Page 80 of A House of Fangs & Deceit

“Fine, but you owe me one,” Alaric agreed.

I immediately thought of ways I could return the favor and had to slam the door down on all those thoughts. Apparently,even though Kieran had quite satisfied me last night, I was still doomed to have dirty thoughts about Alaric.

Given the way the gold fractures in Kieran’s eyes were glowing brightly and that the corners of his lips had tipped up ever so slightly, I figured he’d caught my blush before I had crushed it and had a very good idea of every dirty thought that had just gone through my head.

Damn it. Now he was going to be even worse at teasing Alaric about me.

“Let’s go.” I quickly mounted Zosa, and the rangers and Kieran did the same as the gate was raised in front of us.

Kieran steered his horse next to mine and leaned over to kiss me, and when he pulled back, he whispered, “Don’t have too much fun while I’m away.” Then his eyes slid to Alaric and back to me. “But do have a little fun.”

The blush I’d just barely managed to force into retreat came flaring back to life. “I hate you,” I muttered and urged Zosa forward, leaving Vail to catch up, Kieran’s laugh chasing me the whole way out.

Three hours later,Vail pulled up his horse, and I slowed Zosa down to a walk. We’d rode the entire way here in complete silence.

If I hadn’t been so stressed out about Rynn, I would have enjoyed the ride. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the road we took was along the coast, so I was able to view the ocean for most of it.

I only had a general idea of where the human outpost was based on the map, but Vail seemed to know exactly where he was going which, for some reason, I found really annoying. Maybe it was because he seemed overly confident about everything, and I’d never seen him be wrong about anything.

For once, I wanted him to be wrong.It’s probably for the best that he’s right in this instance though, I thought begrudgingly.

The quicker we found and searched the human settlement, the sooner we could get back to House Harker and its fortified walls. Away from the monsters lurking in the woods, awaiting their next meal.

Vail dismounted and looped his horse’s reins over the saddle, and I did the same, giving Zosa a good pat before joining Vail. Both were well-trained enough to not go far unless we were attacked, in which case it was better to give the horses at least a chance to run for their lives and possibly serve as a distraction. Hopefully, with it still being daylight, we wouldn’t have to worry about that.

“I can see why I never noticed it before.” My eyes scanned the area, spotting a few pieces of well-weathered wood and some crumbling brickwork. “There really isn’t much left.”

Vail grunted and began walking around, studying the ground as he moved while I surveyed the area a little more.

The human village had been built very close to the beach. We were on higher ground, but the beginning of the shoreline was directly below us. Based on where the seaweed had piled up, there was less than a quarter mile between the edge of the town and where the water came in at high tide.

Because of how high up the village had been, they would have been fine… until there was a storm.

I wondered what had driven them to build a town here. It didn’t seem safe. Then again, the world hadn’t been a safe place for humans even when the Fae were still around to keep the monsters under control.

The coastlines had always been safer than living in the forests because the monsters preferred the coverage provided by the trees and thick ground cover. There were more prey options in the forest, as well.

We might be a favorite food source for the monsters, but we were hardly the only one.

My foot slipped on some loose rocks, and I stumbled forward towards the edge. I waved my arms as I tried to backpedal but only succeeded in tripping over another loose rock. Just as I was about to pitch forward, Vail grabbed my arm and yanked me back.

The movement sent me spinning around, and I fell right into his broad chest. “Thanks,” I breathed out, placing my hands on his shoulders to steady myself.

“Despite your low opinion of me, you are House Harker’s Heir, and therefore, I am bound to keep you safe,” he said coldly before stepping away and putting several feet of space between us. “I’m simply not under the spell of that cunt of yours like those two peacocks.”

I bit back the retort that tried to burst free. Almost tumbling over the cliff had left me unsettled, and being saved by Vail only to have him throw his cruel vitriol at me had my emotions all over the place, but I absolutelyrefusedto let him know he’d hurt me.

I shoved away the anger and lingering fear and planted a sultry smirk on my face while batting my eyelashes at him.

“Well, my cunt doesn’t have any interest in you, so that works out for both of us.” I tapped a finger against my bottom lip and fixed my features into a thoughtful expression. “I can see how Kieran would qualify as a peacock. Alaric, not so much.”

Vail stared at me, uncertainty flashing across his face. He probably thought I’d be mad about his rude comment, but it didn’t really bother me all that much.

I enjoyed sex and wasn’t going to feel bad about that. Marvina constantly belittling me and dismissing my intelligence had pissed me off far more than any crude insult aboutmy sex life. It was Vail’s unwarranted hatred towards me that hurt. But I’d never let him know that.

His mouth flattened into a hard line, annoyance etched in his features at me brushing off his cutting remarks so easily.

I laughed even as a flicker of pain sliced across my heart and set about searching the area, this time further from the edge. “You’ll have to work harder to get under my skin, Vail. Also, I’m not sleeping with Alaric.”

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