“You have all of my attention,” I promised, running my tongue against the seam of his lips as he let out a throaty groan.
“So you will wear it?” His voice was absolutely intoxicating, and I was pretty sure the man could convince me to do absolutely anything.
“I didn’t realize it was a question,” I pointed out shyly.
Marco’s eyes darkened as he kissed me again. “Good girl.”
My hand slid up his chest as I smiled further, looking at the ring. I couldn’t help but look up at him, my face flushed at his words of approval. “It’s really sparkly.”
“And pink,” he mused.
It was pink, and it was so impossibly gorgeous. The gold band itself was simple, with small diamonds that wrapped around my entire finger, and the main stone was a massive pink oval diamond. It wasn’t surrounded by anything, it was just stunning in its simplicity. And sparkly. So, ridiculously sparkly. I couldn’t help but let out a small pleased sound from my throat, my phoenix absolutely loving it. I wanted to always have this on, and I was really hoping that was an option.
“You like it?” Marco asked, his voice sounding nearly concerned.
“I can’t stop staring at it,” I admitted and then looked up at him. “I don’t know what to say, Marco. It’s beautiful.” When had he even gotten this? Did the others know? I mean… Did this mean I was engaged? I had a ton of questions, but somehow I knew that this was past being engaged or anything like that. It was another symbol of our bond, just like the brand and mate marks. It made me love it all that much more.
“Say that you will wear it,” he insisted.
I flashed a smile and reminded him, “You didn’t really ask.”
“Nope,” he rumbled softly, cupping my jaw. Something serious crossed his face again as I frowned, feeling worried about where his thoughts were.
“Of course I’ll wear it,” I murmured. “What’s bothering you, Marco?”
“Your brothers aren’t wrong, Maya. We don’t have a good reputation here for a reason—”
“I don’t care about your reputation,” I admitted softly. “You didn’t ever question my worth when you found out the family I came from. Your past doesn’t scare me, Marco. I know you.”
His eyes shone with a warmth and relief that I hadn’t expected, mostly because I wasn’t positive how he could ever doubt how I felt about him. About any of them. Hadn’t they made a point about looking past everything I’d been through? I mean, my mother had said enough mean crap about me to scare away anyone from my life, not to mention the effect it had on my confidence.
My lips parted in realization that my doubt about being a burden in their life was similar to the insecurity they felt about being in mine… unneeded. I moved closer into Marco, wrapping my arms around him and letting my head fall back as I bathed in his warmth.
“I don’t want to go back in there,” Marco admitted after a moment.
“Honestly, it’s a bit overwhelming between the parent and brother thing. Although, I do sort of want to be friends with Eleven, but I have a feeling she doesn’t want to be friends with me.”
Marco chuckled. “I’m not sure that’s the case, baby girl. I don’t know the Group Leader personally, but if she’s at Eldur Academy without being a dragon or any connections, it’s for a reason. She probably isn’t the safest to be around, so friendship isn’t something that she probably is actively considering with the Dreki realm’s lost princess.”
Frowning, I tilted my head. “I think my brothers disagree. About the safe thing.”
Marco’s face turned slightly more serious. “Your brothers don’t have room to talk. They don’t have to adhere to normal military conduct, so they can do whatever they want.”
My lips opened in surprise because that sounded dangerous, and I didn’t even know what normal military conduct was. Before I could comment on anything, the energy shifted in the hallway and Marco sighed, stepping away just slightly as Queen Cyra peeked around the corner.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt—”
“Commander Moretti.” Nuriel appeared next to her, offering him a dry look. “Walk with me.” My mate’s annoyance filtered through our bond, but he kissed my temple and led me forward until I was standing near my mom, her arm hooking with mine as she led me the opposite way of the ballroom, the men following. I watched her curiously, feeling as though she had something to say. When we finally made it out to an open air balcony, the two men stayed behind as my mom patted the bench next to her to sit down.
“You’re going to leave,” my mom stated softly, not asking. It didn’t take away from the sadness in her voice and I felt a surge of guilt at that. I had no intention of causing her pain, and that was exactly what I felt like I was doing.
“Yes,” I confirmed, worried she would be mad at me. I decided to explain myself a bit more fully, not wanting her to think it was because of her. “I have to know if there are more like me… What I went through, I’m realizing now, was not okay. I can’t live with the knowledge that there are more girls just like me.”
Cyra examined my face and squeezed my hand. “You have always been so sweet. Even when you were little you would go out of your way to help others. I want you to know, though, that we can handle this from here. We can send teams in. This is an act of war against the Dreki realm. One where we have been slighted for nearly two decades. I wanted to talk to you about it before we decided anything, but I can’t let this stand—”
“And I would love that,” I admitted. “Any help would mean keeping my mates more safe when we go. But I still need to be there. If what they are going through is anything like what I have gone through, they are going to want to be around someone that understands that. Probably.”
“And what about after?” she asked, her eyes flashing with a deep sadness.
I considered what she was saying and tried to be as honest as possible. “I don’t know yet. I have only been free for two weeks. I want… I need more time to figure everything out. I will come back, but I also view the Earth realm as my home. Specifically with my mates.”
Her eyes warmed as they flashed down to the mark on my arm, making me realize that she had a very similar one on hers. “I understand. I know your fathers are being difficult, but I also know you’re safe with their flight. As long as that’s what you want. I know you don’t know a lot about mating bonds, but I want you to feel as comfortable as possible.”
I blushed at the concept of talking about mates with her and nodded. “I am. They pulled me from a really bad situation.” The last part came out hesitant because I could tell she didn’t enjoy hearing that.
My mom’s jaw clenched as anger flashed through our bond. “The woman who said she was your mom—is she still alive?”
“No.” Marco’s voice rang out clear as Nuriel shook his head at his eavesdropping. Queen Cyra nodded resolutely and squeezed my hand as we stood.
“Good.”
My brows rose as I realized that my mom had a side to her a bit like my mates. A bit darker. I didn’t mind the shade of darkness at all though. I was starting to learn that to protect those you love, to keep them in the warmth of the light, you sometimes had to delve into the dark.