Once spent, Maddox pushed his face against my throat and rolled off, taking me with him. Spooning me, he kissed my nape and worked on catching his breath. Laughter came from downstairs, as did clinks of dishes and mugs.
A while later, a light sound came at the door.
Briar entered first, then Callum and Lake. A flash of red hair trailed behind Lake. Rowan was the shortest of my men; only an inch or so taller than me. A fact that made him endearing, as well as deadly. Not that I’d ever say it out loud.
“I hope we’re not interrupting,” Briar said, sliding into bed next to Maddox.
“Never.” I smiled over at him.
Callum slid into bed on my other side and wasted no time before wrapping his arms around me, bringing a sweet scent with him. I pressed into him, feeling more of my earlier nerves trickle away. Lake took his place on my lap and nudged my hand with his head. Knowing what he wanted, I slid my fingers through his silver hair.
“We all love the same man.” Maddox grabbed Briar’s hand. “Yet, my heart is big enough to love you too.”
“As is mine for you.” Briar lifted their joined hands to kiss our captain’s knuckles.
“I hate all of you.” Rowan perched on the windowsill. “Apart from my little treasure, of course.”
Lake huffed. “Come to bed.”
“Bed’s not big enough for all of us.” Rowan shifted his gaze to the window. “I’m fine where I am.”
Maybe it was my post-orgasm brain, but it looked as though he were keeping watch. For what? The dark mage? The brownie stealing Reign?
“I didn’t want to say this in front of the knights, given the sensitive matter.” Briar dragged in a shaky breath. “But if the mage truly is a member of Nocturne, Prince Sawyer isn’t the only one in danger.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“It’s the manner in which they track their targets,” Briar said. “With the right spell, they can sense bloodlines.”
Callum’s hand stilled on my side.
“He’ll be able to sense me?” I asked.
“It’s a possibility.” Briar’s voice was unsteady.
“No harm will come to you,” Maddox said, dipping his face to the crease of my neck. His arm held me more securely, as if protecting me from every bad thing outside our room. “I won’t allow it.”
“Neither will I.” Callum pressed closer on my other side.
A powerful mercenary was in the kingdom. One who might be able to sense my bloodline. Not only that, but my men would be searching for him, putting them in danger too.
I thought of that damn flower again. How its red petals had drifted to the dead grass before withering away. Would this moment wither away too? Would this life we’d built together become nothing but a distant memory?
Lake lifted his head. The glow of his purple eyes stood out in the firelit room. “Shall I sing to you?”
My throat was too tight to speak. I could only nod.
As his melodic voice rang out, singing a familiar lullaby, I closed my eyes and eventually drifted to sleep. And dreamed only of them.
Chapter Nineteen
A Bounty of Muffins
The witch from that fairytale had the right idea: build your house out of candy and sweets. At least that’d give me somewhere to put it all.
Cupcakes, sweet buns, donuts, and five different flavors of cookies covered every inch of the countertops and kitchen island. A result of me rolling out of bed in the wee hours of the morning and stress baking.
Luckily, the house full of hungry knights tackled some of it for breakfast. The rest, I organized for Miles to sell once the café opened and then packed some into a basket to take with me.
