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The first gust of wind against her sweaty cheeks was no different to Elain than a breath of air to someone drowning. She closed the sliding veranda door behind her, not eager for any party guests to steal her idea for their own. It was all too much—the booming music, the senseless chatter, the way the floor was filled with bodies and dancing. All the things that she loved as a human, but as a fae, made her crave silence.
What was there to celebrate, anyways? The start of the war with Hybern? Elain understood why Rhys would want to gather his friends and family for one last night together before they all ventured away to their battlements. But how everyone could so easily forget the darkness looming overhead was beyond her.
Elain let her tired steps carry her slowly onto the veranda. She tilted her head back, eyes closed, and let the breeze sweep across her neck and through the strands of hair that had fallen out of their pins. If she were completely and utterly alone, she would’ve pulled up the skirts of her dress and let the night air cool her legs.
But as she glanced toward the garden, lit only by moonshine and starlight, Elain realized she was not alone. Someone shared her clever idea to steal away to the darkness of the garden and escape the party—a male, judging by the silhouette.
Stepping out from in front of the lamp, Elain watched as warm golden light illuminated a strong shouldered male, half bent in the garden. The new light caught along his face and copper hair, and turned his chin to look at it.
Elain gasped, the sound as quiet as a first breath. He was… He was breathtaking. His skin was the color of burnished bronzed, highlighted along the sharp contours of his face by the pale moonlight. Her heightened fae hearing caught a faint clicking sound as his eyes fell on her, which she realized came from a gilded, metallic eye. The male straightened, revealing his impressive height and elegant physique. His lips parted, full and beautiful, and he appeared like he might utter whatever ungraceful, honest words had fallen on his tongue. But before he could make a fool of himself, Elain rallied her manners and called out, “Pardon me, my lord. I apologize if I have startled you.”
“Not at all,” he replied, his voice kind and alluring. “I only came out to admire the garden and take a break from the revelry.” He paused, eyeing her so closely Elain had to resist the urge to shuffle under the intensity of his gaze. “You seem like you share the sentiment. Would you...care to join me?”
If only he knew that in between his words, she was already daydreaming about what his kiss might feel like in the waking hours of the morning. She shivered at the thought. The male was at her side in an instant, sliding his arms out of his long, emerald jacket. He held it out in an offering, then asked, “May I?”
Elain nodded, trying not to shudder when he draped the coat over her shoulders. His fingertips grazed the sensitive skin of her neck as he carefully pushed her stray hair away from the collar. The side of his knuckle lingered there as a thoughtful expression came across his face.
“This garden is yours,” he noted, voice soft in their proximity. Elain’s eyes widened.
“How could you tell?”
The male flushed, taking a respectable step back and placing too much distance between them for Elain’s taste.
“Your scent,” he replied, careful to keep his tone polite. “You smell of the flowers. The Stargazer Lilies, in particular. I can tell you spend a lot of time around them.”
“You’re quite perceptive,” she noted. And handsome. And very considerate. And apparently well-versed in flowers. He grinned bashfully, as if her silent praise had been plastered across her forehead. Offering his arm so that they could walk down the pebbled rows, he said “As the High Lady’s emissary, I should hope so.”
“You know Feyre?”
He lifted a brow, his intrigue piquing with each second.
“I do. I was her first friend in Prythian when she arrived at the Spring Court.” As they walked, he allowed her to lead the way. She expertly weaved along the well-tended rows of blooms and blossoms, traversing along the path that displayed all the very brightest flowers—especially those best seen at midnight. “How do you know Feyre?”
“She’s my little sister,” Elain replied lightly.
“Good gods, you’re Elain!” he realized. His smile was sunlight—if Elain didn’t know better, she’d say it was pure magic. She mirrored his laugh, relishing in the way their amusement sounded together.
“And you’re Lucien Vanserra,” she recognized. His foot caught on a rock, and he stumbled.
“You—You know my name?”
“Feyre mentioned she was bringing one of her old friends from the Spring Court here. She, uh...She said your circumstances weren’t very good there.”
Lucien brought his hands behind his back to hide his fists.
“They weren’t,” as all he said on the matter. “I’ve heard all about you, though. You’re Feyre’s pride and joy. She said you had quite a creative eye, one particularly attuned to beauty. Now I see what a vast understatement that is.”
“That’s sweet,” she replied with a blush. They ambled a moment more in silence, before Elain ventured, “Our parties must be different than those in the Spring Court. Is that why you were out here?”
“The parties are different,” he agreed. “Less formal. But I was Tamlin’s emissary too, so I’m well accustomed to the different way each court throws a celebration. Nothing quite beats the Day Court for parties. I just came out here to think. A male likes a quiet moment alone with his thoughts from time to time.”
In that moment, Elain realized just how attuned she was to his feelings. It was almost as if her intuition had already met him once and knew every detail about him that he kept hidden.
“You’re homesick,” she said. It wasn’t a question. He froze, peering down at her with blatant surprise. If she didn’t know better, she’d say he looked...afraid. To ease the blow, she added, “I know the feeling—of leaving home under less than pleasant circumstances.”
Lucien nodded, returning back to his leisurely pace beside her.
“I despise how familiar I am with that particular feeling,” he admitted quietly. “But if the opportunity arose, I wouldn’t go back. Not if Tamlin crawled here on his hands and knees and begged.”
“I understand. He was your best friend and he betrayed you.”
Lucien looked down at Elain once more, this time with such sad eyes, her throat closed.
“He betrayed you too , ” he added. He unlinked his arm from hers, and Elain immediately ached from the loss of it, until he took his strong hand in hers. “I want you to know that I had no idea what they were planning. Tamlin’s involvement with Hybern...It’s why I left. But he never mentioned...Ianthe just...If I had known, I would’ve stopped it.”
Elain squeezed his hand, resisting the urge to bring it up to her lips.
“I know. Feyre said as much when she told me she was inviting you to Velaris.” Under the lightness of his apology and the clear air between them, Elain swung their linked hands. “For what it’s worth, I’m very glad you accepted her offer.”
“Me too,” he agreed, swinging along with her. “You know, you called me perceptive, but I think the talent is entirely yours.”
Her smiled dimpled her right cheek.
“I don’t mind sharing.”
“Then will you share more with me?” he asked, pausing to step in front of her. Elain’s heart hammered in her chest. Whatever he asked for, she’d give him. Something in the way he’d said it...was he going to ask to take her home? To give into the unspoken pull that seemed to drive them together so easily? Had it been anyone else, she would’ve stepped back toward the house in fear. But she felt so safe with him. If he asked in that silky voice of his to bury his hands and face between her legs, she didn’t think she’d be able to tell him no. She didn’t want to tell him no.
“Anything,” she breathed out. Lucien’s jaw clenched, but he kept his hands decorously behind his back.
“Your time,” he suggested, voice hopeful. “As much as you’re willing to spend with me.”
Elain’s smile broke past all her constraints, blooming like a flower under enchanted light.
“Doing what?” she laughed.
“Talking to you. Walking with you. I hear there’s a whole district of amazing restaurants not far from here that I haven’t tried, and the high lord is paying me a handsome salary. I need someone to spend it with.”
Elain surprised even herself when she said honestly, and without fear, “My time is yours, Lucien Vanserra.”
It was absolute insanity, she thought to herself, as he bit his lip and inched closer to her. How had they pulled each other under a relentless thrall, each just as enticed as the other? It would’ve been even madder, though, if she didn’t tilt her chin up to kiss him. To let his warm, kind presence work as a salve on her aching soul. To not take whatever he offered would be her ruination.
His lips were a breath away when he gently held the side of her cheek. She hadn’t decided between leaning into his touch and closing the distance between them when a hard pull yanked at her ribs. She stumbled back, gasping as the magic spread like fire inside of her. It consumed every nerve in every inch of her, raging and demanding and spilling entirely out of control, making her feral, making her want so badly to—
She looked up at Lucien, not quite processing the hurt blooming on his countenance. She was so distracted at the sight of him. At the scent of him.
Mate. The magic in her chest practically yelled it. Mate. Mate. You are mine. I am yours. Let me hold. Let me touch. Let me taste. My mate. All mine.
“Elain?” he asked quietly, eyes scanning over her face as it lost its color, then raged with heat. She shook her head, clamping down control over her instincts, the effort almost agonizing.
“You —you’re—” The words dissolved into a whimper as she stared at him, shocked and amazed. “You’re my mate.”
Lucien staggered back a step, the words slamming up against his chest so hard, he almost fell flat onto the ground.
“That...makes a lot of sense,” he said evenly, but there was hysteria just underneath. “I’m your mate.” She nodded. “You’re my mate.” She nodded again.
“I don’t even know what that means,” she admitted, half-terrified. He hesitated, wondering just how to explain to this female that she was chained to him forever.
“It means all my time is yours, too,” Lucien answered softly. He took a shaky breath. As the bond began to weigh at his own chest, he tugged on it experimentally. Elain gasped.
Holy shit, she said to herself.
“Tell me about it,” he said, his laughter a bit unhinged with the same battle that raged inside of her own heart. “You don’t have to decide if this is what you want right this second.”
Elain pressed her lips together, feeling for all the world like she might burst into an explosion of magic.
“I know what I want right now,” she said. Lucien let out a shuddering breath, as if the bond revealed to him just what it was she had her heart set on. He nodded.
“Then take it.”
And she did. She placed her hand flat on his chest and pushed until his back was flush up against a nearby tree. Her nails scraped along the buttons of his dress shirt, but only a second, before she tilted her face up and kissed him. The mating bond crooned in relief with each hungry press of her lips. Her fingers untangled from the fabric of his vest only to be lost again once more in the sea of his hair. She tugged it, pulling him lower so she could taste the salt along his throat and bite down at the soft skin. Lucien gripped at her waist, more to keep himself upright under the onslaught of her lips on his skin than to hold her up.
Her teeth clamped down, eliciting a mouth from his lips that sounded very nearly like her name. She sucked, kissing only a moment, before her lips began to trail lower and lower.
Lucien’s head fell against the tree when her fingertips danced along the belt of his pants. By now, the jacket that had been draped around her shoulder lay in the dirt. She knelt upon it, paying no heed to the tiny roots underneath. There was only the length of him, hard and straining against his pants, and the mouth-watering scent of his arousal when she finally freed him. He hissed when his hot flesh met the chilly night, but the pleasant contrast turned into hot pleasure when she wrapped her small hand around him and gave one hard stroke.
An incoherent flurry of curses and praises shot down the bond with each deliberate movement of her wrist. It all silenced when she leaned her cherry pink lips to him and ran her tongue along the head. Lucien’s legs tightened and his hands shot to her head. In the pit of her stomach, the mating bond probed her on— taste him, damn it! More! She heeded the craving, taking him into her mouth and swirling her tongue along the underside of him.
Lucien moaned, the sound rumbling so low in his chest, she felt it against her lips. She began to bob her head, doing her best to meet the challenge of his considerable size and take him in fully.
“My mate,” he whimpered, pleasure muddling his words into a mess of sounds and cries. His eyes watched her, the golden one whirring to behold every detail. “So beautiful. So fucking sweet. Shit. ” He opened his lips to say more, but choked on the sound.
He was close. Elain could feel him creeping dangerously close to the edge, the pleasure pulsing down the bond and straight to her core. Freeing one of her hands to cup his sack, she took a deep breath and sucked hard. The bond turned to lightning as Lucien’s climax exploded through him, and he let out a low, broken cry. His release shot into her mouth and the hot pearls that fell onto her smiling lips finally satisfied the aching in the bond that demanded she taste him.
His chest was still heaving when he opened his eyes.
“Don’t you dare tell me where you learned to do that so well.”
A mischievous smile lit her face as she licked her lips clean. She couldn’t wait to tell him that was her first try. A happy hum rumbled in her throat as he ran his hand over the side of her face. She wondered how his touch bore the same warmth as daylight, but didn’t have time to dwell when he pulled her upright and grabbed his coat from off the ground.
“My turn,” he said with delight. He tugged her hand deeper into the garden where the grass was higher and softer. “I’ve got some experience up my sleeves, as well.”
Lucien draped his coat onto the ground, spreading the sleek fabric wide to create a soft bed for her to lay on. Elain trembled as she watched, practically vibrating with an overwhelming rush of emotions. For a moment, she could hardly tell if the swarm of butterflies in her stomach was because of her dire need or because she had never truly been bare before a man—or male—like this before. The bond only made it worse, scraping at her insides like a monster chained to the wall.
Her mate seemed to sense the near unbearable feelings eating her alive. In a single comforting movement, he ran his hands down the length of her arms until they curled around her middle and pulled her to him. She could still smell his arousal, heady in the air, now mixed with her own. His mouth buried once more into the curve of her neck, tongue and teeth worshiping at the altar of her sensitive flesh. Inside her, her desire begged More, more, more!
So Lucien obliged. His hands guided her to the ground, the tall grass surrounding them both and shielding them away from any watching eyes. He lay beside her, caressing her rose-hued cheeks with the backs of his fingers when he asked, “Are you comfortable?”
She nodded blissfully, already consumed by his body heat against hers. He was so warm, even the smallest of touches felt like a fire against her cool skin. Lucien seemed to read her mind, dragging his fingertips up the inside of her legs and up to her thighs. Slowly, her skirts fell back further and further, revealing her flushed skin and sheer stockings. Elain shivered as her mate’s fingers drew dangerously close to their destination, until finally, he brushed a featherlight touch along her entire core. Her head fell back into the grass, much to Lucien’s delight. He gave another stroke, firmer this time, dipping into her pooling arousal.
“I love that you’re so wet like this,” he whispered, kissing his way up her thighs along the same trail his fingers had followed. “Shows me how much you want me.”
His breath was hot as it heaved over her flushed, sensitive skin. He admired the sight before him as reverently as if she were the valuable craft of a skilled artist, but the hunger there promised Elain he was just as tameless as she felt. She might’ve begged, but before she could, his hands spread apart her legs to make more room. He hoisted her legs up over his shoulders, let out the most debauched growl Elain had ever heard, and finally— finally— swiped his tongue over her in one, thorough motion.
Elain erupted into flames, hands reaching out to clutch the long strands of grass. She was surprised her touch didn’t light the clearing ablaze with the heat of her pleasure. Lucien’s strong hands held her still effortlessly, but she felt him smile as she dug her hips against his face. He was more than happy to satisfy her plea for more, kissing that apex of her thighs with a mastery that insinuated his centuries of experience. His attentions only intensified at the broken moan that left Elain’s lips.
“That’s it,” he urged between indulgent glosses of his tongue. “Tell me it’s good.”
She meant to abide by his orders, do whatever he wanted as long as he kept dragging her closer to that precipice, but all her words vanished when he slid one thick finger inside of her. It felt like three of her own fingers, and even more hot, but it slipped in effortlessly. Humming in approval, he slipped in another, earning another breathy cry from his mate.
Everything up until now, it seemed, was mere teasing. He chuckled his satisfaction as he began his real show of skill. Playing her like a high strung instrument, he curled his fingers inside her and sucked hard on her clit. Elain’s back arched, breathless and choked with pleasure. She clamped her legs around his head, feeling Lucien’s delight trickle down the bond.
“ Please,” she begged, hands buried in his hair. She repeated it over and over, until finally, he smiled again and increased his speed until it was relentless. Elain’s hand shot up to her breast, desperate for more sensation, but he moved it aside and replaced it with his own. With one last clamp of his lips over her clit, her climax crashed over her. She dug her fist into her teeth to muffle the cry, riding the unyielding shocks against his face in hard thrusts. Lucien guided her through it, his tongue working slower and slower until she was too sensitive for any more. When at last the shocks had subsided into a dull, phantom pleasure, Elain opened her eyes and looked at her mate. He had removed himself from between her legs and returned to his place beside her. He grinned and propped his chin on her stomach. Heart tugging at the sight, Elain plucked a wildflower from the tall grass and stuck it behind his pointed ear.
Her smile must’ve had a similar effect on him as his did on her, because he bent down and kissed her abdomen with a blissful sigh.
“I like you already,” she teased, running her hands through his long hair. He leaned into her fingers, sighing at the pleasant shiver that erupted at her touch.
“I should hope so,” he argued, laying his head down all the way. “If you didn’t like me half as much as I like you, we would’ve made for pretty pathetic mates.”
Elain propped herself on her elbows, causing Lucien to sit up. This close, she swore she could nearly see the reflection of the moon in that golden eye of his.
“I keep waiting for it to feel strange, but it doesn’t,” she admitted. Lucien shook his head in agreement, a small smile on his lips. He waited for her to gather her words, tangling his fingers in hers. “It just makes me wonder why now? We’re...we’re going to war soon.”
Lucien shrugged, though Elain could feel his panic down the bond. It was the same as hers. What if something happened to one of them? What if they never had time to fully explore what this bond meant? What if they never had the chance to accept it together before he—
“I think it means that we’re going to be okay no matter what,” he said, interrupting her dark thoughts.
“Why’s that?”
“Because now we have something to come home to. I, for one, would crawl out of the grave to make it back to you. Nothing could keep me from you forever.” He brought her knuckles to his lips. “I promise you.” He peered at her from above her hand and chuckled. “I hope you weren’t trying to get rid of me.”
Elain tugged him forward once more by the fabric of his shirt, pulling him enough to kiss him. His hair tickled her cheeks when she pulled back, almost blowing in rhythm with the waltz inside the manor.
“Get rid of you? Never.”