Page 38 of Tortured Royals

The demon has a raging hard on, and I think about snapping it off, but going from Blake’s grin she’s happy to see him, so I settle with glowering at the male for his intrusion.

“Which, I must say, I’m glad to see you two have sorted things out,” Dante drawls, his eyes crinkling with amusement.

Blake pats me on the back. “Better late than never, huh, big guy?”

She starts toward the house, and I lift her into my arms. My release drips down her legs, and I’m not going to leave her like that.

“Why do you all insist on carrying me?” she protests, squirming in my hold. “I have legsandwings, if you haven’t noticed.”

“Of course, I’ve noticed,” I point out bluntly.

“Then why—” She lets out an exasperated sigh, and shares a look with Dante who’s busy smirking. When it’s clear she’ll have to fight me to get me to release her, she relaxes in my hold.

Dante directs me to the washroom and insists on helping me bathe our mate. She grumbles about being treated like a babe, but she lets us fuss over her, cleaning her and then exiting the pool. When we’re all dry, our hair still a damp mess, Dante gestures with his head to the hallway.

“The others have sorted out our sleeping arrangements,” the demon says with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Blake stares at him suspiciously. “Oh, they have, have they?”

The demon doesn’t say any more as he leads us down the hall to one of the rooms.

When we enter, Blake laughs. Squeezed against the far wall, multiple beds have been pushed together, filling the space from one side of the room to the other.

“You grabbed the beds from the other rooms,” she says in surprise.

Mason, Prince Callan, and Nate grin at us, the three of them stretched out on the mattresses.

“This way, there’ll be no arguments,” Prince Callan explains simply, and it’s strange seeing the archangel there, lounging so casually. Obviously, he’s accepted his fate just as I have.

I set Blake on her feet, and she walks over, crawling on to the mattress and flopping into the space they’ve left for her in the middle. Dante stalks over, easing onto the bed behind Mason, and I stand there with my arms crossed.

Blake shakes her head at me. “Not this time, buddy. Get your ass over here.” She pats the space to her left and Nate grumbles, shuffling back to give me room.

“You heard her,” the shifter says, and despite myself, I stride over taking my place beside my mate.My enchantress.

Chapter

Fourteen

~ Princess Blake ~

Iblink my eyes open blearily, wondering if I’m still dreaming. I’m cocooned in warmth, the scents of my mates all around me, and I swear I haven’t slept that deeply in my entire life. Alaric has me tucked up right against him, one hand braced under his head, and I’ve never seen him look so peaceful. Mason is on my other side with Dante’s arm draped across his waist, and Nate is behind Alaric.

It’s only then that I realize Prince Callan is gone. The thought that he’d left us, that he might have changed his mind about everything makes my stomach drop. I sit there for a moment when I hear a faint clanging coming from down the hallway. Carefully wiggling from Alaric’s hold, I slide from the mattress and silently grab one of the daggers I had hidden under the mattress on one of my previous stays here.

I’m quiet as I make my way down the hallway, and as I reach the entrance to the common room, I grip the hilt of my daggertighter. There aren’t many who know the location of this house. “Callan?” I peer around the corner and freeze.

The archangel prince turns at the sound of my voice. He’s shirtless, wearing only his pants, and instead of his hair being slicked back in its usual style, the golden strands are tousled, sticking out in all directions. He smiles, holding a frypan in one hand and a spatula in another. “Good morning, angel.” The greeting is like a smooth caress, and I stand there gaping. My mouth instantly waters, and I’m not sure if it’s because he looks like a domesticated god right now, or if it’s due to whatever he’s cooking.

“Uh, you might want to close your mouth before you start drooling,”Shade chuckles in my head, and I notice she’s perched on the edge of the kitchen island.

“Speak for yourself, perv,”I shoot back, knowing full well why she’s there.

“What?”she replies innocently.“I thought you’d appreciate me keeping an eye on your mate. And speaking of, I’m guessing this is his way of trying to make amends?”

Shade turns her head, and I follow her gaze to the dining table which is laden with food. Much of it is prepared using the stock I had kept in cool storage, but it’s obvious Prince Callan must have gone hunting and foraging in the surrounding forest. My gaze roves over the spiced venison, fried mushrooms, herb salad, and a number of other dishes that I would have no clue how to make myself. There’s a selection of freshly baked bread rolls, and my brows lift. “How long have you been preparing this?”

He walks to the table, flipping the eggs from his pan onto an empty plate and placing the frypan back on the stove. “It doesn’t matter.”

---