“Poppy, you’re stunning, and any guy would be lucky to have you. Who are you interested in?” I ask.
Her cheeks light up. “Eric.”
It takes me a moment to wonder who she is talking about, but then I remember the blond guy in our group who always loses to Poppy. He is lanky but fast on his feet, and under his mop of blond hair, I think he is cute. “My relationships with guys are messy, and I’m pretty useless at any of it, but my advice would be to just ask him to dance with you, Pops. If he agrees quickly, dropping everything he is doing, then you know he likes you.”
“Thank you!” she grins. We both head to the lift, and I’m surprised to see a familiar demon waiting for me, looking like sin in a dark green tux.
“Would you allow me to escort you both?” Seth asks, but I highly doubt we are being given a choice.
“That would be great,” Poppy says, finding a little confidence being around Seth, even though I can tell she is still scared of who is under his nice guy act. I personally like when his demon comes out to play. The normal side of Seth is sweet, but his demon? He is all sin and darkness wrapped in a sexy package.
“Why are you here tonight, Seth?” I ask. “I didn’t have you down as the type to like balls and all the pretend shit that goes with them.”
“I much prefer seedy nightclubs, yes,” he answers. “But none of them have a damsel who might be in distress. I am here to be a distraction for the king.”
“You’re here to protect me, you mean,” I say.
“Simply put, yes,” he answers.
“You might need to join the club,” I reply.
His laugh is nothing short of menacing. “I am aware I am not your only admirer, Syn. But I will win, there is no doubt about that.”
“Cocky demon,” I mutter, glaring at him.
“Stubborn reaper,” he counters right back with his own narrowed eyes. Gods, I want to kiss him. Poppy looks like she wants the corner of the lift she is hiding in to eat her up, and as she clears her throat, I remember that she is here. The lift doors open, and Seth stays close by my side as I walk out into the ballroom, which has changed. The pillars now have dark green ivy climbing up them, smothering the walls, and light green petals fall from the ceiling all around us.
And fae are everywhere. The feel of their magic is strong, and it hits my magical barriers with the force of a truck. It takes a lot to hold my ground and make sure no one gets past my magic to see what I am hiding under the shadows of my reaper magic.
“I can take us away. Say the word,” Seth whispers to me, picking up on my discomfort.
“No, just do what you came here for. I will survive,” I tightly reply, refusing to leave right away. Poppy walks into the crowd, so full of confidence that a few fae and reapers turn to look at her as she passes them.
Oddly, I feel proud of her. Proud of how far she has come in a few months. Turns out her parents were right to send her here; she is certainly strong enough.
Sebastian comes out of the crowd, his eyes searching everyone here as I take in his light green tux, the way he has taken off his tie and undone his top buttons. His jacket is in his hands, and his sleeves are rolled up, showing off his impressive forearms. The suit makes his thighs look larger and stronger. Total
Sometimes.
Seb’s purple eyes lock onto me, and he walks over, never once giving Seth the time of day. “We should leave. He will sense you, and I can hide you.”
“The king, you mean?” Seth answers for me. Sebastian finally looks to him and gives him a quick nod. Seth’s eyes fall to me. “Another admirer of yours, I presume?”
“A friend,” I correct. “But Seb’s right, I should get out of here.”
“Go, I will cover for you,” Seth instructs, understanding flashing in his eyes. Seb nods his head to the lift, and we go back inside. While Seb does something to the buttons, I see a man in the middle of the crowd, which parts for a moment, giving me a full view of him. Tall with long black hair in braids that fall to his middle back, littered with green bands within the braids. His green tux spreads across his wide shoulders and large muscular body. I look up and see a crown on his head.
The Otherworld crown.
It is enchanting to look at, and it is really like no other crown I have ever seen. Intricate pieces of silver and gold vines wrap in a circle, and several piercing points hold green crystals of some kind that glow with their own magic. In the middle of the spikes, purple fae magic spins and spirals in a wave, floating there in its own controlled way. Just as the lift doors begin to shut, the Seelie king, the man responsible for so much murder, turns his gaze my way. His cold, empty, purple eyes find mine just before the door slams shut.
I step back, and Seb’s hand steadies me, settling on the middle of my back. I sharply turn to him at my side. I wish I knew more about him. Everything about him, if I’m being honest with myself. Learning new things about Seb is addictive. “Tell me your secrets, prince.”
“Pay me for them, vixen,” he counters right back. The lift doors open, breaking our stare, and I wonder what exactly he wants me to pay with. I doubt a kiss or even more would pay for many of his secrets. Seb wants my soul, I can see it. I can feel it. And what’s worse? It’s slowly slipping into his deadly hands, betraying my body, falling where I won’t be able to get it back. Seb smirks as he walks out of the lift, and my eyes fall to his ass in his tight green trousers. Damn, that’s a nice ass.
Following him out of the lift, I take in the black painted room we are in. One entire wall is full of windows with window seats underneath them and bookcases between, filled to the brim with books. A large black wooden bed with white sheets fills most of the room, with a leather lounger chair at the side, next to a bedside unit. Moonlight and two floor lamps make the room cosy, just borderline dark, and I like it. I spot Seb’s guitar resting by the lounger, and as I walk in, I see a small bar on the one wall, littered with empty bottles and half-drunk glasses.
“How often do you drink, Sebby?” I question, picking up a bottle off the side and sniffing the fae wine inside. I take a long drink as Seb sits on one of the window seats, a bottle in his own hands. I make myself comfy on the window seat next to his, only a small bookcase in the middle of us. The moonlight illuminates strands of his blond hair, and I notice how utterly beautiful he is for a man. I never thought men could be beautiful, not really anyway. But this place is proving me wrong.
“When you live in this castle, you need something,” he tells me, leaning back against the side of the wall. “The fae king is my father.”
I raise my eyebrows, a little surprised. “Well, shit. That’s…”
“Nothing,” he fills my sentence in, just not the way I would have. “He doesn’t acknowledge my presence, and he is here to speak with my mother for her help, nothing more or less.”
“You’re his son, why would he ignore you?”
“Being ignored is something my family seem to enjoy doing to others,” he replies. “I should know, I tried to ignore you.”
“Clearly you failed, and I’m glad for it,” I reply.
“You might not be if you knew everything, vixen,” he replies before taking another long drink. “My father will be gone soon, back in his home.”
“Why does he need your mother’s help?”
“The Unseelie rebels that have been attacking here are also causing major issues in the Otherworld,” he explains. My heart pounds in my chest. “Recently they have more numbers than ever before, they are sneaky and winning battles they never could in the past. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”
“I wish I did,” I honestly answer.
