CHAPTER FIVE
Astrid
“You look like crap,” Bane comments as I open my bedroom door the next morning. He’s dressed in leather pants, a black tunic, and a sword at his hip. His dark hair is tied back at his nape in a leather band, and I take a moment to take him in. Dark brows frame his dark eyes with thick lashes women would dream of, a full mouth, and strong cheekbones, not to mention his incubus lure. I’m sure he has no shortage of women throwing themselves at him.
Meanwhile, I’d stayed up all night, crying and feeling sorry for myself, just wanting to get the agony out of my system.
“Thanks,” I reply in a dry tone, my voice hoarse. “So, weather magic, huh?” I’ve never met anyone who can control the weather like that.
He nods, his jaw tightening. “Comes from my half-demon side. I normally keep it well restrained.”
But he didn’t this time because he was as angry as me about my situation.
“So if it suddenly starts raining, I’ll assume it’s you in a bad mood?”
He smirks but doesn’t comment any further. I can only imagine the secrets this male has in his vault. Bane has a dark, magical energy to him, but it feels different from Rave’s.
Rave is shadows and darkness, while Bane is thunder and lightning.
He’s a walking-fucking-storm.
We head downstairs and outside, where he leads me to their armory.
He picks up a bow and quiver and points toward the swords. “Take your pick.”
I pick the first one that catches my eye, slide it out of the wooden rack, and test it out.
“So, I don’t know much about dealing with…” he trails off, biting his lower lip.
Arching my brow, I stop in front of him, sword in hand. “Heartbreak? Betrayal? Having your own mate make you look fucking stupid?”
He tilts his head to the side. “I know more than I’d like to about betrayal. But he didn’t make you look stupid, Princess. He did that to himself.”
He turns and leaves the armory, and I follow behind him. “What don’t you know much about dealing with then? Emotional women?”
Bane’s eyes flicker at me, and I know I’ve hit the mark. “You can just take it all out on me. We can spar all fucking day if you need to. Hit me, punch me, I can take it. Just don’t let it consume you.”
For someone who doesn’t know much about handling these situations, I wonder if he knows how sweet that offer is.
“If I start crying, can you make it rain so no one sees?” I ask, sighing dramatically.
“Anytime.”
We walk past the rose gardens and into a clearing. He places the bow and quiver down on the grass, pulls out the sword from his side, and gets into his fighting stance. “All right, Princess, time to show me what the fae has taught you.”
Grinning, I copy him and plant my feet apart, lean forward slightly, and my fingers grip the sword’s hilt. We start circling each other, waiting for one of us to pounce. I go for him first, slicing the blade through the air, which he blocks easily. We go back and forth, and although he’s making me work for it, I know he’s holding back. Metal clanking and my heavy breaths are all I hear until I miss one of his strikes, and he aims his weapon at my heart before retreating.
“I’m actually impressed,” he admits, smirking.
“If this were a real battle, I would have been dead,” I reply dryly, putting my sword back in its scabbard and picking up the bow and an arrow.
“I’m one of the best warriors in the Incubus Kingdom, Princess,” he reminds me, smug amusement dancing in his dark eyes. “Did you think you’d best me?”
“No, but I wanted to,” I mutter, aiming with the arrow and letting it fire until it hits the middle of a tree trunk.
“What did that tree do to you?” he asks, facing me. “Good shot, though.”
I flashback to Rave patiently helping me with my technique, standing behind me with his arms around me.
I miss him.
And it makes me angry because he doesn’t deserve those thoughts right now.
But the bond is tugging at me to go to him, to be with him.
“What do you guys do for fun around here?” I ask Bane, feeling reckless.
He must see the glint in my eyes because he grins, flashing me his straight white teeth. “You want to get into some trouble? Because you’ve come to the right place.”
I don’t know about trouble.
I merely want to forget.
***
Incubi sure know how to party.
A few hours later, I’m in a black silk dress, wearing red lips, and at a party unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It’s in a tavern, I suppose, but it’s much fancier than any I’ve been to before. A live band is on the stage, and the alcohol and bad decisions are flowing.
“How many drinks have you had?” August asks, his eyes flashing with concern. He’s standing in front of me while I sit on one of the red stools in front of the bar.
“A few,” I admit, smiling up at him. “Don’t worry about me. You have some fun.”
The women here are so different from those around the Fae Kingdom. They show a little more skin in the way they dress and seem a lot freer, especially sexually, but what else would I expect of a kingdom ruled by those who need lust and sex?
This isn’t like the night at Beltane, dancing around the fire and fucking. It’s more seductive, scandalous even. The party culture here is so different from that in Aravelle. I feel like they do this every night without batting an eyelash. The women give the incubi what they need, and, in return, there is no judgment for having such desires.
Speaking of lust, even only being part succubus, I sense how invigorating it is—my skin is so alive, strumming with the magic. It feeds me, dancing over my skin. I could sit here all night and be perfectly content just from the energy.
August sits beside me, nursing his beer, his eyes on the dance floor. He’s wearing a blue silk shirt and trousers and looks incredibly handsome. I’ve seen some of the ladies eyeing him. I remember the conversation we had at one of the inns, with me suggesting he could go fuck someone if he pleases, and I see nothing has changed. He’s still sitting by me, holding himself back, and I don’t want him to. I’m in deep with my own mate and family issues, and I won’t drag him down with me. But I also don’t want a repeat of the conversation we had last time.
Instead, my eyes go to Bane standing in the corner, talking to a fae woman with short, dark hair. It takes me a second to realize who the woman is and that I know her.
Bane nods toward me, and Pandora turns around with a smile on her pretty face as she storms over.
“Princess Astrid, so we meet again,” the Witch Queen says, pulling me in for a hug, the sheer black material of her dress rubbing against my skin.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, surprised to see her.
Her eyes go to August, her smile widening. “Rave sent me. And who is this?”
“This is August,” I introduce, leaning back against the bar. “August, this is Queen Pandora.”
“Just Pandora, please.” His eyes widen when she waves away the title.
“Rave sent you?” I repeat, my brow furrowing.
She nods, wincing. “Yes, he told me where you were. But let’s not talk about that now. Let’s have a good night. And I’d like to know more about this sexy fae in front of me.”
August gives Pandora a slow once-over, and I can tell he likes what he sees. I slowly jump off the stool and make my way toward Bane, who is observing the crowd with a mostly full drink in his hand.
“Of course, you’re friends with the Witch Queen,” he says, shaking his head slightly. “What other royalty do you have up your sleeve?”
“That’s it, I think. Although one of the Vampire Princes has a soft spot for me after I saved his mate,” I reply, smiling as I take a sip of my beer.
I touch my temples as a vision hits me.
Rave and me, naked in bed together.
He pushes my hair off my sweaty face and kisses me.
“Don’t leave me again,” he murmurs, trailing his lips down my neck.
“Don’t lie to me again,” I reply, arching my back for him.
So what? I forgive him? Just like that?
Just because the future me has forgiven Rave and gotten back together with him doesn’t mean that’s what I’ve decided. I get to control my destiny, not fucking fate.
I’m suddenly angry and feeling a little impulsive.
Bane’s arm touches mine, and I know his eyes are on me. He opens his mouth to speak just as a woman walks up to him and places her hand on his chest, her long red nails a contrast against his black clothes.
"Bane, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you around here,” she says in a baby voice that makes me wrinkle my nose.
Is nowhere safe for me to sit or stand? This is what happens when all of your friends and family are good-looking males.
Taking a step to the right, I’m about to walk off when Bane gently grabs my upper arm, stopping me. “And where do you think you’re going?”
“I was going to give you some space to—”
He brings his lips to my ear. “Do I look like I want space?”
Oh.
“Bane—”
Bane and I are just friends. I’m very much taken, and even though Rave is an asshole, he’s the only one my heart and soul calls for. It seems wrong to have another male touch me, even innocently.
“Leave,” he orders the woman.
She pouts and gives me a side-eye but does as she’s told.
“Bane—”
“I’m here to make sure you’re safe,” he says, letting go of me. “And I didn’t come here to fuck anyone, so you don’t have to feel like you need to give me any… space .”
Bane is just doing his duty to keep me out of trouble since he’s the one who brought me here, and he doesn’t want Zython to kill him if something happens to his only daughter.
Safe .
He’s safe.
“Okay, I don’t want to cockblock you. It’s why I left August over there with Pandora.”
“Yet he’s still looking over here at you,” he replies, taking a big sip of his drink like he suddenly needs it. “What is it about you, Princess?”
Turning to face him, my heel almost touching his boots, I look up at him and shrug my shoulders. “I don’t know, Bane, why don’t you tell me?”
Shit.
The alcohol is making me bold.
And stupid.
And reckless.
Okay, maybe it was the vision.
Did I forgive Rave so easily for his lies without making him suffer?
Part of me doesn’t want him to suffer at all.
But the other part of me wants him to hurt as much as I do right now.
And boy, do I hurt so fucking much.
Is Rave with Vera and their son right now, playing house?
Actually, I suppose I was the one he was playing house with.
His home was and is with them.
Lifting my hand to push a strand of Bane’s hair off his cheek, he catches it and stares down at my wrist. No, at my mating band. A muscle works in his jaw before he lifts my wrist to his mouth and presses a soft kiss there. He then lets go of me, his throat working as he swallows.
And then there’s Pandora, pulling me back, away from Bane. His eyes narrow as he watches me leave, his hands clenching as if to stop himself from grabbing me.
“What the hell are you doing?” she asks, leading me outside the tavern. “He looked like he wanted to eat you whole. That’s a dangerous game you are playing, Astrid. Rave would go to war if he heard you were getting so close to Bane. You know he fucking hates Bane, right?”
“Who doesn’t he hate? He hates August, too,” I reply, taking a deep breath in the chilly night air. “Is this why you’re here, to spy on me and report back to him? Is that why you didn’t tell me he had a child with Vera?”
Her violet eyes flash with what looks like pity. And I fucking can’t stand that. “Of course, I wanted to tell you about Vera and Vale, but I couldn’t do that. Rave would have killed me, and he’s been my friend much longer than you. I’m sorry, though. I really am. I wanted to tell you.”
Sighing, I wrap my arms around myself. “You were right about one thing, though. There was something different about me.”
“Yes, the first succubus born in a century. No wonder you made the princes all crazy,” she replies, absently touching the scar on her lip. “I don’t know what to do here, Astrid. Rave has put me in the middle, and he wants you back. He’s a mess. I’ve never seen him like this in my life. The whole palace is in shadows. And I don’t want to freak you out, but I think he’ll go to war if eventually you don’t return.”
I don’t want to start a war between the fae and the incubi, especially when both kingdoms have agreed to be allies against the vampires.
But I’m also not ready to go back there.
No fucking way.
It hurts to hear he’s a mess, but so am I, and he caused all of this.
She lowers her voice, looking to the tavern entrance where Bane now stands with August, watching us. “But what I really want to know is how the fuck you got his attention. You got wine-flavored tits or something?”
The sad thing is, I don’t know which one she’s referring to.