Page 36 of Prince of Never

Ves sobered, the mirth slipping from his face.‘Might want to get that under control.’

I was shaken by the sudden urge to reach out and touch Tarian, even as I was afraid to draw attention to myself.And why?Where did that feeling come from?Where did that urge to take his hand come from?

‘Don’t frighten the little bird now,’ Ves said, his eyes never leaving Tarian, as if he was talking down a dangerous beast.‘And when she dressed so nicely for you.’

Tarian’s eyes flicked to me then, and a shiver ran over me, prickling every place my skin was bare.Memories flashed, of skin and muscle, of water and steam, of parted lips and the need for more.I swallowed hard as I fell into that dark stare.Then he looked back at Ves and the moment was gone.

But Ves merely rolled his eyes.‘Remember what I told you, Imogen.Now, what’s that human expression?’He tapped a finger to his chin as he thought, then his eyes lit up when he remembered it.‘I’ll give you two crazy kids a moment.’Before either of us could stop him, he was strolling away, waving one hand as he went.

For a moment, there was nothing but the sounds of music and laughter and crackling fire as we eyed each other.

‘What did he say to you?’Tarian finally demanded.

‘He told me about mate bonds,’ I said evenly, watching him carefully for his reaction.A muscle ticked in his jaw, that hard look in his eyes intensifying.‘Am I your mate?’

‘Why would you think something so ridiculous?’he snapped.

My heart sank a little.I didn’t really know why.So much of what I felt around him seemed unexplainable.Maybe a part of me hoped it meant something more.Maybe itdidmean something more.‘You wanted me dead, until you touched me,’ I said slowly, before swallowing the lump in my throat.‘And last night...’I let the sentence trail off, unable to finish it.My cheeks began to warm and my eyes found my feet.What was I even doing right now?Fated mate or not, I couldn’t possibly be entertaining the idea of something romantic between us, could I?What did I really know about Tarian?And yet, there was something there, something that felt like a spark of sunlight in my chest, small but warm just the same.I chanced a look at him.

‘A mate bond isn’t some fairy tale, Imogen,’ he said slowly.‘It’s nothing but a curse that siphons away your right to choose your own destiny.There’s no romance in a bond like that, only pain.’His words were like cold water being thrown over me.Iwashis mate.If I wasn’t, he would have said so.He couldn’t say it.Even knowing so little about what it meant, it still explained so much.I remembered the way he’d gripped the wall in the springs, like he was trying to keep himself from touching me.How many times had he accused me of putting some kind of spell on him?Enough times that I could guess there was something between us that he thought could only be explained by magic.

But he didn’t want it.

He didn’t want it andIshouldn’t want it.So why did those words hurt so much?I could feel that lump rising in my throat again and I wrapped my arms around myself as if it could keep the hurt inside where he wouldn’t see it.‘Then just let me go.How could I possibly do anything to you if I’m not even in the same realm?’

‘You’re not going anywhere,’ he said, his voice a low snarl.

‘Then what the hell do you want from me?’I demanded, my anger rising to meet his.

‘Right now?For you to go back to the castle,’ he snapped, stepping closer to me, reaching for my arm, but I pulled away from him.

‘I’m not going back.You might have some fated tie to me, but I’m human, so I don’t feel it,’ I lied, the falsehood making my stomach twist with nausea.‘And I came here with Ves.’I don’t know why I said it.But the darkness that settled across his features felt immensely satisfying and my damaged ego relished in it.

‘Fine.Stay here.Fuck him if you want, but tread carefully, Imogen, you may not like what you awaken if you do,’ he said viciously before he stalked away from me, quickly vanishing into the chaos of fae and firelight.

I turned away from him, just in case he looked back.I didn’t want him to see the tears pricking at my eyes.

Chapter 17

Tarian

Thelightsandsoundsof Beltane whirled around me as I knocked back my drink.No one should be in their right mind at a May Day celebration, so if I was going to be here—and I would be for as long asshewas here—I had no intention of remaining sober.

The bonfires roaring either side of the Sunder River, which split the territories of the Seelie and Unseelie in two, were spitting sparks and filling the night with the scent of summer flowers.Already, I’d seen couples leaping some of the smaller bonfires, committing themselves to one another for the night, a tradition that would see most of the partygoers tangling together on the ground in the surrounding woods before dawn.

Which was why I wasn’t leaving.

I was lingering in the shadows of the celebration, watching, trying not to be seen.I was expected to be on the banks of the river by now, standing with the queen, preparing to cede sovereignty to Solas for the rise of summer.A symbolic gesture only, but one still loathed by my mother.The roles were reversed during Samhain, when Seelie ceded to Unseelie to usher in the winter and Solas would have his turn to stew in resentment.I didn’t much care who held dominion over the realm tonight, though, which was why I was going to stay as far away from the river as I could.

A flurry of dancers rushed past, a mix of Seelie and Unseelie, high fae and low, united for this night of celebration, and I caught sight of Vesryn twirling with a naiad, her hair flying, squealing peals of laughter as he spun her.

He almost dropped her when I grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him to stop.‘Are you out of your mind?’

‘Still here, I see.I rather thought you might be in the woods by now,’ he said slyly.

‘Where’s Imogen?She’s supposed to be here with you.’

‘Relax, princeling, she was dancing.She’s having fun.’He kissed the naiad’s hand and promised to find her later before he turned to me.

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