Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Consort House, Shadow Court
Freya
Sleepily, I snuggle deeper into my nest. I take a deep breath of the smoky, frost, and oak scented blankets.
I ache in the best way and in the best places.
What got into Daire last night?
And how can I make sure that it gets into him…then me…like that again?
I smile, savoring the strain in my thighs and the sting of bruises on my hips where he pinned me down.
How many times did he fuck me? I lost count at four.
By the moon, fae have stamina.
Daire caught me up in an orgiastic frenzy. Was he honoring me with a glimpse into the delirious, untamed revelry that happens at the fae parties that they hold underneath the stars?
Will I ever be lucky enough to experience it?
I sigh, happily.
I fucking hope so.
I’ll willingly lose myself to a fae orgiastic frenzy any day or night.
“Daire…” I pat the space next to me, expecting to touch Daire’s chest, but crack my eye open when instead my hand lands on something sticky.
I stare at the empty nest.
My hand is lying in a bowl of apple slices, which are drizzled with honey.
It’s not only my favorite breakfast but the signal that we set up that Daire would be escaping out of the garden.
My heart speeds up.
I suck my sweet-tasting fingers into my mouth to keep myself calm.
Is he safe?
Why am I more scared of Daire exploring Bael by himself than I was of him wandering around Lanlin’s nighttime world?
And the Blood Court had freaky assassin priestesses and thrones built out of fae bones.
It’s the day before our wedding to Aurelius.
I still don’t know how Aurelius plans to escape from marrying Liviana.
I have even less clue how Daire intends to pull off his grand scheme.
But there is something crucial that I have learned about my Raven King…don’t underestimate him.
We have been co-conspirators from the start. Not once have I regretted making my deal with him.
He is bound to serve Aurelius, Lanlin, and me.
He has honored all his deals with breathtaking devotion, but I also know that he does it in his own way.
If he believes that he can save Lanlin and his people, then I believe him.
I don’t react when I feel Daire slip into the nest behind me. He smells of the fresh morning air.
He slips his arm around my middle, pulling me to spoon against him.
I don’t speak, as he plays with my hair.
Suddenly, I am desperate to discover more of this side of him, which lies beneath the feathered god, the commander who I would watch from a distance.
I desire to find out the vulnerable truths in his silences, rather than his deals, tricks, and schemes.
When I raise my hand to brush over a scar on his forearm, he stiffens.
“You’re awake, love?” Daire’s voice is quiet. I could almost imagine that he’d only just woken up like me. “Did you find the breakfast that I left?”
I must be careful what I say in case the guards overhear us.
I reach to pick up a slice of apple and munch on it. “Hmm, delicious. Everything sorted?”
It’s strange not being able to see Daire’s face, but I have a feeling that he would not give anything away, even if I could.
“Aye, love. I couldn’t believe how much Bai had grown.
I’ve never been apart from him like this before.
I’ve avoided thinking about him and what I’ve been missing.
He’s become a cadet. I’d have never bloody guessed that my Little Bug would have replaced me already in his heart with Iggy. ”
“Iggy?” I laugh. “How did he win over a nine-year-old fae?”
“By saving him from a beating, allowing him to follow him around and chatter incessantly to him about his interests, then gifting him a whistle because he’s a brilliant musician.”
“Maybe Iggy would make a good dad; he has the bribery trick worked out.”
“Oi, what about me?”
I snuggle back against Daire. “You’re already a good dad.”
Daire pushes my hair to the side and presses a gentle kiss to the base of my neck, which makes me shiver. “I wish that I was.”
I start to purr.
“You’d make a brilliant ma,” he says so quietly that I may have misheard him. Then he leans up and his shadow covers me. “I have something for you.”
I yawn. “Already? I’ve only just woken up. Isn’t your cock worn out after last night?”
“My cock’s legendary. Don’t challenge a fae’s stamina. You’ll lose.”
“Is that a saying?”
“It is now.” Daire sits up, and I blink up at him. “But I was actually talking about your wedding gift.”
My expression brightens. “I wasn’t expecting anything from you.”
I wince when Daire’s face falls.
Shit, I shouldn’t have said that.
I only meant that Daire has no way to buy me a present.
I hurriedly sit up to face Daire, reaching my hand to touch the pinion feather in my hair.
I shudder at the thought that Daire will dramatically pull out his newly grown one to prove that he loves me just as much as Aurelius or Lanlin do.
I don’t need that proof from him because I have always known it.
“I asked one of the members of my Frost Clan, Wren, to work on this as soon as we arrived back in the capital months ago.” Daire crosses his legs, scooting closer to me in the nest. He settles his wings on his back.
“I knew that you were interested in my rune magic, and Wren is trained in it. He’s finally finished it.
I didn’t know whether to wait until tomorrow, but knowing Aurelius, he’ll make a lot of noise and pomp about the ceremony.
I needed a quiet moment. This is just between us. ”
Touched, I lean toward him. “This is perfect. Just us.”
Daire’s eyes pierce me with their intensity.
“I hope you know just how much you mean to me. This gift holds…the soul of my people. It was a big bloody ask of me to expect Wren to make it. I hope that you can become friends with Wren. He seems harsh and cold, but he’s an orphan like you.
He was also bullied. I have spent my life standing up for people like him.
It’s why I did what I could for Barnabas.
Any leader should be responsible for their people and bleed alongside them.
If they don’t, then they’re not worthy of their crown. ”
I frown. “You’re talking about Aurelius and Lanlin.”
“Nay, Tarquin. Now that you’ve raised the other members of our pack, however, I hope that they’re also learning these lessons.”
Daire reaches into the pocket of his robe and pulls out a scrap of rolled-up parchment like it’s a holy relic.
He holds it up on his palm between us.
I stare down at it.
I can’t be rude.
“Ehm,” I search around for the right words to thank someone for a tiny piece of paper, “it’s lovely.”
Daire smirks. “You’re a terrible liar, love. But thanks for sparing my feelings. Touch it…gently…with your thumb.”
I shrug, before reaching out to caress the scrap of paper. Then I yip, drawing back my thumb after the tingle of magic sparks through me.
I stare at Daire in shock. “What is this?”
“Wren has worked his magic through the book to miniaturize and disguise it. That way you can both carry and hide this encyclopedia of rune magic. He calls it the Thornbloom Codex. I wanted you to be able to hold a part of my magic. It contains everything that Wren and I can remember from what we were taught. Everything that remains from the Unseelie Fae.”
Exhilaration rushes through me.
My greedy fingers hover over the magical parchment. My thief instincts are triggered, as my fingers twitch.
Only this time, I don’t need to steal the item because my soulmate knows me well enough that as a poor orphan servant unable to study my obsession, this wedding gift is more valuable than a mountain of diamonds.
Joy wraps around me that Daire sees me.
He has had someone working on this for months.
He is handing me part of his heritage.
“Thank you.” I raise my gaze to meet his. “How do I…?”
Daire leans forward to brush his plush lips against mine. “Hold out your hands…” He gently drops the parchment onto my palms. “…Then say its name.”
Anticipation rushes through me.
I am about to hold more rune magic in my hands than even Bard, one of Daire’s original worshipers who gave up his kingdom and even his bond with me for the Unseelie, was gifted.
Pride surges through me.
I take a deep breath, before I whisper, “Thornbloom.”
Instantly, the parchment expands in a glimmer of emerald magic, transforming into a leather-bound book.
I gasp as my hands are weighed down, steadied by Daire’s.
I stare at the leatherbound book, before flipping it open.
The pages magically bloom with intricate runes.
The capital letters of the instructions to the magic are illuminated in silver and green, while vines with thorns, oak and blossom trees, and wild winter landscapes illustrate each page.
“It’s beautiful.” I turn the pages, discovering new rune magic, alongside wondrous drawings of animals and landscapes from the Unseelie Kingdom that take away my breath.
I feel immersed like I could truly be there, sensing the longing for the lost home in every brushstroke. “Your friend is talented.”
“The drawings are taken from my memory by magic.” Daire slips his arm around my shoulders, watching each scene unfold along with me. “This book will always be a part of me for you to hold onto. My world and childhood.”
I sharply glance at him.
What isn’t he telling me?
“This is precious.” I shiver as I study a page of rune magic, which is illustrated with such realistic falling snowflakes that I can almost feel them on my skin. “But I’ll always have you.”
He doesn’t reply for a long moment.
Nervous, I demand more loudly, “Won’t I?”
“This book makes me feel like I can reach back and touch that world.” When Daire stands towering above me, suddenly I see the mesmerizing leader of armies, rather than the fae who cuddles me in bed.
“But it’s only a memory of something that’s long lost. You and I were reduced to animals by the dragons: The Kitten and the Wolf.
But look at us now. Tomorrow, Aurelius swears that he’ll crown us as his Emperor and Empress.
Yet I don’t need his crown. I have always been my own fae, love.
I am the Fallen King who is going to become the Risen King.
It is finally time to show everyone what happens when you try to tame a wild fae. ”