Page 23 of Azure Mania

My family.

Juliana and Cassius will be too busy to actually give a damn, while Darius doesn’t pay attention to anything unless it has to do with his mermaid. Ophelia will have no leg to stand on, since her own mate was once a hunter. Valerio, for what is worth, only wants us all to be happy. It’s Aurelia that’s worrying me, though.

She’s been Ophelia’s shadow while I was asleep, but her loyalty is with me. It’s always been with me. The two of us have always had the strongest connection between all the siblings, and if she finds out that Yvonne and I are soulmates — albeit forced ones — she’ll throw a fit.

Whenever she goes into a fit of rage, she becomes unpredictable. For some reason, when fury takes over, she becomes the strongest of us all, and it takes the six of us to contain her, to prevent her from causing this world to end.

I’m not worried about Yvonne. She can handle Aurelia, but it will end in my little sister ending up dead. That’s not something I could live with. Besides, if Yvonne hurts any of my siblings, the rest will go ballistic.

This situation is more complicated than that of Ophelia and her little mate because neither was at fault.

It was destiny.

This is different, because it’s entirely Yvonne’s fault. They will come at her like starving beasts, and I’ll be put in an impossible space. Most likely because in the end, I’ll choose her. I’ll always choose her.

With a deep breath, I close my eyes, pulling Yvonne closer. She stirs, and when I open my eyes, I find her looking right at me, with her gorgeous, big eyes.

“Good morning.”

Her sleepy voice makes my lips pull into a soft smile. I brush away a strand of her hair, out of her face, and she snuggles closer into me.

“Good morning, Little Lamb,” I murmur, and she pulls back.

She rubs the sleep off her eyes, yawning a little. She then sits up, stretching and looking out of the window. It’s not too cold outside, though there’s no sun either. Just a regular fall day, waiting for the rain to start pouring.

“Lucifer,” she calls out, still looking at the window. “How about we go into town today?”

I quirk a brow. “What for?”

“I need to resign.”

That makes me sit up, looking at her. She’s still avoiding eye contact, and so I gently take her chin between my fingers, turning her head until our eyes meet. There’s no hesitation, or uncertainty in her eyes, only pure determination.

“Why?”

“Well, it’s clear there’s no solution for the mess I put us in, and I can’t continue to work for vampire hunters while sharing a bed with one, can I? It’s too hypocritical, even for me.”

I take her hands in mine, kissing her knuckles softly. Her cheeks get coated in a faint rose color, her eyes twinkling. She doesn’t pull away from my touch, the blanket pooling around her waist.

“Yes, but what will the consequences be for you?”

She sucks in a sharp breath, holding my hands tightly. “I’m not quite sure. Don’t worry, though, I’ll be able to handle it.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“A vampire going into a den of vampire hunters? Have you lost your damn mind?”

I blink, a frown on my face. “I want to keep you safe.”

“And that place is full of potions I created to be used against you, and a lot of sea water. You do know what happens if you get sea water on you, right? You fucking die! So, just wait for me outside.”

I’m about to protest, but Yvonne shuts me up with a soft kiss. Her lips move against mine in a steady, gentle rhythm, and just when I’m about to pull her closer, to deepen the kiss, Yvonne pulls back.

She smiles, the softness of her expression makes my heart skip a beat — metaphorically.

“Trust me on this one, yeah? I’ll come back in one piece.”

“You’d better, unless you want to watch from under how I’m burning the world down.”