Page 31 of The Crown of Nyx

My thoughts went to Ivy again. To her potential disappointment over not having answers, and even her sadness over the death of the witch. Even if the female was a threat to her, Ivy would still have some compassion, knowing why the witch had done what she’d done.

The Fae prince eyed the body angrily, his jaw ticking. He had his hand on his belt, like he was planning on pulling something from one of the pockets, while the other tapped against his thigh. Violet eyes flickered to mine, and he shook his head.

“What?” Black demanded. “Something you want to say, Nash?”

I hadn’t before, but Grey and Beckham halted their conversation, and glared at us—no, atme.

Shaking my head, I crossed my arms. “Your father is probably one of those on Dante’sHigh Council,” I pointed out. “Wouldn’t you know something about the sudden change in plans?”

Black’s eyes narrowed. “I think you forget: Hyperion was the one who knew things, not me. Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

I stiffened. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means,” he hissed, “that you are putting my mate in danger every time you try to ignore your bond. They know it, she knows it, but she won’t push you—even if it’s the only way she’ll survive any of this.Youare so fucking selfish?—”

“Leave, Orion. We’ll handle this,” Grey muttered.

But my ears rang with the word.Selfish. Selfish. Selfish. He was right. I was being more than fucking selfish. I knew a part of me wanted to accept the bond, and yet…

I shook my head, ignoring Grey and Beckham as I left them in the hold with Black and the body of the witch.

Maybe he was right, but I couldn’t do it. As much as she tempted me, as much as my magic begged for her, no matter how badly my heart yearned for hers, I couldn’t.

And that made me exactly what Orion Black claimed I was.

One selfish, unworthy bastard.

Exactly what she needs me to be.

14

Adrian

Ivy’s words from the deck replayed through my head as I watched her sleep, curled into Rowan’s side. The phrasing she’d used tickled at a memory buried deep in the recesses of my memories, ones I hadn’t thought about in years. My time at Oberon Academy, walking the same halls—taking the same classes as my mate. She was clearly the better student, because I’d all but forgotten that particular class.

Rowan glanced up at me, his fingers tangled in her hair. “I’m sorry,” he said, keeping his voice low. “About…”

A lump formed in my throat. Shaking my head, I sat back and scrubbed a hand over my face. “I think she knew. My mother. That this would kill her. She wouldn’t have—she wouldn’t have given up her power to Ivy otherwise.”

My hand strayed to the newly forming charm in my belt. I’d started it as soon as we’d gotten our gear while waiting for the ship. A spell to stop Dante—and protect Ivy from the future my best friend saw for her in his visions.

My friend nodded and looked down at our mate. “She feels so much guilt over not doing anything.”

I stiffened, releasing a slow breath. “There’s nothing she could have done.” And I believed that, with everything in me. No part of me could blame Ivy for not doing enough. Because if she had tried to fight Dante more than she had, the outcome would have been worse. He’d gotten a good shot at her; I’d seen the blood. The white of her face when the Luna Prince finally got us out of the back room.

I didn’t want to imagine what it would have been like if she’d fought him and gotten captured. Maybe holding back had been enough to warn off Rowan’s premonitions.

The door to the small cabin we’d taken over to get Ivy to sleep opened; Rowan and I tensed as a looming figure stood in the doorway, but I sighed. “Nash.”

The half-Fae team leader had his eyes on Ivy, but when I spoke, he shot me a look. “Kingsley.”

“To what do we owe the pleasure?” Rowan asked, smirking up at Hawk. “Something you need?”

“I just wanted to check on her,” he replied stiffly, nodding to Ivy. Out of all the assholes we could be stuck with for the next five-hundred years, I supposed Nash wasn’t the worst. At least I liked him more than Orion—that was a male I would have to hold back from killing. But Nash wasn’t someone I saw as an enemy—maybe a pain in the ass, but he was just as enamoured as the rest of us. Maybe had been from the moment he saw her outside the safe house in the mortal world.

Rowan and I shared a glance. “She finally fell asleep about an hour ago,” I replied, looking back at the Fae. “She’s anxious about reaching the Underworld.”

Nash nodded, and slipped into the room, closing the door behind him. It wasn’t a large cabin; it barely fit three of us, let alone four, but it was the easiest to ward from not only prying ears, but for safety measures.

---