Chapter 35
Fier
CLAIRE
The castle had transported me to… a greenhouse.
Bright sunlight, blooming flowers, and fragrant herbs enveloped me in a kind of happiness I hadn’t experienced since working in the garden back home. But it wasn’t a stalk of rosemary that had drawn me through the ballroom door so quickly.
It was him.
Shirtless.
Working only in a pair of dark trousers and tall boots. His blond hair had been gathered at the nape of his neck, and messy strands fell around his face as he worked.
Bastien was a painfully beautiful creature, that much was true, but there was something different about him out here among the plants.
He seemed more alive. More free. He stabbed the earth with a spade, muscles flexing, and I accidentally let the door slam shut behind me.
Our eyes locked. My breath stilled. I had so much I wanted to say, but I found I couldn’t speak.
Not with him looking at me like a rare gem he’d found while digging in the soil.
“I thought you were with your consorts,” he said, breaking the silence.
So, he’d known exactly where I was and who I was with, yet hadn’t barged in on us.
I wasn’t sure if this knowledge made me more or less angry with him.
I was stuck between wanting to rage at him for leaving me alone last night after telling me I was his mate, and wanting to seem unaffected by his absence.
“I was,” I replied, clasping my hands together and glancing around the greenhouse.
I could feel the warmth of his attention even when my back was turned.
It made me hot beneath my dress, and sweat prickled on my skin.
I tried to focus on the plants in order to keep my composure.
The greenhouse shelves filled with potted herbs and flowers, which lined the glass walls.
Small, well-manicured trees bearing citrus fruits grew in the corner, the leaves teeming with ripe lemons, limes, and oranges.
Alec was right: despite the frigid temperatures there was no ice on the windows, only a heavy layer of condensation that hid the view from anyone outside. I turned back to the vampire, who had begun adding fresh soil to a garden bed.
“What are you doing?” I asked, still trying to sound casual.
“Presently?” he said. A rare smirk tipped up his lips. “I’m clearing out space in these beds so you can plant what you like.”
My mouth hung open for a full second before I had the wherewithal to close it. He was taking the time to do something… for me.
If he had the time in his busy schedule to do this, why didn’t he return to my bedchamber after everything he’d said and done last night? I pulled a blood orange from the nearest citrus tree, bringing the fruit to my nose and inhaling the deliciously sweet aroma.
“I could tend to these plants,” I said. I dug my nail into the peel of the fruit, and cherry red juice welled up. “You don’t need to go to the trouble of clearing space for me.”
“The best part of gardening is watching the seeds sprout from beneath the dirt.” His voice was tender and low, and it caused all the fine hairs on the back of my neck to rise. “That’s what you told me.”
My attention shifted back to him. I hadn’t expected him to remember such a fleeting comment. He cleaned his hands, then stalked toward me, eyes trained on mine. “This greenhouse is yours to do whatever you like with.”
“The whole greenhouse?”
He nodded. “Unless you prefer another.”
It was an absolutely massive space. Narrower than the ballroom, but perhaps just as long.
“No. This is perfect,” I said breathily, meeting his gaze.
He plucked the fruit from my hand, then carefully peeled it with a dagger and handed me a slice. Juice ran down my fingers as I lifted it to my mouth. “Where will these plants go?” I asked, slipping the slice between my lips and savoring the deliciously tart flavor.
He watched me as I ate, his attention on my lips. I swallowed, feeling the weight of his gaze. “I’m sending them to Roselyn.”
He cut another slice from the orange; red juice dripped down his hand. Sudden desire rose in my core. I knew what else he could do with his hands. “We’ve finished constructing a new greenhouse for the public that could use more plants.”
He lifted the slice of orange to my lips. Instinctively, I opened my mouth. Slowly, he fed it to me. My lips closed around the tip of his finger before he drew it away. I moaned, savoring the taste as it slid over my tongue.
His lips parted as he watched me.
I was drawn to him in a way I couldn’t explain, but I felt in the deepest recesses of my soul. “That is very thoughtful of you.”
“Caring for my people is my responsibility.”
Just like Seraphina was mine to care for. To protect. Alec’s story had unsettled me. I was worried about my little sister, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong.
“You’re upset,” Bastien said.
I met his gaze, not wanting to look affected, but I was.
“Why didn’t you come to see me?” He tilted his head, waiting for more.
I closed my eyes hard, trying to force the words out.
“Last night. You left a lot unsaid. You told me you’d be back to answer my questions, and I stupidly expected you to return. But you didn’t.”
“Do not call yourself stupid,” he said flatly. Then, softening, “It was not stupid to expect me to return. I said I’d answer your questions, and I didn’t.”
Bastien expelled a long breath, and as he did, he undid the ties on my fur stole, carefully peeling it off and revealing the bloodstone. He took the small gem between his fingers, regarding it for a moment before his eyes found mine.
“I am not a man of many words, and I’ve lived a solitary life, so I don’t often need to explain myself.
But I’ll try.” He squinted, like the next thing he wanted to say was distasteful or painful.
“I asked you to keep this bloodstone hidden because it is unlawful to take your mate as your sanguine partner. If anyone realizes who you are to me and what I’ve done, it would upend our lives.
Marius might kill me, or he might force me to move to the capital with you.
Either way, the more people know, the less choices we have. Does that make sense?”
I nodded, my head spinning with this information. If I really wanted him dead, all I’d have to do is expose his lies. It was that simple, and, at the same time, that complicated. “That’s why you offered to let Marius kill you.”
“Yes. Exactly. I thought death might be an easier choice than the truth.” He paused, and I realized I wasn’t breathing.
“I know you don’t want to stay with me forever.
I’ve already inflicted enough pain in your life, and I refuse to cause more by forcing you into this mate bond.
I’m trying my best to give you space because you deserve to live the life you want.
I promise, when your contract is up, I’ll ensure you and your sister are well cared for. ”
The force of his pledge shook something loose inside of me.
I couldn’t help but wonder how much fate had led me to him.
A woman, who was rarely allowed outside the confines of her family home, sent out on a mission to become his sanguine partner, with a magickal choker around her neck, spellbinding her to the task.
Again, I wondered how much Mama had known. Was our mate bond the reason why I was born without magick?
“Claire,” he said, my name so sweet on his lips, “you will always be my everything.”
No, that couldn’t be possible. I wasn’t anyone’s anything.
I was Claire. Magickless. Useless. Good for nothing but dangling in front of a vampire like bait.
The shame was back, and this time, it was hot in my throat.
My inclination was to disbelieve him, because how could I be his everything, but I could feel the hurt and the anger and the powerful need to protect me at all costs, emanating off him in waves.
And… there was something else there, too.
Another emotion. Something I’d never felt before.
A strong emotion that made me feel warm and tingly and…
safe. I was feeling all these things from him, and we didn’t even have our bond open.
We were speaking plainly. What did that mean? I wasn’t sure what to say or do.
“I wasn’t exaggerating when I told you that I’d kill a room full of people in cold blood if I believed they’d hurt you or wronged you.”
“Bastien, I don’t know what to say.”
He touched my cheek. The barest brush of his knuckles. He would do anything for me, anything, except be with me.
“Does this adequately answer your questions?”
Tears pressed into my eyes. There was so much I wanted to say, but I was unable to speak through the knot in my throat. I nodded, holding his hand to my cheek. The tenderness in his eyes nearly broke me all over again.
“Now that I’ve answered your questions, there’s something else I want to discuss.”
I swallowed back the emotion threatening to overwhelm me. “Last night I learned of a disturbing attack—one that had been plaguing me for half a day. To be honest, it was one of the reasons I didn’t come back to you. I’d been trying to figure out how to handle the situation.”
This time, I cupped his cheek, holding him. “Tell me what happened.”
He grabbed my wrist and turned his face into my palm, kissing it. A thrill raced up my arm at the feel of his lips. “I know you don’t care for Dark Witches, but a coven under my protection, the Kemps of Devonelle, were attacked. Their matriarch is dead.”
The Kemps were the worst of the worst, as far as Mama was concerned.
I’d eavesdropped on enough meetings to know killing Temperance Kemp was a high priority.
Once, I would’ve celebrated this news, but now, all I could feel was a strange sense of loss.
“Who was responsible for the attack?” I asked. “Do you know?”
“I know you grew up at Nightfall, so I’m sure you’ve heard of this coven. The Prideaux.”
My head spun, and pressure sat in my chest. Mama had come this far north and attacked the Kemps? Maybe the strange feeling of dread I’d had about Sera had nothing to do with werewolves, and had everything to do with this attack. What if she was hurt? What if…
“I know this is shocking news. Especially when you grew up revering this coven, but… perhaps now you can see that not everything is just light and dark.” He paused, then added, “I need to pay my respects at the funeral ritual tonight, but I can’t bring you with me.
I said I wouldn’t force Dark Witches on you again until you were ready, and I meant it. ”
He was choosing me and my safety over carrying out the responsibilities of his role as the Duke of Roselyn?
Disbelief circled my features. It was hard to believe someone would choose me over their responsibilities, especially when that person was a vampire.
A creature who I’d been taught was ruthless.
But… who were the ruthless ones now? Bastien was right.
I was starting to see that the lines separating good and evil were blurring.
I wanted to tell him to go without me. I would be fine alone. But the part of me that was still my mother’s daughter and beholden to the spell cast on my choker bade me to give another answer—one that would place me in a position to find the location of another demonic relic.
The girl in me hoped I would see Sera there. Even if just a glimpse from the shadows. A wink from behind the trees. I’d feel better knowing she was safe. “I’ll come with you.”
“Are you sure? These funeral rituals are dark, and the magick used could be… off-putting.”
“Bastien, I know I’m safe with you.”