Her bag fell from her shoulders a second before she flung herself into his arms. Cole crushed her against him and lifted her off the ground. Her sweet scent enveloped him as his fingers threaded through her silken hair to grasp the back of her head.
Relief descended, and the lycan within him stirred. During the trials, he repressed the lycan part of himself, but it had made its demands for its mate known since returning to the Gloaming.
He cradled her face in the hollow of his shoulder. When her tears wet his neck, he pulled back to gaze down at her. The water glistening in her enchanting green eyes made them shine brighter.
“Don’t cry,” he told her.
“I can’t help it.” She clasped his face between her palms and rested her forehead against his. “I’m so happy. I knew you would survive, but… but… I was so scared.”
“There’s no reason to be scared now. I’m back.”
More tears slid down her cheeks as she grinned at him. “You’re back.”
When he claimed her mouth, the kiss quieted the lycan as the heat of her scorched him to the center of his soul. The taste of her was sweetly familiar and all the more exciting because of it.
Each time he kissed her was as exciting as the first time. She made him feel like he was drowning and she was his safe harbor. Every time their mouths touched, he lost a piece of himself to her, and he didn’t care.
As their tongues entwined and his cock hardened, he knew he should break away, but he couldn’t bring himself to part with her yet. He was ravenous; both the dark fae and lycan were clamoring to be sated, and she was the only one who could do it.
It was only the fact they were out in the open, with his brother somewhere nearby, that stopped him from taking her. There was a time when he wouldn’t have cared who or how many others watched him with a woman, but no one, other than him, would ever see or hear her in such a way.
Reluctantly, he broke away from her. Her dazed eyes blinked up at him as she searched his. Her swollen lips were far too enticing; he had to set her down, or he would finish what he started.
He stepped a little away from her but couldn’t bring himself to release her completely. He kept a hand at the small of her back as he held her against his side.
“Are you okay?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
Her brow furrowed as she studied him, but she didn’t push him any further.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” she assured him.
“Were there any problems at the manor?”
“Some of the Lord’s men came to search it, but they didn’t cause any problems.”
Her words caused his skin to prickle. Did the Lord already know about her? It was only a matter of time. And once the Lord learned of her, her life would be in a lot more danger.
“Why did they search it?” he asked.
“They’re searching all the residences for rebels, but we know who they’re really after,” Brokk answered.
Cole scowled. “Orin and Varo.”
“Yes.”
“They really didn’t cause any problems?”
“No.” Lexi rested her hand on his arm. “They were fine, and they didn’t stay long. Everything else was quiet.”
Cole glanced at Brokk. His brother’s face didn’t reveal anything, but the set of his jaw said he wasn’t thrilled by the experience.
“Is there anything else I should know?” Cole asked.
“I asked Brokk to teach me how to fight,” Lexi said.
“And did he?”
“We’re working on it,” Brokk said. “But she shows promise and has improved.”
“Good,” Cole stated. “That’s something we’ll continue to work on.”
Lexi grinned at him.
“I have to finish with the council,” he told her. “I’ll be back soon.”
“We’ll be here.”
He kissed her cheek and started to turn away before stopping. Between his imprisonment in the Lord’s tower and the trials, they’d been away far too often. He didn’t want to leave her so soon after finally holding her again.
He’d intended to keep the knowledge of what she was to him a secret from others for longer, but he wanted her by his side for the memorial service and his coronation. The dark fae wouldn’t be thrilled to learn his mate wasn’t one of them, but they would have to accept it.
He held his hand out to her. “Come with me.”
She stared at his hand before shifting her gaze to the hall behind him. “They don’t want me in there.”
“They’re going to have to get used to seeing you by my side. Besides, we’re not discussing anything that others can’t hear. We’re finalizing the details of my father’s memorial and my coronation. You can be there for that.”
She wrung her hands before her. “I’m happy to wait here.”
“I want you with me.”
Chapter Forty-One
Lexi stared at Cole’s hand as those words sank in. He wanted her with him.
As much as she’d prefer not to see the council, and especially Becca again, she couldn’t say no to that. He looked much the same as he had before he left. His face was thinner, and his clothes were baggier, but she didn’t see so much as a scratch on him.
She sensed looks were extremely deceiving as the tiredness in his eyes wasn’t there before. Those eyes also held a knowledge that spoke of things she couldn’t imagine. New lines marked them, and there was a pinched set to his mouth.
He also emanated a lot more power.
He’d always been one of the most powerful beings she’d ever encountered; she’d sensed that from their first encounter, but there was so much more here now.
The strength of his newfound power caused the hair on her arms to rise and left a metallic taste in her mouth. When she first met the dark fae king, she’d sensed Tove’s power, and at the time, it was more than Cole’s.
That wasn’t true anymore, and this was so much more than Tove once possessed.
She didn’t know if it was because this power was still so new in Cole or if surviving the trials somehow caused it to manifest stronger in him than in his father. She didn’t know how that was possible.
Did the others sense it as well?
They must. The beings in this palace were full-blooded immortals, whereas she wasn’t. If she felt it this strongly, then what did it feel like to them?
Goose bumps broke out on Lexi’s arms as she pondered this. And if they sensed it more strongly than her, would it make it so they wouldn’t fuck with him, or would they see him as a challenge to take down?
Either way, she would be by his side, fighting for him.
She slipped her hand into his and squeezed it as she sought to convey her love to him. The dark fae intimidated—no, she couldn’t lie to herself, they unnerved her, and she did not want to see Becca again, but she would stand by his side… for as long as he would have her there.
He might change his mind when he learned about Orin. Until then, she would do everything she could for him.
“You should come too,” Cole said to Brokk.
Brokk fell in to walk on the other side of Cole. They entered the great hall together. The first time Lexi was here, it was packed with immortals and lit up with a beautiful night sky of shifting constellations.