The doorway led into a smaller courtyard with a gazebo surrounded by a moat of burbling water. Marco was leaning against one of the marble posts by the moat, a glass dangling from his hand, his eyelids lowered in a typical languid expression. A few other shifters—ones I recognized from Nate’s guard—stood in a semi-circle around him. Their postures were full of bravado.
“Is that all you’ve got to say for yourself, cat?” one of the guards said. “Look at you. You still think you’re better than us, don’t you?”
“I have total respect for all kin,” Marco said mildly. “Excluding those who align themselves with the rogues, of course.”
One of the others took a step closer to him. “Your kind always turns your nose up at us. We’ve seen it. But the dragon shifter has turned her nose up at you, hasn’t she? Picked our alpha to confirm as her mate without a second glance at you.”
I bristled at the jab, both that she’d made it at all and at the thought of how Marco might respond. When his own people had hassled him about his status with me, he’d put them off with a bunch of blustering about how easily he was going to work his charms on me and finish the “job.”
I almost stepped through the doorway to put an end to the confrontation before I had to hear anything like that again. But Marco’s calm voice stopped me.
“Serenity makes her choices as she sees fit. I’m not so arrogant to think I know better than a dragon.” He gave his harassers a thin smile.
“Aw, look at the kitty cat,” the first guy said. “Completely pussy-whipped and not even fully mated yet.”
Marco chuckled. “I’d rather be whipped by her than left with whatever dregs you court.”
The guy’s face flushed red. “Now listen, you—”
“Hey,” the guard next to him said. “We’ve hassled him enough. Our alpha will be checking in soon. Let’s leave this one to ‘enjoy’ his solitude.”
The first guy let out a huff, but the three of them rambled off in the other direction. Marco rolled his eyes at their retreating backs.
He didn’t even look upset. He’d taken all those comments in stride, even though they must have stung his pride. Instead he’d just sounded proud of me.
I swallowed hard, turning back to face Alice. “Give me a few minutes? I’ll be with one of my alphas, so I should be safe.”
“Sure,” Alice said. “If you need me later, just give me a shout.”
She drifted back toward the party, and I slipped through the doorway. Marco straightened up when he saw me. His eyes, their indigo irises almost the same color as my dress, glittered as he took me in.
“Aren’t you a sight?” he said with a crooked grin. “Shouldn’t you be out hobnobbing with your adoring public?”
I made a dismissive sound. “They’re not all that adoring. Which is fine. The adoring ones are exhausting too. I’m just pacing myself.”
“A wise decision.” He held my gaze with that hint of hesitation I’d felt from him before. “Is there anything you needed from me, Princess of Flames?”
“Can we... talk?” I said.
His grin softened. “I think that could be arranged. Look, we’ve got this handy gazebo right here.”
He offered his hand and led me up the steps. When he sat on one of the benches inside, I took the spot next to him. His presence didn’t set me on edge the same way it had a couple days ago. We still had a lot of ground to cover, and he obviously knew that. But he was trying to make up for the mistakes he’d made. Even when he didn’t have any idea I’d know how he was behaving.
And when I wasn’t on edge, it was impossible to ignore the warmth of his body beside me. The bond drawing me even closer. I curled my fingers around the edge of the bench.
“I wanted to ask... The things you said, that I overheard—the way you talked about me— You said you’ve had to learn not to show any weaknesses around your kin. What has it been like since you’ve been alpha? Before I came into the picture, I mean.”
Marco inhaled sharply. “Princess, you don’t need to hear about that. And I’m not going to insult you by trying to justify what I said.”
His hand was still cupped over mine. I turned mine over to intertwine my fingers with his and squeezed. “I’m asking because I want to know. You’re not justifying. You’re just letting me in on things I wasn’t there to see.”
“Well.” He was silent for a moment. “You know the sort of temperament cats have. It carries on to cat shifters. We’ve always had issues with authority. So being alpha requires a certain attitude... of detachment, and confidence. You have to put on a show. I think I’ve gotten fairly good at that, and I’ve still faced over a dozen challenges since I came of age. It’d have been a lot more if I’d had a weaker disposition.”
“Oh.” I said. That had been how many years? Five? And he’d had to fight to hold onto his position more than twelve times already. “That seems like a lot already.” My gaze went to the scar that notched his eyebrow. I raised my other hand to trace the pale line. “Is one of those fights how you got this?”
“The only one I almost lost.” His mouth tightened, but he shrugged. “Dealing with challenges wasn’t fun. But it’s the way it is. I’ve gotten into the habit of turning on that cocky attitude when faced with any criticism. That’s not an excuse for insulting you, though.”
I glanced up at him. “No. But the fact that I haven’t fully taken you as my mate... That makes your kin question you. They can’t even have kids until we’re together.” My stomach twinged with a pinch of guilt. None of the shifters could produce children until their alpha was fully mated. The longer I delayed with Marco and West, the longer their people stayed barren. “I could understand if you were upset that I hadn’t been willing to consummate with you yet.”
Marco blinked at me with what looked like honest surprise. “What? No.” His voice dropped. “I mean, I very much look forward to that time coming... assuming it does. But I’ve always known I’ll have to be worthy of that bond. And clearly I haven’t been yet.”
“But when it could make such a difference—”
“No,” he said firmly. He turned more toward me, letting go of my hand to touch my cheek as he held my gaze. “Ren, do you know what I’ve been realizing the past two days? Feeling this distance from you, watching you come into your own... If I could give the damned alpha position to someone else and just have you, I’d take that deal in a heartbeat. I’ve never wanted the authority as much as I want to earn my place at your side. I wish I could give you more than just words to prove it.”
My heart was pounding, but not with nervousness now. I felt his fingers against my cheek through every inch of my body. The warmth of them loosened my tongue.
“You could show me,” I said. “Show me how much you want me.”
Lust flared in his eyes. “Princess,” he murmured, with so much longing it set my skin on fire. He bent his head and pressed his lips to mine.
The kiss started out slow and gentle. His mouth was sweet against mine, the spicy smell of him surrounding me. It wasn’t halfway enough to satisfy me. I gripped the front of his dress shirt and pulled him closer.