Page 86 of A Kingdom of Monsters

Scion froze, the hands that had been steadily sliding up my back and sides to graze over my bare skin stopped their ascent. His eyes darted to the side, and I knew instantly he was trying to think of a way to lie without actually lying.

“Ambrose is part of the family,” he said. “We have the same blood.”

I raised an eyebrow. I’d been exactly right. That was a technical truth if ever I’d heard one, which begged the question: What was Scion hiding from me?

Probably nothing so bad as what I was hiding from him, a tiny traitorous voice in the back of my mind argued. I’d promised myself I would tell him about this morning, but that wasn’t the only thing I needed to confess.

“I kissed him,” I blurted out. “Ambrose, that is.”

Scion raised an eyebrow, and his hands resumed their slow path up my sides. “When?”

I bit my lip, anxiety riding me.

As a whole, I knew that Fae were not monogamous. They didn’t have the same cultural norms around fidelity that humans did,likely because they had far fewer children than mortals. Once mated, however, they stayed loyal to that one person–or several people–for as long as their immortal lives allowed.

Scion didn’t seem upset, but that didn’t mean anything. He could be plotting murder right now and his smile would prevent me from knowing until it was far too late.

“This morning,” I said finally, then paused. “...and in Underneath. And–”

Scion cut me off before I could finish. He dug his fingers more firmly into my hips, holding me in place. Sitting up a fraction more, he leaned in to kiss me, undoubtedly tasting his own blood on my lips.

Without hesitation, I parted my lips and brought my hands up to his hair, deepening the kiss. I trailed my fingers over the back of his head, scraping my nails against his throat. He shivered when I stroked over the point where I’d sunk my teeth into his pulse, and I felt him growing hard beneath me.

In one swift motion, Scion reversed our positions, flipping me so I landed on my back, him hovering over me. He grazed his teeth against my throat, nipping softly. I whimpered, heat already pooling in my core.

“Listen,” he said, mouth still brushing against the exposed tops of my breasts. “I don’t really care how many times you kiss my brother. Fuck him if you want, just as long as you understand you’re still mine. I own you.”

“So I can go fuck whomever I want as long as I come back afterward,” I asked nearly laughing. It was such a ridiculous idea that I’d even want to. But more than that, it was so out of character for Scion to suggest that it was almost comical.

Apparently, my mate didn’t find it nearly as funny as I did.

A furious snarl burst from him. “Who are you talking about? Tell me!”

My eyes widened, startled by his suddenly furious face. “You just said–”

“If anyone else gets fucking near you I’ll kill them. Don’t for a moment believe I’d think twice about it.”

My mind swum with confusion. He was contradicting himself. How could he not care that I’d kissed Ambrose, but be murderous at the idea of any other male looking at me. It made no sense, yet he hadn’t cringed or showed any sign of pain. As ludicrous as he sounded, he at least believed what he was saying.

“I wasn’t thinking of anyone,” I said quickly. “I just don’t understand how you could be so blasé about this. If you kissed someone else, I’d–”

I broke off, unable to finish my sentence. An all consuming possessiveness had swept through my body. It was a rage, heating me from the inside out and making every one of my muscles tense. It felt so unlike me, so uncontrollable, that part of me wanted to smash something while the rest of me seemed to be looking on from the sidelines, wondering what the fuck was happening.

Scion looked down at me and his face relaxed. Instantly, he seemed to know what was happening, and he bent his head to trail kisses up my neck. “Maybe now you know what it’s like for us,” he murmured against my skin. “I’d always heard mating bonds stole your rationality, but I couldn’t have ever guessed how true that would be.”

I blinked, focusing on his mouth on my throat as my breathing returned to normal. “If that’s what you feel like, I’m sorry I did that to you,” I almost laughed.

“Why are you sorry?”

“Because you’re so…controlled all the time. Regimented.”

He smirked. “Not all the time.”

He sucked hard on the scar on my throat and my toes curled, pulling a whimper from me. Reaching down and unbuttoning my pants with one hand, Scion stilled, his fingers hovering just over my aching core.

“Tell me you know you’re mine,” he commanded

“I’m yours,” I echoed.

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