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Luther. His cool composure lasted all of two seconds as he gazed down at my dripping, barely covered body, his eyes darkening to pitch. I really had to stop answering doors without my clothes on. “We’ve discussed this, Prince.” I pointed at my face. “Eyes up here.”
His potent magic danced in his eyes, light and shadow twining like lovers embracing under the moonlight. Strands of darkness curved like barbed wire around his arms and chest while light slithered down the rippled planes of his torso, spiraling around his muscled thighs and leaving him encased in a glittering suit of armor. Something stirred excitedly in my chest at the sight.
“They want us to feel small, Eleanor. They want us to be quiet, be predictable, be unimportant, behave. Then they make us think we deserve it. But I think they’re just terrified we’ll stop listening to them and start listening to each other. And do you know why they’re so scared of women like us?” Our gazes met, two sets of glittering eyes shining in shared determination. “Why?” she asked. My answering grin was positively wicked. “Because they damn well should be.”
“But rest assured, my Queen, when I do kiss you, there will be no confusion. You will know that I have claimed you—and I won’t have any desire to deny it.”
“I’ve accepted Henri’s marriage proposal. He’ll be escorting me as my betrothed.”
Girl what the hell are u doing
I lounged back against the divan and crossed my legs so the fabric of my dress slid even further, baring my thigh where it curved up into my hip. I arched my back and raised my chin in a silent dare. Luther’s pupils dilated as he watched me, a predator on the hunt. I could see him fighting against his desire to take another look—or perhaps do more than look.
I wondered if he remembered those moments at inopportune times like I did. If they turned his mouth dry and set his heart racing like they were currently doing to mine.
I laughed nervously and looked away. “Or maybe you prefer me in muddy pants and a borrowed tunic.” “Only when it’s mine.”
“That if a man made you doubt whether his love for you would survive anything, he does not deserve you.”
“Do you have some thoughts, cousin Taran?” “None that I’m going to say out loud.” I patted him lightly on the cheek. “You’re smarter than you look.” Taran clasped my hand between his and smiled even wider. “Oh, I’m definitely in love.”
“What about me?” Taran said, pouting. “I could advise on... I don’t know, something.” “Drinking,” Aemonn drawled. “Sleeping around. Being useless.” Taran grinned. “Exactly.”
His eyes burned into mine with such ferocity that my breath stilled in anticipation. He cautiously stepped closer, and this time, I didn’t pull away. “Blessed Mother Lumnos chose you for a reason. She saw who you are and what you can be. Prove to all of them what she and I already know—you are capable of this, and so much more.”
I felt as trapped now as I had then, frozen in these ice-blue irises that followed me into my most shameful thoughts and dreams. I felt equally as conflicted, too—too scared to confront the emotions that waited within, too weak to turn away from them for good.
“Luther,” I whispered. “My Queen,” he breathed. Our faces drew close, and I honestly didn’t know which of us had done it. My nose brushed his, our mouths so near that his breath warmed my lips. I needed to pull away, put distance and cold, empty air between our bodies. I needed to remind him, and myself, that we were allies, reluctant friends at best, but nothing more. Never anything more. And I tried to do that. I really, truly did. But my body wouldn’t obey. My heart wouldn’t, either.
😩😩😮💨😮💨
“Diem? It’s Eleanor—” “And Taran.” “—are you alright in there? Do you need anything? Maybe some food, or chocolate, or—” “Or whiskey?” “Remind me again why I brought you.” “Because I’m fun. Hey Diem, is Luther in there? Are you two doing something naughty?” “Blessed Kindred, Taran, stop!”
Omg i love them so much 😭😂
“Come on, Queenie,” Taran said with a sly grin. “Don’t you want to get all hot and sweaty training with me and Lu?” I raised my brows at Eleanor and Luther. “Is he always like this?” “Yes,” they groaned in unison. “Fine,” I said, laughing. “I’ll train with Luther and Alixe. And Taran, if I must.”
“Oh no, that won’t do at all. You nearly made my dear friend cry. That calls for some serious groveling.” I dipped my head. “Down there. On your knees.” He shot me a dark look. “With all due respect to my lovely cousin, the only person I’m getting down on my knees for is you, my Queen.” Taran cackled loudly. “Queenie, you hear that? Lu wants to get on his kn—” Luther flicked his wrist, and a burst of shadow flew from his palm and smacked against Taran’s face, sealing like a gag across his mouth. Taran yelped and tugged at the dark patch as he let loose a string of muffled curses.
😭😭😭😂😂😂
“If a kiss is the reward, my Queen, I’ll get on my knees for you whenever you want.” He released me and gave me a wink before slipping into the hallway and closing the door behind him.
LUTHEEERRRRRR PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 😩😩😩😩
“Good girl,” he murmured. My thighs clenched. Diem one, Luther ten.
His touch was the changing of the seasons, the dead, cold grey of winter thawing and giving way to the colorful hope of spring. The promise of something new, something exquisitely alive.
I was drowning in this man. From the moment I met him, I had been kicking against the current and holding my breath, struggling to get back to the safe, familiar surface—but every look, every touch, dragged me deeper still. I felt the burning of it in my lungs, as real and visceral as if I were plunging into the Sacred Sea itself. And maybe it made me weak, or a traitor, or a fool, but gods did I want to close my eyes and sink forever.
He looked at me like a flower raising its head to the life-giving sun.
“You are my Queen, and I am your sword. Point me at your enemies, and watch them fall. Lead this world, Diem, and I will follow you—into war, into death, into the tundra of hell itself.” He took my palm and set it against his chest, just above the patch of unscarred skin that lay beneath his jacket. “You are the fate my heart was spared for. As long as it beats, you will never fight alone.”
“What would happen,” I breathed, “if we gave into this thing between us?” “I don’t know,” he said roughly. “But that question consumes my every thought.”
THE TENSION 👀👀👀👀
“And I have failed. Completely, irreversibly failed. I don’t just want a piece of you—I want them all.” His thumb raked across my lower lip. “I want every breath, every laugh, every tear. Every taste of your mouth, every inch of your skin. I want to kneel at your feet, soaked in the blood of your enemies, then worship your body until you scream my name.” His hands slid to my hips and tugged me closer. “Yes, Diem, I want to serve you—in every way a man can.”
“I want to burn alive in that fire in your eyes. I want it to melt me down and forge me into the weapon you need me to be. I want to stand by your side for the rest of my life, and I don’t need you to marry me and make me a fucking king to do it.” “Luther,” I rasped, begging—for what, I wasn’t sure. “I pledged you my loyalty, and you have it, no matter your choice. But I cannot keep lying to you or to myself. I want all of you, Diem.” His lips brushed against mine, his words breathing straight into my lungs. “You already have all of me.”
“Everyone says this phoenix represents dying and coming back as something new, but I disagree. I think it’s a symbol of surviving when the world burns down around us. It’s a reminder that no challenge can destroy the parts of us that truly matter. We’re not reborn in the flames. We’re revealed.”
“Then can I ask you a serious question?” “Sure.” I looked over and forced out a supportive smile. “Ask me anything.” “When are you and Luther going to put all of us out of our misery and fuck each other already?” “Taran,” I choked. “Descended men are bigger than mortal men, you know. In every way. One night with Lu, and you’d forget that mortal’s name. Shit, you’d forget your own name.”
TARAN SPEAKING THE TRUTH 😭😭😭
“Luther will stand by your side, and he will love you for every single day of it. And he won’t say a word. He’ll spend his entire miserable life protecting your happiness, hoping that someday you finally see him. Not Luther the Prince or the High General or the advisor, but him.”
“You don’t have any right to ask that of me.” And just like that, his hope was dead. “Who I decide to be with is my choice. Not yours, and sure as hell not the Kindred.”
Diem girl youre pissing me off
“I would have walked into the flaming heart of the sun itself,” he shot back. “If you are suffering, nothing will keep me from coming to your aid. Least of all something as trivial as death.”
“I love it,” Taran declared. “Very sexy, Queenie. When Remis asks who wants to come for you, he better clarify he means fighting or you’ll have half the realm lined up.” Luther let out a low grunt,
This was an outright rejection of me and everything I stood for. A vote of no confidence. A declaration of war. It was that realization that finally pierced my armor and sliced straight through to my heart.
“Remember who you are, Diem Bellator.” He clasped the medallion at my neck. “But remember you are a phoenix, too. We do not fear the flames, for the hotter we burn, the higher we fly.” He gave me a final, smoldering kiss, then whispered against my lips. “Burn, my Queen. Glow so bright, the darkness trembles.”
Luther gazed at me like I was the embodiment of hope fulfilled. Like I was the answer to every question he had ever asked, the harmony to every song he’d ever sung. He looked at me like I was the sun and the moon and the stars, all the light in the world, shining a path for him out of the lonely dark.
