Fire Brand

by Kristen Strassel

  “So why’d you go along with it?” I asked. He was making sense, but I still didn’t like it.

  “I didn’t at first. I’ve been incorporating The Bay into our defensive strategy since I took the crown.” So my hard work did pay off. Okay, sleeping with Asher wasn’t exactly hard work. But someone had to do it. “But I couldn’t get support for that. I knew I had to throw them off. Distract the good members of The League while I could take care of the dissidents, and stack the cards back in my favor. If we had the leaders of The Bay in custody, I could control what happened to you.”

  “Teal’s dead.” Penelope reminded him.

  He closed his eyes for a long moment. “Teal is—”

  I didn’t want to hear it. “Where’s the dressing room?”

  Asher didn’t have a chance to say anything before we took matters in our own hands, storming past him and opening all the doors.

  “We’re just going along with this?” Penelope glowered at me. I elbowed her in the ribs. She was so much better with actions than words.

  It didn’t take us long to find the dressing room. I almost passed out when I saw who waited for us inside.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “Teal?” I had to be dreaming. Shitty sleep, no food, Asher’s complete about face, and now this. It was too much. My head swam as my supposed dead best friend hugged Penelope. Asher put his hand on my back to steady me as I swayed.

  “I’m back.” She wrapped her arms around me. No, this wasn’t a dream. Her body was solid and her heart beat.

  “Don’t take this the wrong way, but what the fuck? I mean, how?” I put my hand over her lips to make sure she was breathing.

  She knocked it away, laughing. “The salt water eroded the stone. Slow as frozen piss, though. It was like chipping old nail polish.”

  Asher chuckled from behind me. For a moment, I’d forgotten all about him. “The last time I shifted, I flew over your boat, hoping to catch a glimpse of you. You weren’t home. I stayed in the sky as long as I could, but I crumbled before I saw you. My ashes drifted to the bottom of the ocean. I’m never completely gone. My spirit always stays intact. I found Teal, struggling to break free. I broke the stone away.—“

  Teal rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Feather Face sped up the process, but I was coming back, no matter what. I was about to kick his ass before he told me the grand plan to make you Queen.”

  “So you believe him?” I asked. Teal had been the biggest Asher skeptic going. I didn’t bother hiding my doubt from Asher. He knew I thought he was full of shit.

  “All the chaos tonight gave the decent guys in The League a chance to take care of the pirates. Not exactly the way I would’ve done it, but the problem is solved. So Asher’s got a plan in place, he’s working it, and it involves you.” Teal picked up my wrist. “What do you have, like four hours to make this official?”

  The cut had scabbed over, and the skin was tight. I wondered if the imperfection in the brand would change the challenge, but I didn’t have time to find out. “Something like that.”

  “The dresses are really pretty,” Teal said, still holding my hand. “One for you, and matching ones for Penelope and me. I didn’t realize how much I missed dressing up until I saw them.”

  “Sounds like wedding dresses.” My laugh was thin and my joke wasn’t very funny.

  “Sort of. Like you, I’m on a deadline.” Asher pushed back his sleeve, revealing his tattooed wrist, his brand looking like scales. I didn’t have any, but we had descended from mermaids.

  This was more surreal than my dream with Allendra. “You were there?” I asked.

  “I dreamed about you that night, in a place I’d never been. I knew when I woke up, I had to have you by the Blood Moon.” He slipped his arm around my waist, his tattooed wrist on top of mine. I’d never felt anything like it, when his ink touched mine. It wasn’t heat, it was an energy, and a relief. I let my head fall back on his shoulder, and the sensation wash over me.

  Asher took advantage of the situation. His lips were on my neck, and we were breathing in time with each other as he kissed me.

  “Get a room!” Penelope whooped. “There’s plenty of them here.”

  “And I’ll have you in all of them,” Asher whispered in my ear.

  “It should be like our bingo game, but with the kama sutra.” Teal’s grin was wicked. “See which one of you can get bingo first.”

  I turned against Asher. We’d fit together perfectly, once I dropped my guard. “I’m totally down for that.”

  “Me too.” He slapped my ass. If he added that to his bingo card, it wouldn’t count. “Get ready. I can’t wait to announce you as my Queen.”

  “It’s worth the wait.” My hand fell to his crotch. I might not be ready yet, but Asher was. He’d wait, too. “I’ll make it worth your while.”

  “Are you sure about this?” Penelope asked as she stepped into her dress. It was dark blue, floor length, and form-fitting. She swirled in front of the mirror, smoothing a piece of hair behind her ear.

  “The dress? You look amazing.” When she moved, the fabric complimented her body like she was part of the ocean.

  “No. Going on stage with Asher. He’s got a proven track record of fucking you over.” She stepped over to tie the back of my dress. Mine was gold, like the tip of Asher’s flames. It had a corset top that barely kept me contained, and a lacy skirt. I’d never looked more like a Queen than I did tonight.

  “Here’s how I see it.” Teal fussed with my hair, which she’d tied into some elaborate bun thingy and fastened it with flowers. How she made it work, I’d never know. Any time I attempted something like this, I looked like I’d just come from a swim. “Go on stage, complete the bond. Tonight’s the Blood Moon, you don’t have a lot of options. Have some epic sex, which don’t take this the wrong way, you need badly. You’ll destroy him, for better or worse. If we find out that he’s fucking with us while he’s coming back to life, we figure out a way to make his condition permanent.”

  “We can trust him.” I moved away from the girls. They had a way of stealing my oxygen, especially in times like this. “These dresses weren’t bought on a whim. This isn’t his consolation prize.”

  Penelope shook her head, and I stuck out my tongue at her reflection in the mirror. “Still could be a trap.”

  “I believe him.” I couldn’t beat around the bush with these two. “I told you about his letters, hinting at this plan, telling me not to give up.”

  Neither of my friends seemed convinced.

  “The bond won’t be complete if I don’t believe in it. Body, heart, and soul. We have to give all of ourselves to each other.” They were going to make fun of me, but I didn’t care. “Fated mates. Way more than a hookup. Forever.”

  Teal kissed my cheek. “Just know whatever happens, we’ve got your back.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The crowd assembled in the ballroom looked much different when we took the stage. Our instruments were gone, as were all the party decorations. The room was stunning, it didn’t need to be dressed up. The carved marble pillars and works of art painted directly on the walls that any museum curator would cut a bitch to get their hands on were better on their own.

  “Look up,” Asher whispered to me when we reached the stage. With everything that had happened during the gala, I didn’t have a chance to take the entire room in.

  The ceiling was all glass. Stars were thick in the sky, so close and vivid I’d swear I could stick out my tongue and catch them like a snowflake.

  “The moon has yet to rise,” he whispered. “We made it.”

  “I hope everyone else did, too.” Even though we were together, we had no way to know if the other paranormal creatures who’d been summoned by Allendra that night had been successful.

  “Even if I only have you for a little while, I’ll savor every moment.” Asher’s breath was warm against my cheek. “But I hope it’s forever.”

  “So do I.”

  Tea
l and Penelope followed us on stage, arm in arm with members of The League Asher insisted we could trust. Just to make sure the ball was in their court, the girls had detailed how most of their dates ended.

  “Thank you all for coming back to the castle.” A hush fell over the crowd when Asher spoke. “Choosing a Queen is not a process that can be rushed. Careful consideration has gone into my choice. For years, Chronopolis and Chronopolis Bay were one Kingdom. The wall between our lands didn’t exist. Those were good days. We worked together, and we share the same values.”

  “The Bay is full of criminals!” someone cried from the crowd.

  “Criminals stripped their Queen of her crown. Avila Aquaviva maintained peace and prosperity in The Bay for decades. The same criminals are the ones causing chaos in Chronopolis. Together, we’ll provide a stronger line of protection for everything we value. Her Majesty and I share a common vision, for our people and for the future.”

  I melted when he called me Her Majesty. The sound was as velvety soft as his feathers.

  Some mumbles and mutters rose from the crowd, but no one had the brass nads to challenge their King. A good sign. This was probably invite-only, a curated group. Baby steps for now. We’d have plenty of time to deal with criticism. Hopefully forever.

  Asher turned to me, and sunk to one knee. The energy around him danced like it was its own entity, graceful and flawless. I expected him to shift into his phoenix form. He rested his lips against my tattoo, and his energy transferred itself to me. I could’ve floated away, wrapped the stars around my shoulders like a velvet stole, and kissed the Blood Moon.

  “Avila, I put my life in your hands. You give me a reason to rise from the dead, better each time because I know you’ll be waiting for me. Please do the people of Chronopolis the honor of being my Queen.”

  “What about you?” I whispered. The people were great and everything, but I wanted him.

  “I don’t deserve you,” he said loudly enough for me to hear. “I can only hope that you’ll choose me because you want better than what both of our cities have.”

  “I do want that.” So much. I wanted the stupid wall to come down and the violence to stop. I wanted our friends and families to prosper. “But more than that, I want you.”

  I lifted his tattooed wrist to my lips and kissed it.

  A wave of electricity so strong flashed through the room that it knocked the lights out for a moment. I was surprised Asher didn’t set the place on fire. The heat that rolled off him threatened to melt my skin.

  He stood, taking both of my hands in his, and holding against my thundering heart. “And I want you. More than anything.”

  This time, the room was unanimous in their cheers when we kissed.

  Asher and I had been alone together many times, and tonight wasn’t that much different. We stayed at the party until the very end, accepting well wishes, but more importantly, listening to the concerns, hopes, and dreams of the people of both of our cities. They were one now, and we’d all have to learn to work together. It didn’t matter what side of the wall a person lived on, they wanted the same thing. Peace and prosperity.

  We could make it happen.

  The strangest part of the night was kissing Teal and Penelope good night. Instead of me heading back to the boat and the two of them heading off to do…whatever it was that they did, they went home and I stayed here. In my new home, with Asher. We’d have to do something about that—either build a new house closer to the water, or knock down this ridiculous wall so my court could have the water view they needed to survive.

  “I can give you the tour of the place.” Asher hadn’t let go of me since I’d come out of the dressing room in my gown. “I want the castle to be yours, Avila. This is your home now.”

  My heart was going to burst. For all the shit he put me through over the last few weeks, Asher knew what was important to me. Comfort. Home. “The tour can wait.” My eyelids were the only part of me that were heavy. A nice change of pace. “All I care about right now is knowing how to get to the bed.”

  “That was where the tour ended.” Asher’s fingers played on my back. “With me untying this dress and taking in your body in a place we both have room to stand up in.”

  I liked my little bunk on the boat. “Listen to you, bragging about the size of your….” I glanced down at his pants. “Bedroom. If everything is in proportion, I’ll have plenty of room to stretch out.”

  “You’ll have more room than you know what to do with.” Asher dipped down and picked me up. “I don’t want you to waste any energy.”

  I would need a tour of this place. Eventually. And a map. But tonight, I was content to let Asher carry me through room after room, stopping every so often when he could no longer resist my lips against his skin. I didn’t have a lot to work with, just the open collar of his shirt. The throbbing beat in his neck insured he wanted this as much as I did, as well as his hungry lips. When it got to be too much, Asher let my body slide down the wall, on to the furniture, wherever he stopped, so he could find center.

  “Not here.” Asher was breathless. He’d been kissing the crook between my breasts. One move and I’d be out of this dress. “I’ve dreamed of having you in my bed ever since I laid eyes on you.”

  “You’re the one who’s stopping.” I pulled his hair so his face was over mine. “Stalling. Like we have all the time in the world.”

  “We can only hope.” Asher looked up. At this level of the castle, most of the ceilings were glass. I’d had a chance to gaze up in a few spots where Asher stopped. Still no moon. “Is there anything we’re supposed to do to seal the bond?”

  “Good question.” I didn’t remember that part of the dream. “I was a little drunk that night. I’m a little fuzzy on the details.”

  “All I remember is waking up with the tattoo, having a vague idea of what it meant, and knowing that I had a whole lot of shit to fix before I could make this happen.” He sighed. “When I first proposed you as my Queen, members of The League threatened assassination. It gave me an excellent idea on how to take care of them. You’ll have a lot of security until we know you’re safe.”

  I expected a chill to blossom over my body, but with Asher this close, I was worried. “That and we have the best two assassins in any Kingdom in my court.”

  “Yes. Teal and Penelope put my mind at ease many nights when I couldn’t protect you.”

  “I’m not some simpering damsel.” I pushed at his chest. “I’ve put my fair share of assholes at the bottom of the ocean.”

  He grinned. “You keep me in line, too.”

  “How’s that?” I hadn’t realized he thought of me more than a hookup.

  “I know I’m going to die tonight.” He picked me up again, one armed, while he tore the buttons of his shirt open. “And it’s not guaranteed I’ll rise. We won’t know until the moon rises if we’re human or not. You make me live every day with no regrets.”

  “You don’t regret lying to me?”

  Asher put me down. We’d reached the bedroom. As curious as I’d been about what this room was like, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Asher. His shirt hung open, muscles rippling down his chest. I could start a fire just by running my finger along them. But that wasn’t what I was hung up on. It was his eyes, glowing with something I couldn’t quite read.

  “I never lied to you, Avila.”

  “You mislead me, and left out parts of the truth.” I reached behind my back for the knot that held me in my gown.

  Asher was behind me before I had a chance to do it. “Let me. I’ve been fantasizing about untying that bow all night long.”

  I turned around, snatching the prized ribbon away from him. “Not until you answer my question.”

  “Yes, I left out parts of the truth. I misled you. And I hated it. But until I took care of the insurgents that had infiltrated The League, I couldn’t tell anyone my plan. Not you, not my most trusted advisers. I gave you as many hints as I could. I didn’t want you to give up
.”

  “I expect to be included in all decisions that affect The Bay.” There was a lot that had to be settled. I needed certain things from anyone I’d call my true mate. First of all, to be treated as an equal.

  “You will be. Your first meetings with the transition team will be over breakfast. I don’t expect to be present after you’re done with me. You’ll have to handle things on your own until I come back.”

  “What if we turn human while you’re…gone?” He’d be dead for real.

  He swallowed hard. “I’m trusting you with our Kingdom, Avila. You’ll be making decisions that affect both of our lands.”

  Asher passed his first test with flying colors.

  He took my shoulder, and turned me gently away from him. “One thing you need to know about The League, they are early to bed and early to rise.”

  “I hope there will be lots coffee.” I pushed my hair over my shoulder so Asher could complete his mission. “I don’t plan on sleeping a wink tonight.”

  “My plan is to make you come again and again until the sun rises. I’ll have to go slow with you, control myself. We have a lot of time to make up for, and I want this first night to last as long as possible.”

  My knees knocked as he untied my dress. So far, he held his promise, loosening each loop methodically. As the dress slid down to my hips, Asher kissed my bare shoulder, holding me steady by the arms, and then by my bare breasts, teasing my nipples as slowly as his breath tickled my skin.

  “Your Majesty, you are a wicked woman,” Asher exclaimed when the dress fell to the floor.

  I took advantage of his surprise and turned to face him. “I know. But why?”