Page 36 of Treasured By the Fae Royal

“Do you think your brothers will decide to live in the Summer Court with their new wives?”

“Most likely.” He sighs and brushes an errant lock of hair from my face, his fingers lingering as he traces my curved human ear. “I suppose I should be honest with you and tell you that I wouldn’t want to live in the Summer Court. I know I told you we could live wherever you wished, but the more I think about it, the more I realize I don’t want to be in close proximity to my brothers, or even my father. Though it pains me that being far away from them means I rarely see my mother.”

I sit up in bed and face him. Then I gather his hands in mine. “I completely understand why you wouldn’t want to live in the Summer Court. Instead of leaving the decision about where we’re going to live up to me, let’s figure it out together, and let’s take our time doing it. We could even test out living in a few different places and see what we like best. I also suspect you’ll want to live close to an area that contains a high concentration of ussha, though I realize it now extends into most of the human and orc territories.”

He sits up and withdraws his hands from mine, then reaches out to cup my face. Gods, his hands are so huge, and just as golden as the rest of him. Warmth fills his eyes as he holds my gaze, his expression gentle and loving. Gods, when he stares at me like this, I feel treasured, and I feel like I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.

“You are so sweet and thoughtful, Yvette, that I fear I do not deserve you. Thank you for understanding my aversion to living in the Summer Court. Some highborn fae I am. Some prince.” He snorts.

“You’re still highborn, and you’re still a prince, no matter where you call home. Besides, the fae courts are falling. Very gradually, but it’s happening. That’s what Mira told me, that everything is changing and one day the entire realm will be under fae rule, and the Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn courts will be gone just like the Seelie and Unseelie courts are no more.” I take a deep breath as I consider my next words. “Just because you don’t want to live in the Summer Court, that doesn’t mean you’re any less of a royal than your father and brothers. It means you’ve embraced the change that’s coming.”

“Embraced the change that’s coming,” he repeats with a small smile. “I like the sound of that. It sounds much better than ‘running away’ or ‘avoiding.’” He touches his forehead to mine and his hands drift from my face to stroke my arms. His touch causes goosebumps to rise all over me. “Gods, Yvette, you are wise beyond your twenty-four years.”

I laugh. Shortly before our wedding, he’d inquired about my age, and he’d been shocked by the answer, believing I looked to be only nineteen or twenty. He’d been further shocked when I explained that twenty-four was considered old for a woman to still be unmarried, at least a human woman from Trevos.

Then he’d announced his age. Four hundred and sixty.

My mind reels at the huge age gap, but I remind myself that as the centuries pass, and eventually, the millennia, the more than four hundred years between us will feel like nothing.

“Gods, I still can’t believe the ages of your parents. It’s remarkable, and it makes me curious to meet them.” His father is over three thousand years old, but his mother is nearly ten thousand years old. A former Seelie queen, she’s one of the oldest fae in existence, but Lucas claims she doesn’t look any older than him. “I also can’t believe your poor father had to wait so long just to meet his fated mate.”

A strange noise outside draws our attention, and we exchange a look before dressing quickly and heading for the balcony. My overprotective husband pushes me behind him and shields me with his body, and I struggle to see anything with him standing in front of me. He peeks over the railing and stiffens, then tries to push me back inside, clearly not wanting me to see what’s below.

But curiosity gets the best of me, and I duck around him and look down. Just as he snakes an arm around my waist, I glimpse a huge pool of sparkling red. Blood? Why is it glittering? I don’t understand, but it gives me a cold feeling, and when Lucas guides me back inside, I don’t fight him. I’m eager to return to the warmth of our bedroom.

“What is that?” Worry tightens in my gut, especially when I notice a deep frown marring Lucas’s face.

“It’s a blood warning.”

“A blood warning? I don’t understand.” Yes, I’ve read a lot of books, but I don’t know everything there is to know about fae culture. I pray ‘blood warning,’ whatever it is, isn’t as ominous as it sounds.

He meets my eyes, and I don’t like the deepening anxiety in his expression. “It means someone doesn’t approve of our mating union, and they want us dead.”

CHAPTER20

LUCAS

A blood warning.I can scarcely believe it. I wrack my mind for an idea of who might be responsible, but as a fae prince who’s lived hundreds of years, of course I have enemies. Plenty of them. But most of my foes wouldn’t be brave or foolish enough to leave a blood warning beneath my balcony on the morning after my wedding.

I finish shoving the last of our belongings into a small pack as Yvette watches anxiously. We’d had a few personal items delivered to the tower ahead of time, though most of my belongings remain in my royal tent at the Summer Court army’s current camp. Most of Yvette’s things are still at her aunt’s house, though after learning that she’d left many possessions behind in Trevos, I’d sent a young soldier to fetch the items, and I expect everything will be delivered to her aunt’s house soon, including all the books she’d left behind.

I secure the pack to my waist so it won’t hinder my wings in flight. Then I face my sweet bride and give her what I hope is a comforting look. I don’t like seeing her frightened, and I’m furious that this happened so soon after our wedding. We’d planned to spend a week at the tower, talking and making love and getting to know one another better, but now we’re being forced to flee.

“So let me get this straight,” Yvette says. “A blood warning is basically like issuing a threat, and if it’s done shortly after a mating union, it probably means the culprit doesn’t approve of the union for some reason. Also, the pool of blood, which is created using both magic and animal sacrifices, will attract dangerous creatures of all sorts. Is that right?”

“Yes, that is correct, and unfortunately, some of those dangerous creatures will be capable of penetrating my wards.” I pull her close, tuck her chin beneath my head, and wrap her tightly in my arms. “Gods, Yvette, I’m sorry this happened. I don’t know who left the blood warning, but I promise I’ll find out and I will make the bastard pay.”

A shudder moves through her, and she peers at me with wide, fearful eyes. “Where are we going?” Her voice quavers and she blinks fast.

“We must go to an area that contains the highest concentrations of ussha. My magic will be more powerful there. Whoever left the blood warning isn’t highborn. Highborn fae don’t bother with warnings. If we want to kill someone, we kill them, and a highborn fae who wanted us dead would’ve flown to the balcony and attempted to burst through the protective wards I created.”

“I thought regular faefolk didn’t have much magic at all. How could a lesser fae create a blood warning like that?”

“Blood sacrifice amplifies magic,” I explain, and I fight the sudden chill that descends. “I’ve never used blood sacrifice to increase my own magic. It’s considered unsavory and most highborn fae would never consider using it. But lesser fae will use blood sacrifice when they’re desperate enough.”

“So, there’s a lesser fae out there who wants you dead… wantsusdead? Someone who doesn’t approve of our mating union?” She shudders again, and I keep holding her close.

“Yes, though I don’t know whether it’s one fae or a group of my people.” I sigh. “We must leave. Now. We’re probably being watched, so I’m going to fly as fast as I can.”

---