lazy circles against my clit as unchecked magic ripples like heat around us. My core tightening as he slides a second finger inside me with a delicious burn.
He hums against my lips, and it vibrates through my body like a shock wave. “That’s it, love. Burn for me.” His voice alone nearly sends me over the edge.
He sucks my tongue into his mouth, the warmth and taste of him sending me hurdling into the limit of pleasure and then right over it. He swallows my cry as my back arches and bows into his touch.
“Look how beautifully your body surrenders to me when my fingers are inside you.”
I can't think past the maddening pleasure or even take in his words as my orgasm washes over me in a wave of burning heat, releasing that tight coil of tension into fractured light at the edge of my vision.
Fire roars behind me, and his shadows snap up to put out the flaming tree; the lights across the rooftop garden flicker rapidly in the distance.
“Gods, you’re so fucking beautiful when you come.” He slowly removes his fingers and brings them to his mouth, sucking them clean of my arousal with a deep hum. The action has pleasure coiling tight low in my abdomen once more, my skin flushing under the weight of his mismatched eyes.
His hand moves again, repositioning my underwear before setting me down with a gentleness I never would have imagined him to possess.
His eyes roam over me hungrily as he takes slow steps backwards. “You need to leave. Now.”
“Why?” His words are harsh, but the bond still thrums with carnal need.
“Because I can’t…” He rakes both hands through his hair, leaving them on top of his head. “I refuse to continue acting on desire that isn’t yours.” His voice is a growl, eyes pinning me with an intensity that makes my knees buckle. “So, you have to walk away. Now.”
I shake my head, but before I can utter a word, he speaks again.
“This isn’t your want; it’s mine bleeding into you… that’s the fucking problem. So, have just a little mercy on me and go.”
Silence ices over between us as I get ahold of myself, straightening out my dress before turning around and walking away.
It’s harder than it should be to keep moving in the direction of the party when all I want is to go right back to that stupid fucking tree.