Crimson Kiss (Onyx Assassins 5)

“None more so than your family,” he said, turning to my side and walking again.

“Wouldn’t you agree?” I asked. “You’ve borne witness to what Saint has done. The wreckage he’s caused in his wake. And still, you’re doing this all for him.”

He tensed as we walked, but a blink, and it was gone. “We shared a womb together,” he said. “We’re not just brothers, we’re twins. There is a bond there I can’t explain. I believe it is stronger than the mating bond you so admire, but of course, I don’t have experience in that area.”

“If we could only talk to Saint,” I hedged. “I’m sure that if you and I showed him the seriousness of our union, he’d come to his senses. Stop the attacks. He wants a direct line to the throne, he’ll have one—”

“I’m doing everything I can,” he assured me. “If Saint was available for me to call a meeting and discuss this, I would do it. But he’s not. Once we complete the betrothal ceremony, I’m sure he’ll come around.”

My stomach sank. “The attacks are getting worse,” I said. “They came after the Assassins' mates last week. Slaughtered humans and vampires alike in their attempt for the blood of mates.”

“That’s Saint,” he said, turning us up toward the steps to the estate. “Once our claim is secure, Avianna, he will be held accountable for all his actions.”

“And if my assassins find him first?”

Samuel paused just inside the entryway to the estate. “You and I will still be betrothed,” he said. “I just hope it doesn’t come to that.”

“Just as I hope nothing happens to my family in the process.”

Samuel dared to reach out and smooth back a strand of my hair, smiling sadly at me. “In that, you and I are the same.” His fingers lingered on their way down my neck, and it took all of my considerable power not to recoil from his touch.

He was to be my husband, but he sure as hell wasn’t my mate. I’d have to practice somehow, practice not flinching away from him when he reached for me. That wasn’t very wifely behavior, but how could I not? He wasn’t Hawke.

Just the thought of him had my hunger flaring. I needed to feed, badly. The stress of this trip had depleted my energy, plus all the masks I had to wear to just get by here only made it that much harder.

“Do you need me for anything else this evening, Princess Avianna?” Lady Bianca asked as she came around the corner to greet us.

“No, thank you. I’ll be retiring for the evening.”

Lady Bianca bowed and continued her trek down the hallway until she was out of sight. That would be so hard to get used to—depending on a stranger instead of Olivia or my talem. Not that Bianca seemed untoward, but she wasn’t my family. None of them were.

Samuel took a step away from me, his smile deepening. “I’m afraid I’ll be off the grounds the rest of the evening.”

“Oh?” I asked. “Where are you off to?”

“I must mingle with those aristocrats who are attempting to split our kingdom down the middle,” he said. “Enjoy the rest of your evening. I know I will.” He winked at me, then shuffled back outside. I heard a car pulling away moments later.

That was the second time he’d said our kingdom, and it raked across my nerves. Marrying me did not make him a king.

But assassinating my brother after our wedding would.

Was that his plan? I chewed on my lip as I turned down the hallway, my heels clicking against the tiled floor. Samuel was a lot of things, but was he capable of something like that? Saint, no question, but Samuel? If he could do that, then why keep me around at all? Why the marriage proposal? Why not just slaughter me when he had the chance? It would’ve drawn Alek into a war, driven him mad in a way that might just give Samuel an advantage.

No, I don’t think that was Samuel’s plan. He seemed more politically motivated than bloodthirsty. But—

A strong hand lashed out and hauled me into a pitch-black room so fast I didn’t even have time to scream.

15

Hawke

I pulled her into the private movie theater and shut the door, flipping the lock, then the light switch. That’s right, the pretentious fuck had a movie theater in his billion-square-foot home, and I wasn’t talking about those cozy little rooms modern architecture was so keen on. This place was a mini-amphitheater. It was also empty, which suited my purpose just fine.

“Hawke!” Avi gasped as I yanked her against my chest.

We’d agreed to keep our distance while we were here. She might be free to do whatever she wanted until she signed that fucking contract in a few days, but I hadn’t wanted to make her life more difficult by being obvious around Samuel.