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August 24 - August 24, 2025
“It’s me,” he whispered into her hair, and as his low voice wrapped around her, her coiled muscles softened. He held her closer, and his hair tickled her cheek as he continued. “I promise you, you’re never going back there. I will never allow them to hurt you again. Do you hear me?”
“She doesn’t need to get better,” he snarled softly. “If she decides to break apart this whole ship to deal with what happened, I’ll help her. If she wants to kick your lying ass into the depths of the sea, I’ll take your legs. If she decides to rip the world to shreds for what it’s done to her, I’ll cheer her on. And if you were a true friend… you would as well.”
“Please, stop hitting me.” Merrick’s face came into view, and his eyes hardened as he growled, “Stop fucking dying, then.”
“Are you trying to get me undressed?” she taunted, ignoring the small voice in her mind warning her that she’d just decided not to agitate him more. A vein throbbed by his temple. “If I were, you’d already be splayed out on the sand beneath me, begging me to join you.”
“You can’t lose someone if you’ve never had them,” he finally responded.
“You do not carry that darkness. You may bear a name, but that name does not define you. You may share his blood, but that blood does not dictate who you are. And I promise you”—his eyes bore into hers as he stressed each word—“I. Promise. You. I won’t let anyone hurt you. Rioner, Loche, the rebels, the Oakgards’ Fae, or any of these fucking people won’t come near you. Ever again.”
“What are you thinking about?” Merrick asked after he drained the rest of the glass. “Whether I’m allowed to pet you.”
“The world is painful.” Merrick’s gaze drilled into hers. “Yours perhaps more than most. But it’s time for you to stop cowering before it. Make mistakes, and forgive yourself for them. Get hurt, and fight back. You’re a good person. A fucking great person. Stop letting guilt dim your light. I told you once, it’s time to shine…”
“It’s time to fucking burn, Lessia. If we’re taking on the threats of this world, you’ll need to be willing to burn it down. Love. Lose. Hate. Win. They all come together in the end. Use them to fuel that passion to make this wretched world a little better.”
“They’re ours.” Ardow’s face reddened when Venko’s eyes widened, and he stuttered, “I-I meant…” “They’re not their biological children,” Merrick hissed, his whispers flickering to life again.
“You are brave and clever and wildly loyal. You have such fight in you—even after everything. And you love so fiercely… so boundlessly. Don’t let your past convince you that you aren’t worthy of it in return.”
“Maybe I need to train you to please me instead of piss me off.”
“You wouldn’t have to fight for me. I… I can’t say it would be easy, given what we’re facing, but I’d make sure this—us—would be the one place you can rest, where you’re always safe, where you never have to put on a mask to conceal your true feelings.”
“Do not touch her.” Ice dripped from Merrick’s voice as he pushed the regent back a step. “You lost that privilege that night. Get back before I kill you.”
Swallowing, Lessia set her sights on the empty chair beside Kerym, but as she neared, the Fae violently shook his head at her, eyes flicking toward Merrick. “Absolutely not. I don’t plan on getting killed today. You go over there.”
“I don’t want you because of the stupid bond!” she screamed. “I want you because you make me feel alive! Because you believe in me when I don’t believe in myself. Because you try to make dumb jokes to make me happy. Because you make me fires to keep the darkness at bay. Because you hide your smile when I’ve made you proud in training. Because when I fucking stab you, you lecture me about missing your heart!”
“Do you want me to tell you I wanted to fuck you senseless on that table tonight—regardless of who was watching—when you walked in wearing my shirt?”
“Do you want me to tell you no one—mate or not—has loved anyone the way I love you? That I would laugh as the world fell apart as long as you stood by my side? That even if I could only have one fucking night—one night pretending you’re mine—I’d take it?”
I’ll make sure you have it all. If you’ll let me.” She smiled against his mouth. “I’ll let you do anything you want.”
