Unexpected Mates ~ Book One

A desperate knocking sound disturbed Sylvie from a deep slumber. She yawned and waved her hand at the unknown noisewhen a tight grip circled her wrist and pulled.

Her eyes shot open as her body was dragged through a kaleidoscope of energy. The brief sight alone was more than enough to spur a migraine.

Another grip squeezed around her bicep, and she pulled against it. Who had her? What did they want? She was content. Why couldn’t they just leave her be?

“Princess, it’s me.”

“Come back to us, Sylvie.”

The deep voices sparked a pang in her chest, and she stopped resisting their pull. Whoever these voices belonged to knew her—wanted her.

Soon the cold air and bright sun kissed her face as she materialised on the earth. She blinked at the two men blocking her sight of the world beyond, and her memories stirred.

The larger man pulled her straight into his arms and buried his face in her hair, inhaling deeply. His arm hooked beneath her ass and held her steady, the sensation pleasant and familiar.

The other took her hand and kissed each finger, taking care with the pressure of his lips around her aching palm.

A soothing calm lapped her body from his touch, and she closed her eyes.

Kian.

Elias.

Her heart throbbed as every memory flooded back with blinding speed. Then, with a scream, she opened her eyes and shot upright, squeezing at the men holding her. Her eyes levelled with Elias. “You’re okay!”

Elias’ furrowed brow and half smile sent thrills through her while Kian just exhaled loudly.

“Praise the fates,” he grumbled, detaching his squashed fingers from Sylvie’s shaking hand.

“What was that?” Elias asked, pressing his forehead to Sylvie’s before lowering her to the ground. She remained quiet, unsure if revealing her temporary amnesia would get her in trouble.

Kian chose to share for her as he stroked her scarred cheek. “She forgot us. Didn’t you, Princess?”

Gulping, she looked up at Elias’ storming brows. “Only for a minute!”

A smirk replaced his scowl, and he offered a knowing side glance to Kian. “Don’t you think we should remedy that, my friend?”

Kian grinned back as Sylvie trembled.

Kerensa’s growl drew all three from their sexually charged stare-off. “What we ought to do, is get the fuck out of here. It reeks of death.”

Peering from behind her mates, she spotted dozens of piles of ash with her dried blood puddle at the epicentre.

Kerensa patted her shoulder, drawing her attention. “You did well, Hart,” she muttered low before walking away.

Sylvie pressed her lips together and squeezed her eyes shut as her heart swelled from the praise.

Elias gave her a look and turned, placing his palm against her lower back while Kian took her hand, and they headed back to the castle.

Lazuli’s hands white-knuckled at her side as Kian addressed her.

“The engagement is ended, and any expectations the Stone Court has over the Evergreen Court are settled. You are to remain here as the Lady of the Court for the rest of your days, and if you or any of your kin set foot on Evergreen lands, you will be held in contempt and put to death immediately. Do you understand?”

Sylvie shivered at Kian’s words and squeezed his trembling hand a few times. Elias stood staunchly behind the pair, his calm presence easing some of her anxiety. On the other hand, Kerensa stared at her knives as if bored.

Lazuli’s tight smile regarded the group, and she nodded stiffly. “Understood.”

“Finally,” Kerensa groaned. “Let us go.” She spun and climbed into the carriage, waiting on the soil path not far from where Trion was ripped apart post-mortem. The Fae would have probably preferred to head home still covered in demon blood, but Sylvie’s insistence gave them all time to shower and change.

Sylvie sent one last look at Lazuli, a barrage of emotions swirling in her belly, before turning and following her mates to their carriage. She decided against sharing her kinship with her. It wasn’t necessary and would probably complicate things more.

Especially if Kian threatened to kill her kin if they ended up in his court.

Sylvie rolled her eyes. She would tell him. There was a lot the trio needed to share with one another.

It wasn’t lost on her that she got to have them both with her on the way home. Four days alone with her mates to ‘catch up’. Plus Kerensa, but she could just block her ears or something.

Kian climbed in first, followed by Sylvie, and Elias completed the sandwich, placing his hand over her thigh.

“So now what?” Sylvie asked with a yawn. Kian pulled her legs up to rest across his and rubbed his hands along her shin.

“We get my mother’s blessing and cancel the elaborate wedding she planned between Lazuli and me; then we take you home.”

Elias guided Sylvie’s head to his lap, and she peered up at them both with a furrowed brow. “Why cancel it? Wouldnt that be really inconvenient?”

Elias smiled while Kian just stared down at her, lost.

It didn’t make sense to waste a perfectly good party, especially if it had already been planned.

“Why can’t you just marry me?” she asked, her heart pounding. The worry about rejection only came after the question jumped from her mouth. “You said our marks meant we have basically married anyway. So why not make it ... official?” Her words trailed off as Kian’s expression remained frozen.

“Kian?”

Elias chuckled above her. “Put her out of her misery, Ki.”

Kian’s expression softened, a smile pulling on his lips. “You want that?”

Silence stretched between them, and her face warmed as Kian’s hands stroked up and down her legs.

Elias’ fingers swirled across her scalp before plunging into her hair and curling into a fist, the firm tug drawing a groan as her Vampire lowered his face to hers. “Your mate asked you a question, Kitten.”

She flitted her eyes back to her Fae prince and nodded, answering breathily, “Yes. I want to marry you.” Her head tilted back to look Elias in the eyes. “And you,” she sighed.

His smirk sent flutters between her thighs. “You can have a Fae wedding here with Kian and an Earth wedding with me when we return.” He lifted his gaze to Kian. “Do you agree?”

Kian’s strokes on her thighs climbed higher until he thumbed her panties.

“I agree. And now that you are our betrothed, I suppose we must keep you pure,” Kian remarked in complete seriousness. Only his eyes glimmered slightly. “Until our wedding night, of course.”

Sylvie’s mouth dropped open as Kian slid her legs off his and placed her feet firmly on the ground; when Elias followed suit, sitting her up between them, she whined.

“You cannot be serious right now. Elias!”

His responding grin and raising brow stabbed a heat straight through her core.

“For your virtue, my lady.” With that, he pulled open the door of the moving carriage and disappeared. Kian climbed out the door on his side and clambered onto the roof, kicking the door shut behind him.

They left her there. Aroused and alone for her virtue.

“What the fuck.”

“Well, I suppose you succeeded in your intentions then, child. Though,” Queen Katarina winced, looking along Sylvie’s cheek and said, “not unscathed.” She stared down at her from the castle’s entryway, surrounded by well-dressed Fae. Nobles, Sylvie guessed.

“I did. Trion is dead, and Lazuli will stay in the Stone court.”

The Nobles gasped, and Queen’s eyes narrowed as Sylvie mentioned Trion’s death while her mates stiffened at her side.

As promised, they upheld her ‘virtue’ and barely let her touch them for the entire trip home, instead riding with Kerensa in the front carriage. It must have been a tight squeeze.

It served them right. She was thoroughly sinless for the duration and horny as fuck. Her mind flitted back to the situation at hand, and she sighed. Before anyone could throw accusations, Sylvie dropped one of her own.

“We discovered Trion had been luring the Hybrids to his lands, putting everyone in danger. My bonded ones and Kerensa were brave enough to fend them off, but they killed Trion and ate him. We barely escaped.”

The noble’s disgusted faces and murmurs flowed down the steps towards her, and she suppressed a smirk. It really felt like she stepped into a movie or a book.

“How horrendous!” One petite blonde exclaimed, placing a dainty hand on her breast.

“Indeed,” Katarina replied, brow raised sceptically. “And what have you to say, daughter?” she cut her gaze to Kerensa, who clenched her teeth and forced a thin smile.

“What she says is true. He summoned the Hybrids through a portal, and they ate him.” She left out the part about him being already dead.

Katarina’s narrowed gaze returned to the trio at her feet. “I suppose you will be ready to travel to the earth realm shortly then?” A hint of sadness marred her face before she covered it in her usual regalness.

“Actually, Mother,” Kian offered. “I intend to wed my bonded one.”

He squeezed Sylvie’s hand tighter as the nobles gasped, and Katarina paled.

“You don’t mean-”

“Yes, I do. We are bonded as the Fates determined it, and we will be Wed before I return with her to the earth realm.”

“But you will rule one day! She is not fit to be Queen, Kian!”

He shook his head. “That event may be centuries away. I will not put aside my happiness because of your views.”

Sylvie shrunk back, but Elias’ hand was there to catch her. He rubbed small circles on her back as Katarina’s eyes bored into her.

“She is weak!”

Kerensa stepped forward then with flames in her eyes. “She is not!”

The ferocity in her voice startled everyone, including her mother.

“I have followed alongside Sylvie for weeks now, and I can tell you she is many things, but weak is not one of them.”

Her face twisted as she fought some internal battle. “In the event of ascension, I will be her guardian.”

This time even Katarina gasped, and Sylvie looked around with wide eyes.

Kian rubbed circles on Sylvie's hand with his thumb and nodded to his sister. “I am eternally grateful.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Kerensa groaned. “Let’s get on with it now. You only have a few days to prepare for your wedding, brother.”

She stormed past Queen Katarina, giving her a long stare before shoulder barging through the other nobles, who gasped and squealed.

Sylvie just stared up at her stone-faced mates.

“What is a guardian?” she whispered.