Chapter 62
MORRIGAN
Ihad to physically hold Azrael down in order to get the brush through his hair, and suddenly I had a whole new respect for my own mother’s troubles.
“Azrael!” I yelled. “You have to let me brush it!”
“But it hurts!”
“It wouldn’t if you had let me cut it!”
“But Mal’s hair is longer, and he’s a warrior! I want to be a warrior, too!”
I released a disgruntled sigh and sank back into my seat. I have the literal powers of a god beneath my fingertip, and I can’t so much as untangle an eight-year-old boy’s hair.
“If you don’t let me brush this hair, Azrael, I will cut it off in your sleep,” I warned.
“Fine!”
He sat up with a pout on his lips, and squeezed his eyes shut as I attempted to gently work through each knot. Once it was at least presentable, I smiled to myself.
“There. It’s perfect. Go find Eowyn, and she can help you get dressed.”
Azrael jumped up and ran for the door before skidding to a stop as his hand slid on the handle. “You’ll wait for me, right?” he asked. “You promised.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes, Azrael. I’ll wait for you.”
Once he was gone, I placed the brush on the vanity and laid my head back against my seat. Two months. We were able to figure out what was needed to break the bond, and planned to do it the day before his execution. That was only a few days away now.
Two months of Tristan trying to find his place here. He and Dez had been spending quite the amount of time together, but it came as no surprise. Dez had a heart of gold, and it only made sense that he would accept Tristan with such open arms as he has.
Malakai had settled in quite well, actually.
More of the lycan had come through gradually from the other world.
We were able to find a place for them within the guards for each of the lords.
They were natural-born protectors who hated the gods as much as I did.
All they wanted was to protect the people who didn’t have the means to protect themselves.
I honestly thought the villagers would be fearful of them, but the children had fallen in love with the creatures.
Azrael spent most of his days training with Mal and some of the other alphas.
But when the day came to an end, it was the lycan Naomi that preferred sleeping in Azrael’s room at night.
They were attached at the hip, like she was his big sister, and it made me feel relieved, knowing she was there to protect him when I couldn’t.
Hands slid over my shoulder, and I looked up to see Tristan leaning over me. He planted a kiss on my forehead. “You look stressed,” he whispered against my skin.
“Everything is changing,” I answered him. “Soon, everyone will know who you are. Are you… Are you ready for that?”
He shrugged and circled me until he knelt down, pulling my hands into his. “As long as you’re by my side, I’m ready for anything, Morrigan.”
Leaning over, I captured his lips with mine in a slow, tender kiss.
It took a few weeks, but everyone seemed to fall into somewhat of a natural routine.
Our Saturday dinners had returned, but the guys would stay the night afterward so we could have more time together.
Sometimes they would take time to visit during the week, but as I grew closer to each of them, I had the sense that it would need to change soon.
I found myself missing the guys while they were gone.
Eris, Naaz, and I had a way to go in truly getting to know one another, but they were both making such strides since I had returned.
And the feedings don’t feel that bad either.
Are you thinking dirty thoughts? Tristan’s voice slid into my mind, and my lips curled into a half-grin.
“Maybe,” I said against his lips, deepening our kiss.
He stopped suddenly, sliding away and dragging his lips down to my neck.
“I don’t need your blood, Morrigan,” he whispered, tickling me with tiny nips along my skin. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t crave the taste of you.”
He lifted my legs onto his shoulders, and I watched him with lust-filled eyes as he lowered his head.
“Tristan,” I laughed. “We don’t have time for—”
My words caught in my throat, and a gasp left my lips when his tongue pushed against my center. I dropped my head back, and my eyes closed, as he moved his tongue along my nerves, sending spikes of pleasure creeping up my spine.
Let me ease your stress, Morrigan, he pleaded, and my body slumped into the chair in response.
Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore. I shoved his face away, falling to my knees, and straddled his hips. “Relieve me another way,” I insisted, grinding against him and feeling his hard length between my legs.
Finally, he lifted me with one arm and released himself, positioning his tip at my entrance. “As you wish, princess.”
The castle boomed with staff filtering in and out as they prepared the last pieces for the ball tonight.
It wasn’t just about formally introducing Tristan into society, revealing a secret that so many spent years ensuring would stay hidden; it was also a celebration. I wanted to see everyone again—the people who had searched day and night for me, a girl they barely knew.
Tristan went to help Malakai after our little impromptu session on the floor, and I stood before the mirror, fixing my gown.
It was a form-fitting dress that fell to the floor, a long slit cutting up the fabric that almost resembled my Unveiling dress in a way.
The gown itself was an ivory white, but along the deep V neckline of the bodice were colorful jewels that I had requested beforehand.
Each jewel represented one of the lords.
Orange for Cass, red for Dez, yellow for Eris, purple for Naas, blue for D, and black for Kaiden.
For Tristan, I had a jewel cut from the purest opal.
It was so white that it shimmered in the light, and I placed it at the innermost corner of the V, close to my heart.
He may have seen himself as darkness, but I had always seen him as the light that chased away my own darkness.
The doors to my room opened, and Lyra walked in, pausing when she saw me. Her lips parted a little, and her eyes roamed up and down as she took me in.
“Your hair is up,” she noted.
“It is.”
She swallowed as she tried to absorb the sight, and I wasn’t upset over it. She had only gotten a small glimpse of my scars when we were hunting together.
“The dress is backless,” she said.
“It is.” I chuckled, straightening my back as I turned back to the mirror, giving her access to my full back. “I’ve decided that my self-worth is no longer in the hands of anyone else. I love me. All of me.”
I thought back to the shadow figures I had seen when I… Well… when I died, I guess.
“Why do you hide them?” That’s what the man asked me.
I still hadn’t told anyone about them, yet.
I hadn’t even told Tristan about Rosina.
I didn’t want to say something without being completely sure that was what I saw.
I still didn’t understand who they were or why they came to me.
But whatever they did… It changed me. It wasn’t just fire anymore.
If I used my light, my veins would glow, spreading to every limb like little webs beneath my skin.
It didn’t hurt, though, and it was far easier to control now. But I still had a long way to go.
I felt a finger slide along my skin and saw Lyra through the mirror, tracing over some of my scars.
“Is it wrong of me to say that they make you look even more beautiful than you already are?”
I laughed and shook my head. “No. That actually means a lot to me.”
When I turned, she smiled at me and offered her hand. “This is going to be a lot tonight,” she reminded me.
“But I’ll have you at my side through it all.”
She blushed a little, but nodded. “Yes. You will. And I promise to do whatever I can to help Tristan moving forward, but…” her shoulders lifted in a long inhale, “Malakai on the other hand…”
“I swear you will grow to love him,” I promised her.
With a roll of her eyes, she helped me down from the small, circular platform I had been standing on.
“He’s batshit crazy, Mor. You know he was flipping his knife in the air yesterday and catching it with his mouth?!”
My cheeks burned from laughing as I imagined him doing just that. “Yeah… you get used to it.”
We were then interrupted by a small knock on the door, and when Lyra opened it, Azrael stood dressed and ready. I smiled down at him, and my heart felt twice as large. He looked like a child. Not a prisoner, not a victim of Cain’s wrath…. He was just a kid.
“Lord Dez said that it was time,” he chirped excitedly. “I came to escort you.”
Azrael even dipped into an unsteady bow that made my smile almost painful.
“Of course, my lord,” I teased him, wrapping my hand under his little elbow.
“Who’s this handsome man?!” Lyra yelled, shoving a hand into his perfectly styled hair and shaking it until it was ruined.
I glared at her as Azrael blushed a deep crimson.
Then, with Lyra behind us, her laughter echoing against the walls, we made our way together through the hall.