Chapter 6
KASTIEL
Focusing on work with my fated mate under the same roof was nearly impossible.
Every report I tried to read blurred into the memory of Isolde’s emerald eyes and the way her aura had sparked against my shadows. I’d enjoyed sharing breakfast with her, but it wasn’t enough. I wanted all of her time and attention.
I finally gave up on the background check that should have been finished hours ago and headed to Adan’s office. I found him seated behind his desk with a glass of demon-fire whiskey in hand.
He glanced up as I entered, one brow arching at whatever he saw on my face. “You still look like you’re fighting a war in your head.”
“Because I am.” I closed the door behind me and leaned against it, crossing my arms over my chest. “Isolde’s aura is still unstable.
Every time I get close, it crackles like lightning.
She’s convinced that if she lets go even a little, she’ll accidentally seduce or manipulate me.
She’s never fed. Not once. She’s been suppressing her succubus side for years because she’s afraid of taking away someone’s free will. ”
Adan took a slow sip of his drink, his eyes thoughtful.
“I wonder how much her father actually learned about succubi before he decided to have a child with one. Thalvor always struck me as the type to focus on the political advantages of hypnotic allure rather than the realities of raising someone with those powers.”
This was why I came to Adan when I ran into a problem I couldn’t solve on my own. He had a way of looking at things from a different perspective.
I hadn’t considered that Isolde’s lack of control and fear of her powers might stem from having no real guidance, only expectations.
“She needs training,” I murmured, the realization settling into place. “Not just suppression techniques. Proper education on how to understand and direct her aura. If she felt more in control, she might be more open to accepting the bond.”
“Makes sense.” Adan nodded. “An incubus I know might be able to help. Someone experienced with the mechanics of allure and feeding.”
I hesitated. “An incubus?”
Adan’s mouth twitched with barely suppressed amusement. “Jealous already?”
I growled low in my throat, shadows flickering at my feet. “I’m not sharing my mate with another male—even for training.”
Adan chuckled, a gleam of understanding in his eyes. “Fair enough. Then let’s go with someone safer. There’s a succubus who’s stayed here many times. You know her, Lirael Vesperia.”
I should’ve thought of Lirael myself since I did a surface background check on her, the same as all guests at The Abyss. She was discreet and powerful. Never caused any issues when she stayed here. Was always polite to the staff. Tipped well, too.
Relief eased some of the tension in my shoulders. “Can you reach out to her for me? The sooner the better.”
Adan set his glass down and picked up his phone. “Consider it done. In the meantime, keep doing what you’re doing. She needs to see that her power isn’t a curse. Especially not to you.”
“Thank you.”
As I headed back toward the ninth floor of my wing, the idea took root. If Isolde could learn to trust her aura instead of fearing it, maybe she’d finally stop running from the bond.
From me.
And I was more than ready to show her exactly how little I feared what she was.
The afternoon sun had already begun to slant through the enchanted windows when I found myself standing outside Isolde’s suite again.
I told myself it was a necessary follow-up after the small rift the night before. But the mate bond didn’t care about my excuses. It pulled at me constantly, making every step away from her feel like walking against a current.
I knocked once, then let myself in when she called for me to enter.
She was curled up in the forest-green chair with the new cozy mystery The Abyss had left her, legs tucked beneath her. The moment I stepped inside, her aura reacted—a bright white-blue spark racing along her collarbone before she yanked it back with visible effort.
Her green eyes lifted to mine, wary but not quite afraid anymore. “You’re back already.”
“I wanted to make sure the wards are holding after last night.” I strode halfway across the room, my demon urging me closer. “And I missed you.”
Her pretty green eyes lit up. “Really?”
“Absolutely.”
I moved close enough to her chair that my shadows lightly grazed her arm. Her aura flared again, crackling with tension. I watched it carefully.
“You’re still fighting it,” I murmured.
“I have to.” She set the book aside, her fingers twisting together in her lap. “The pull is constant now, and my power keeps trying to answer.”
I felt the faint static of her aura against my skin. “What happens when you stop fighting it?”
Her eyes widened, fear flashing across her delicate features. “That’s when it becomes dangerous.”
“Not for me.” I took one more step closer, letting my shadows curl gently around her wrist. They didn’t try to restrain her, just pressing lightly enough against her skin so she knew they were there.
The crackling intensified for a heartbeat, then softened as she exhaled shakily. The lightning eased into something almost velvety, brushing against me like silk.
“See?” I rasped, my self-control paper-thin. “You have nothing to be afraid of when you’re with me. Fate paired us together for a reason.”
She stared at the place where my shadows touched her skin. “How do you stay so calm when I’m one wrong breath away from freaking out?”
“Because I don’t see a dangerous power when I look at you, Isolde.” I let the shadows retreat slowly. “I see someone who’s been hurting herself for years trying to be something she’s not.”
Before she could respond, a second rift began to tear open the door to her suite. It was larger than the one the night before, with thicker black smoke pouring through the jagged edges. The pull toward the gate beneath The Abyss was stronger, more insistent.
Isolde shot to her feet, her aura flaring wildly. “Kastiel—”
“Stay behind me,” I ordered, already moving.
Shadows erupted from my hands in thick ropes, slamming into the rift to contain the breach. But this one fought back harder, the smoke twisting like living tendrils trying to force their way deeper into the hotel.
Isolde didn’t stay behind me.
She stepped up beside me, her hands trembling but a determined tilt to her chin. “Tell me what to do. I want to help.”
I glanced at her and saw that she was genuinely trying to help even though terror was clear in her eyes.
“Channel your power carefully. Don’t push it down. Just guide it toward the rift. Let it steady the wards.”
She nodded, biting her lip in concentration.
Her aura flared again, bright and crackling at first. But as she focused, it began to soften, flowing toward the rift like warm lightning instead of wild sparks.
The velvety undercurrent I’d glimpsed earlier threaded through it, helping my shadows seal the edges.
Together, we pushed. My shadows crushed the breach from one side while her aura reinforced the wards from the other. The rift fought for a few more seconds, then snapped shut with a hiss, leaving only a dark scorch mark on the door.
We stood there breathing hard, the air still humming with residual magic.
Isolde looked at her hands, then at me, wonder and disbelief warring on her face. “I didn’t make it worse.”
“You helped, Isolde. I wouldn’t have been able to seal that rift so quickly without you.” My voice was rough with pride I couldn’t hide. “Your power isn’t a curse, Isolde. It’s part of you. And when you stop being afraid of it, it’s beautiful.”
She searched my face, the mate bond humming between us with a warmer edge to it. I saw a flicker of something besides fear in her eyes, what I wanted to believe was the first step to her accepting the bond between us.
I wanted to pull her close and show her exactly how little I feared her power. But the odds were good that it would just erase the little progress I'd made. So I took a careful step back instead, giving her space while my demon protested.
“Do you really believe that?”
“With everything in me.” I fisted my hands at my sides to stop myself from reaching for her. “You just need to get more comfortable with your powers. Learn how to use them, so you won’t worry about taking it too far.”
Her lips pressed together in a slight grimace. “That might help, but it’s not like I can look up succubus lessons online. Even if that were a thing someone advertised, my father would’ve pitched a fit if I’d dared to do something like that.”
“Then it’s a good thing he has no sway over anything that happens at The Abyss.” I flashed her a smug grin. “And there’s a succubus who’s stayed here before who might be willing to help you with those lessons.”
Her eyes narrowed, black swirling in the emerald depths. “A succubus you know well enough to ask for a favor?”
“Actually, Adan is making that call.” I barely held back my grin at her reaction. “And he’s happily mated, so her powers have no impact on him.”
“They don’t?” she gasped.
“I don’t know a lot about succubi, but that’s something I’m sure about.”
Her jealousy was adorable, but her happiness at learning she didn’t need to worry about her allure around my friend made me thank fate for choosing this sweet succubus as my mate.