Page 34 of A Kingdom of Broken Bonds

From this angle, with his wayward hair falling forward and the mischief sparkling in his eyes, he looks every inch a fae. I need not see those pointed ears. Despite being a panting mess, he still has an otherworldly beauty to him—something I am currently being forced to look up at, making me all the more frustrated.

Thrashing under his hold, I make a noise of irritation when I hardly move, his smirk only growing at my anger. Fine, if he wants to keep me here to make a point, then I’m going to make sure he knows the truth about what happened. Something inside me has been twisting ever since he said I had been fucking someone else, and it seems important that he hears my side.

“I did not fuck anyone, so Havoc needs to get his facts straight,” I spit out, my nose crinkling at the accusation. If he’s surprised by my sudden tirade, then he hides it well. “Was I with someone last night? Yes, I was. However, we did not have sex.”

I keep the rest of my encounter with Felix to myself. Finnik doesn’t need to know what we did get up to. If he was with Havoc, then he will already know that something happened, so I’m not going into it. That is private and belongs only to Felix and me.

Looking back on it now, I’m glad we didn’t take that step and go all the way last night. I would not want to regret my first time with him in any way, and the fallout from all of this would take away from the magic of our time together. Caught up in the hurt from Havoc and needing to feel loved, I would have gone all the way with Felix, but thankfully he was able to keep his head on straight. My feelings towards him haven’t changed in the slightest, and he deserves to have all of me, not just the aching, broken pieces that were looking for a bandage.

“Not that I need to justify this to you or the prince,” I challenge, my eyes flashing with rage and indignation. “He doesn’t want me, remember? I do not belong to him, not yet, so I can do whatever I please. He cannot reject me and then be upset when someone else wants to be with me.”

Finnik is watching me closely, some of his animosity draining away as he listens. He seems… relieved, yet I cannot figure out why. Even his grip on me seems to have lightened, and if I tried, I think I could escape his hold, but I still have one final point to make.

“There is a simple way for him to stop all of this confusion, and it is to face his destiny and marry me.”

He opens his mouth to reply but is cut off as the doors to the training room slam open. I jerk my head around and find Havoc standing in the doorway, his face like thunder as his eyes land on Finnik pinning me to the ground.

Rage transforms his handsome face into someone I don’t recognise as he looks between Finnik and myself. He vibrates with anger as his whole body seems to grow, his lips curling with disdain.

“You whore.”

I have been called worse in my life before, but to hear my fated mate hurl the insult towards me like a weapon causes damage. This will take a long time to heal from.

It’s the strangest sensation, because I feel as though I’m being pulled in two directions. Defiance and resilience are two attributes that have not always made me the easiest to shape, but they help me cope with setbacks. I am certainly not the type to cry over a male who doesn’t want me, because my own sense of self-worth is greater than that.

However, there is also a part of me that was brought up being told she was going to save her people and had a mate who would love and cherish her forever. That type of thinking belongs in fairy tales, and this is anything but. Life rarely has a happily ever after. It was wishful thinking that I would come here, and he would instantly love me. The bond stirs up all of these feelings and brings them to the forefront of my mind, making it all the more difficult for me to see past them. It feels like a constant battle within me, and I don’t know which side is going to win.

Consumed with loathing for me, Havoc’s eyes blaze. All of this happens in a flash, and I clearly don’t react in the way he wanted me to, because with a sharp gesture, he barrels towards Finnik and me.

Finnik is up in a flash, moving towards his friend, his hands up in a show of innocence as he steps in front of me, forcing the prince to look away from me. “Havoc—”

The prince turns to look at the fae, and with a snarl, he shoves him away. “Was it you? Did you fuck her behind my back?” he demands, pain lacing his words—not because of me, but because he believes his best friend betrayed him.

Finnik stumbles back a few steps, the shove having taken him by surprise. Pressing his hand over his chest, he stares at the prince with a wounded frown.

I sit upright, propping myself up with my arms as I watch the two males, shocked at how quickly Havoc turned on his closest friend. How can he truly believe that is what happened when logistically, it would not have even been possible?

My movement must catch the prince’s attention, as he quickly spins to focus on me. Hands balling into fists, he prowls towards me. “It wasn’t bad enough that you’re whoring around, but you had to sully my closest friend too?”

That’s enough. Any patience I had left is now well and truly destroyed. My body feels strange, twitchy, and suddenly full of energy, and as I stand, I notice a pounding in my ears that gradually gets louder until it blocks out all other sounds. Facing off against my betrothed, I bare my teeth in warning.

“How dare you?” I seethe, not caring that others can overhear us.

“Havoc, listen to yourself!” Finnik jumps between us, using his body as a barricade to keep his friend from getting any closer to me. Placing his hands on the other male’s shoulders, he physically stops the prince and waits for him to meet his gaze. “I was with you yesterday, remember? It couldn’t have been me.”

The prince’s posture changes, his body seeming to deflate in front of my very eyes. His head falls forward as he releases a long breath. When he looks up once more, he seems apologetic, yet I know none of this is for me.

“I’m sorry brother.” Havoc claps his friend on the shoulder. “This demon is clouding my mind.”

Demon, well, that is a new one. Shaking my head, I cross my arms over my chest. He cannot just waltz in here, insult me, and not get a mouthful back. I will not sit back and take his shit.

“Unless you have changed your mind about being my husband and mate, then you have no right to control if I sleep with anyone.” Taking a step to the right, I make sure I’m within view as I speak, our eyes locking. “I could fuck half of the guards, and you still have no say as long as you’re looking for a way out of this.”

I don’t tell him that I didn’t have sex last night, or that it’s been a long time since I did. No, my point still stands. Whether I slept with someone or not, I am not going to justify myself to him.

Havoc tenses, clearly trying to maintain the control he only just managed to regain.

Finnik steps in, blocking his view of me once more and clapping his friend on the shoulder to get his attention. “Havoc, I am almost finished with her training. I will find you once we’re done.”

---