She turned her head and watched as William, Red, Black, White and Green stepped into the gazebo where the royal family awaited the bride and groom. All five warriors were armed for war. Swords peeked over their shoulders. Guns were sheathed at their waists. And there were more men behind them! Men she recognized from the picture books the scribes had commissioned.
Oh, sweet lightning. The Lords of the Underworld were here. The frightful males were loaded with even more weapons than William and his crew. There was the scarred Lucien, the dark Reyes, the scary Sabin and the irreverent Strider.
Her heart sped into a faster rhythm. "Hi," she called, and waved at Lucien. "I can"t believe this is happening. I"ve dreamed of this day all my life."
His scarred features were pale, and there were bruises under his eyes. He looked as if he"d been without sleep for several centuries. "Your wedding?" he asked her.
"No, I"m not getting married. I"ve been waiting to meet you," she said, her voice fluttering.
"All right, calm yourself," Kane muttered. "And yes, you"re getting married."
"Kane-"
He continued. "I didn"t want help, but I realized I needed it. There was no other way. But don"t you ever trust the Rainbow Rejects. They"re only aiding me now so they"ll have an easier shot at you later."
"William, my darkling," the queen gasped out. "What are you doing? You"re to be my protector."
The king roared, "Darkling? You"re calling another male by my pet name?"
"Shut it, both of you," William snapped, all humor gone. "We"ve heard enough out of you."
The queen"s mouth floundered open and closed, but she never made another sound.
Leopold stepped forward, but Red reached out and grabbed him by the neck, jerking him backward. In the next blink, a blade was poised at the prince"s hammering pulse and he was gurgling in pain, a bead of blood leaking to the fluffy collar of his dress shirt. He tried to speak, but the weapon prevented any sound from forming.
"But what about me?" Synda called, racing up behind Kane, her wedding dress not quite fastened. She had to hold up the beautiful Fae lace with her hands. And her veil was askew, about to fall out of her pale curls.
"Shut it, woman," Kane snapped, mimicking William. "If I have to listen to one more bit of cruel, inane chatter from you, I"ll remove your tongue. I swear I will."
Synda stopped, just stopped. No one had ever rejected her before-well, not for long. Bewilderment and hurt danced in her eyes, and Josephina almost felt sorry for her. Almost. She was too busy reeling. Kane had just put the girl in her place.
Red bloomed in the princess"s eyes as she marched through the sea of guests, throwing people out of their chairs.
The king bl.u.s.tered, saying, "This isn"t the way of things, Lord Kane. We should-"
"Pick," Kane shouted. "I didn"t ask for commentary."
Silence rolled through the ma.s.ses, every gaze on Tiberius. The king switched his attention between Kane and his friends.
"Very well," he finally gritted.
"Good choice." Kane placed Josephina on her feet and glared down at her.
"Should I curtsy to your friends?" she asked to hide her nervousness. "I feel like I should curtsy."
He leaned in until they were nose-to-nose. "You"ll accept this. Whatever you feel about me, whatever you believe about me, this is the best choice for you right now."
A wave of dizziness struck her. "I can"t let you do this." She needed to tell him something else, but...what? She couldn"t recall.
"Unlike your father, I"m not giving you a choice." He turned to the male officiating the ceremony. "What are you waiting for? Begin."
The priest obeyed him, but she didn"t hear a word he said. Her thoughts were too loud. Surely she couldn"t marry the very warrior that had slept with her half sister only last night. Surely she couldn"t allow him to welcome a lifelong war. Surely she wouldn"t bind her life to his, giving herself to him, while wearing a maid"s uniform, looking her worst.
Even if he was the most incredible man she"d ever met...even if every inch of her body screamed, yes!
But would he ever be faithful?
Did he even want her or was he just trying to protect her, as he felt he owed her?
Her gaze strayed to Kane"s friends. What had they thought of her at first glance? She"d been slung over Kane"s shoulder so...probably not much.
"I"m really quite wonderful," she muttered.
"I know. You"ve told me," Kane said. "Now answer the priest."
"I will, just as soon as you tell me what he asked me."
The same murderous red she"d just seen in Synda"s eyes pulsed from Kane"s. "Just say yes," he snapped.
A beam in the canopy above them snapped and fell, and Kane had to drag her out of harm"s way.
"Say it," he commanded.
"I will if the question was, does Kane annoy you? Because yes, he does," she said, attention returning to the other lords.
"Tell me the answer to that question again," Kane demanded, but he didn"t sound offended.
"Yes," she threw at him.
He nodded, satisfied.
Lucien winked at her and she couldn"t help but offer him as big of a smile as she could manage at the moment. Reyes nodded in acknowledgment. Strider gave her a thumbs-up. Sabin continued to glare. She wanted Kane"s friends to like her-even though she didn"t currently like Kane.
"This is a mistake," she whispered. Yes! Those were the words she"d wanted to give him. "We shouldn"t do this. Let"s stop before it"s too late."
He squeezed her hand so tightly she whimpered, but even then, he didn"t loosen his grip. He slid a ring on her finger, the metal heavy, with a huge stone glittering in the center. A stone she didn"t recognize. The color hovered somewhere between ruby-red and sapphire-blue.
"It"s already too late. Don"t ever take this off, understand?" Kane said.
Too late? They were...they were...no way.
Still. Eyes wide, she nodded.
"Oh, and here"s the big guy"s ring," William said, handing her a plain, over-warm band that was vibrating.
Trembling, she slid the thing onto Kane"s finger, and finally he released her.
"It"s done," he said, and there was a wealth of satisfaction in his voice.
Josephina could only nod, dazed.
A scream nearly split the daylight. "You"re not taking her away from me!"
Not Synda. But...the Phoenix?
Definitely. The entire back end of the garden burst into flames.
Kane threw Josephina over his shoulder.
"Not again," she gritted out.
Lucien held out his arms. "I"ll take her now. And I"ll take good care of her, you have my word."
"Change of plan," Kane said. "She"s going with me. At least for now. Get the others to safety. And thanks for coming, my man." He took off in a dead run. Smoke wafted to her nose, making her cough. Shouts of fear erupted through the crowd.
"How do you propose to leave the realm?" she asked, trying not to panic. Only a select group of Fae possessed a key between the human realm and this one. Kane wasn"t select, nor was he Fae. She had planned to steal Leopold"s for her own escape, but that was now an impossibility.
"Like this." Kane withdrew a flesh-colored glove from his pocket-a key. "Before you ask, I stole it. And no, I"m not ashamed and I won"t return it."
"I don"t want to chastise you, you silly man. I want to pat you on the back. Now, do you know how to use it?"
"Yeah." He quickened his pace.
She expected some of the guards to chase him, no matter what her father had said, and she expected guests to try and pa.s.s him, desperate to get away from the fires, but he was moving too fast for anyone to catch. Within seconds, he was at the front gate and he wasn"t even winded.
He fit the glove over his hand and waved from high to low, side to side, in the shape of a door. A sheet of the landscape fell away from every place he touched, leaving a black hole.
"Think about where you want to go, and step through," she hurried to explain, even though he"d claimed to know what to do.
He stalked into the darkness, and then, suddenly, they were out of the realm of the Fae and in the realm of the humans. Tall buildings knifed on both of her sides. Harried people strode along narrow sidewalks. The scent of coffee and car exhaust and even urine filled her nose.
"Close the door," she said, and he obeyed, once again waving his hand through the air.
He set her on her feet, took her by the wrist, and tugged her forward. "Let"s go. The door might be closed, but I want you as far away from it as possible."
"Where are we?"
"New York. I want you masked by the crowd."
Should have guessed, she thought. She"d been here before, and there was no place like it.
"What about your friends?" she asked.
"They"ll be fine."
"You were going to leave me in their keeping?"
"For a while, yes."
A while. How long was a while? Probably better not to know.
They walked for hours, and the more they walked, the busier the streets and sidewalks became. Any other time, the crowd would have bothered her, but just then her mind was too busy reeling. She was out of the Fae realm. She was with Kane. Maybe even married to him-had they truly finished the ceremony? They"d never kissed.
Didn"t matter, she supposed. For a little while, she would be safe from her family. She wouldn"t have to worry about being punished. She wouldn"t have to worry about the king hunting her down for a few days, at the very least. He would need time to plan a strategy against a man like Kane.
For the first time in her life, she was free.
Joy burst through her, and with the joy came an unquenchable desire to truly live. To do all the things she"d never dreamed possible. To fall in love, get married and-wait. She was already married. Maybe. She would have to talk to Kane about that. He probably hadn"t meant his vows. If he"d spoken any vows, that is. She could have slapped herself for not paying attention. For all she knew, she"d pledged to be his slave.
Whatever. It still didn"t matter. With this first taste of freedom, her entire world had changed. She"d already decided she was done accepting the abuse thrown her way. But now, she was done allowing fear to hold her captive. The future was hers to embrace, and she would hold on as tightly as she could.
Kane flicked a glance in her direction, did a double take. He stopped, and his eyes widened.
"What?" she asked, nearly b.u.mping into him.
"You"re smiling." There was a reverent tone to his voice, one he"d never used before.
"I am?" She reached up and patted her lips, and yes, she was smiling.
For the second time that day, his features softened. "You"re happy, and you wear it well." But a second later, his cheeks blushed, and he turned away. "Come on. I haven"t slept in days and I"m about to crash. We need a place to stay."
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE.
New York WIFE.
The word echoed through Kane"s mind all through the night. He toyed with the ring William had given him, a simple gold band that should have been cool to the touch but wasn"t; the metal burned him and he wasn"t sure why.
Wife.
He had a wife. A woman forever bound to his side. She was his, and he was hers. Not just instinctively, but legally. The knowledge did something to him. Something powerful. Before, he"d only scratched the surface of possessive. Now, the sensation dominated. Tink. Was. His.
Want and need combined, creating a combustible fire. He burned. He ached. He yearned.
Finally, he would have.
His hand shook as he reached out and smoothed a lock of hair from her cheek. The long, thick length of her eyelashes fluttered open, and he found himself peering into beautiful baby blues.
After renting the room, he"d climbed into bed and tucked her into the curve of his body. She hadn"t protested. He"d left the lamps on, and now, golden light cascaded over her. She was curled on her side, facing him. Locks of dark hair spilled over the pillow and sheets.
He should have given her to Lucien, as planned. The warrior would have taken her to the Realm of Blood and Shadows, and Kane would have gone about the business of finding a way to kill the demon. But the arrival of the Phoenix had changed everything. He"d wanted-needed-Tink within his sights, his to protect from the flames.
Even though she hadn"t wanted to marry him.