Claire shuddered beneath me, her blue eyes luminescent with vitality. “That’s…”
“Amazing,” I finished for her softly. “And something we will definitely be exploring more.” I laved her plump lip before pressing a kiss to her cheek. Now more than ever I felt a duty to protect her, and that required me to leave her, to find the one trying to cause her harm. “Vox is here,” I whispered.
“Why?” she asked, her voice breathy, her expression soft.
“He knows you didn’t create that windstorm today, and he thinks he can track the energy signature back to its owner.” I drew my thumb beneath her eye, catching the tear she’d shed only moments ago.
Tears of joy, I realized. I sort of liked that. I licked the drop, deciding to taste her emotional gift—mine. Just like Claire.
Her gaze widened. “He thinks someone created that thing on purpose?”
“Yes, to frame you. And I suspect the first incident in the courtyard, as well as the water in the dorms, may not have been you, either. So I’m going to go with him to see if we can find the person who created the tornado.”
“Me, too,” she said, her hands on my
shoulders as if to push me away.
I refused to move. “No. You need to stay here with Titus.” I pressed a finger to her lips before she could protest. “Claire. He needs you.”
This wasn’t about my trying to shelter her. If anything, it would be a good lesson for her to learn how to identify the essence of others—especially as Spirit Fae could control them.
No.
This was about Titus.
“He’s on edge,” I continued. “And to properly protect you, I need him focused. There’s only one way to fix it.” I’d realized it this afternoon after witnessing the true pain in his features, the barely concealed fire.
While I, too, felt the aching need inside me to claim Claire, my elemental control far outweighed his, and I didn’t have a tendency to burn shit down when in a rage.
If we were going to go up against someone powerful enough to manifest powers on Claire’s behalf, then I needed everyone focused. Not to mention the general security required to keep our little fae princess alive. Too many people wanted her dead.
I almost liked that she needed more than one mate. Almost being the key word. But I couldn’t deny that it helped from a bodyguard standpoint.
“Are you telling me to…?” She trailed off, her brow pinched.
I bent to kiss the pucker between her eyebrows before dragging my lips lower to her mouth and whispering, “Yes, Claire. I’m telling you to indulge him while I’m gone. I don’t want the details. Although, I’ll likely feel it through the bond.” I flinched at the thought but quickly swallowed my instinctual reaction.
No one could touch our spirit bond.
Not even Titus.
“It feels… wrong… after we just…”
I silenced her with another kiss, this one coaxing and holding a promise. “You’re still mine, Claire. But you’re also his. And I respect that, just as I know he’ll respect our bond. It’s the way of life.” I tilted my head to the side, amusement touching my chest. “You’re not in the human world anymore, darling princess. We’re fae. Our rules are different.”
She stared at me for a long moment before yanking me to her once more and rewarding me with her mouth. “Don’t do anything without me,” she said softly. “If you find the person doing this, I want to know. I want to be there.”
“Of course.” I brushed my nose against hers. “Reconnaissance only.”
“Promise?”
“I vow it.” I pecked her lips once more and shifted back to my knees as I sensed a new presence enter the room. I ignored him and decided to have a little fun instead. “Now that I’ve let Titus and Vox get to know each other, I think it’s time we join them to make sure they’re both still alive.”
Her eyebrows rose, the innocence in her features telling me she’d not sensed Titus’s entrance yet. Likely because I’d distracted her with our bonding and other more arousing activities.
“They don’t like each other?” she asked.
I lifted a shoulder. “As I said, Titus has some pent-up anger issues. But Vox strikes me as the calm, collected type. Maybe they can be friends.”