By the Blessed Black Sands, hisscent.How come she hadn’t thought about this before? The library was thick with Nikhail’s cedar and almond, and it mingled with hers in a way that would let all fae and other species with enhanced olfactory senses know what they’d been doing.
It wasn’t that she regretted what they’d just done—how could she, when her knees were still weak from the way he’dmade her come—but she didn’t want to deal with her family knowing about them yet.
“I… this was… nice,” she breathed, clutching her necklace and racing for the library door. Heat rushed to her cheeks. She hadn’t known it was possible to blush so furiously. “See you at dinner, Nik.”
And then, before he could reply, she was running down the hall.
Away from Nikhail, their kiss, and the conversation about her curse that had gone absolutely nothing like what she’d expected.
CHAPTER 30
His Water Fae
Tertia Waterborn was a bitch.
The longer Nikhail spent in her presence, the more he decided it was a gods-damned miracle that her children possessed a single ounce of kindness.
If River wasn’t nearly her mother’s mirror image, he’d wonder if she’d been adopted. Unfortunately, their likeness was undeniable. The only difference was that where Tertia was all ice and cold, hard edges, River was wilder. Softer.
Even though there were fifty people attending this dinner, Nikhail couldn’t keep his eyes off River. She’d washed her face and reapplied her makeup after their tryst in the library. Her hair fell in luscious brown waves around her. She wore a sky-blue dress that rested above her knees, hugging her curves in all the right ways.
She was fucking beautiful, this goddess of his… and her mother was awful. She’d already made that clear on the Winter Solstice, but it seemed as though Tertia Waterborn was trying to one-up herself tonight.
The Representative of the Fae wasn’t overtly cruel—that wasn’t her style. But the way she looked at her daughter when she thought no one was paying attention, the slight intonation in her words, the elegant brow she’d arched disapprovingly when River had arrived at exactly seven p.m., all spoke to the distaste she held for her daughter.
Nikhail wasthis closeto erupting out of the seat and yelling at the Representative sitting across from him. It was torture, being across from River and having to pretend that he hadn’t just been kissing her a short while ago.
Two and a half hours had passed since the meal began, and Nikhail was growing increasingly frustrated. He wasn’t sure how much longer this could go on.
Earlier, Atlas had noticed the tense way he’d been holding his fork. The earth fae was sitting on his right, and he’d asked if Nikhail felt okay.
Nikhail had to bite his tongue so he didn’t bark that, of course, he wasn’t okay. A couple of hours ago, he’d had River on his lap in the library, and she’d made the most beautiful sounds as she’d fallen apart in his arms. He’d forever cherish the way she’d melted for him, like butter on a hot summer’s day. How could he be okay when he was being forced to watch as her mother slowly tore her down, bit by bit?
He couldn’t say that, couldn’t risk ruining the celebration. Nikhail had waved away his friend’s concern, asking Atlas about his connection to the land in an effort to distract him. The earth fae was always happy to talk about the way the land spoke to him, and he eagerly began sharing about the various plants he was teaching about in class.
Listening to the biology professor was better than letting his anger overwhelm him, and Nikhail nodded patiently asAtlas chattered about a new tree they’d discovered in the Western Region over a few courses. Atlas told him it had mottled black and brown bark and red leaves, like rubies. The tree was old, deep in a forest that hadn’t been explored for centuries, and Atlas was eager to continue studying it this summer.
Nikhail paid attention to his friend, but his eyes never strayed far from River for more than a few seconds. He was drawn to her, unable to stay out of her presence for long.
The conversation eventually shifted, with Atlas asking him about his work.
“I’ve been busy,” Nikhail said, picking at the remnants of the seafood salad in front of him.
Not a lie. He’d only returned from the Northern Region this morning. Between the captured vampire and all the information they’d uncovered in Castle Sanguis, he’d be busy for the next few months.
Atlas nodded knowingly, his eyes wide and owl-like beneath his glasses. “The balance is shifting,” he replied, rubbing a tattooed hand across his jaw. “The earth can sense it. It’s preparing for several years of chaos.”
A knot formed in Nikhail’s stomach. Only a fool would disregard Atlas’s words as ramblings of a mad fae. His friend had a connection to the land that didn’t always make sense, but shouldn’t be ignored.
Besides, everything his team had uncovered over the past few weeks pointed to the same thing. The Black Night was planning something, and it was a race to figure out what that was before it was too late.
“I wish I could say that’s surprising, but it isn’t,” Nikhail said.
Atlas nodded and gravely said, “The world is in upheaval.”
That was a truer statement than the earth fae knew.
Servers entered the room, engaging in a silent dance of changing courses. Nikhail’s salad disappeared, only to be replaced with a small portion of seared ribeye steak sitting atop three carrots and a dollop of whipped potatoes.