Chapter 147
Lirael
Something flickered in his eyes—hurt, maybe, or recognition. But it was quickly buried under a fresh wave of possessive fury as he suddenly barked an order at the cockpit. "Change course. Take us to the marina district. Now."
"What? Sebastian, no—" But the plane was already veering left.
"If Damian could feed you," he said, his voice dropping to something dark and possessive, "then so can I. Tonight, I'm taking you to those docks, and I'm going to make sure everyone there knows exactly who's taking care of you now. I'm going to replace every memory of him with something better. And maybe you'll finally understand that you're mine, Lira. Not his. Mine."
The plane banked sharply. Sebastian's eyes never left mine, and I realized with a mixture of exasperation and reluctant excitement that he was completely serious.
"You're insane," I breathed.
"About you?" Sebastian leaned in until his lips brushed my ear. "Absolutely. Get used to it, little moon."
The marina district at night was chaos—neon lights, food vendors, and the competing scents of grilled seafood and salt spray. I watched with barely concealed amusement as Sebastian folded his tall frame into one of the cheap plastic chairs at a vendor stall, his knees hitting the underside of the rickety table. He looked profoundly uncomfortable in his designer suit, but his eyes never left me where I stood in line at the drink vendor.
I'd just collected our drinks when I noticed the group of girls who'd gathered near Sebastian's table. One of them, a girl with bleached blonde hair and too much lipstick, finally broke from the pack and sauntered over, sliding into the chair beside him. Her hand reached out to trace his forearm.
"Hey there, handsome," she purred. "You look lonely. Want some company?"
Sebastian didn't even glance at her. "No," he said flatly. Just cold, absolute dismissal.
The girl pressed on, her hand sliding higher. "Come on, don't be like that—"
"I said no." This time his voice dropped into that dangerous register. "Remove your hand, and leave."
I found myself moving through the crowd, balancing the two drinks. When I was close enough, I let my voice drop into a perfect mimicry of his cold tone.
"Well, this is disappointing," I said. "Here I thought you'd have better control over your tendency to attract unwanted attention. How troublesome."
Sebastian's head snapped toward me, his eyes widening before a slow, delighted smile spread across his face. Before I could process the danger, his hand shot out and caught my wrist, pulling me forward with enough force that I stumbled.
He yanked me down onto his lap, one arm banding around my waist while his other hand caught the drinks. The plastic chair groaned, and I felt heat flood my face as every eye turned to stare.
"Sebastian!" I hissed, trying to push away. "What the hell—"
"Teaching you a lesson," he murmured against my ear, loud enough for the girls to hear. His nose pressed into my neck, and I felt him inhale deeply. Then he lifted his head, his amber eyes—now edged with gold—fixed on the girls. "Look closely," he said, his voice carrying. "She's mine. The only woman who will ever sit in my lap, the only one whose scent I want on my skin. So unless you want to find out what happens when you touch something that belongs to me, I suggest you leave. Now."
The girls scattered. But Sebastian's attention had already returned to me, his hand sliding up my spine to tangle in my hair.
"You," he growled, "are the most infuriating, hypocritical little moon I've ever met. You call me out for attracting attention, but I just watched at least three men stare at you while you were buying drinks. Should I go teach them all a lesson?"
"That's different," I protested weakly. "I wasn't encouraging them—"
"Neither was I," he interrupted, his hand tightening in my hair just enough to make me gasp. "So let me make something perfectly clear: From now on, only I get to call you by your name. Everyone else—including Damian—addresses you as Princess, as Your Highness. You're mine, and I don't share."
He caught my hand and brought it to his mouth, his teeth closing around my index finger hard enough that I felt the pressure. The sensation sent a bolt of heat straight through me.
"You're insane," I breathed, but I didn't pull away.
"About you?" His smile turned sharp, dangerous. "Absolutely."
I managed to escape his lap and claimed my own chair, putting the table between us. The vendor brought our food, and I tried to focus on eating rather than the way Sebastian's eyes tracked every movement.
"I need air," I announced abruptly. "I'm going for a walk."
"Then I'm coming with you," Sebastian said, already rising.
"No," I said firmly. "You stay here. I'll be back in fifteen minutes."
I didn't wait for his response, just turned and wove through the crowd toward the waterfront. I found a bench overlooking the water and sank onto it with a sigh. The moon was rising over the harbor, nearly full and impossibly bright.
I was so absorbed that I didn't hear Sebastian approach until his shadow fell across me.
"I told you to stay at the table," I said.
"And I told you that you're mine," he replied, moving to stand behind me. "That means I go where you go."
Before I could protest, his arms came around me from behind, pulling me back against his chest. He rested his chin on top of my head.
"Do you know what I thought the first time I saw you?" he asked quietly.
I stayed silent, and felt him take a breath before continuing.
"I thought that the Moon Goddess had finally taken pity on this monster and sent me a piece of moonlight. You were covered in blood and dirt, your eyes were wild with fear and defiance, and you'd just destroyed the memorial to my brother. By all rights, I should have killed you. But when I got close enough to smell you, to see the way the moonlight clung to your skin... I knew I'd never be able to let you go."
His arms tightened. "I've done terrible things to you, Lira. Hurt you, caged you, tried to break you. But even at my worst, even when I was trying to convince myself you were just property—I knew. You're not my possession. You're my salvation."