#88 Steam & Sparks

Steam & Sparks
Ryanna POV

By the time the courtyard was cleared, I was running on fumes and sheer stubbornness. My hands still burned faintly from channeling too much power, and my legs felt like molten lead. The scent of smoke and blood still hung thick, but the adrenaline was fading fast.

I dropped onto the marble steps and tipped my head toward the faint blush of dawn. My hair was stiff with dried blood, my dress shredded and filthy, my body an aching mess. And somehow, my heart still raced, not from battle, but from everything that had happened since.

Veyra stood at the edge of the courtyard, her arms crossed, looking far too composed for someone who’d almost bled out. That silver mark I’d burned into her throat remained. Mine.

Kaelan sauntered over first, his golden hair a tangled halo, eyes bright with mischief. “So, Queen,” he said, smirking. “Was that our official ‘new mate initiation,’ or do we just wing it every time?”

Lucien’s shadows curled lazily around his boots. “If it was, I volunteer to oversee the next one personally.”

Dryke snorted, smoke curling from his lips. “You would.”

Rhydor’s deep rumble rolled out, half amusement, half warning. “Don’t tempt fate.”

Veyra smirked. “Oh, I don’t tempt fate. I eat it alive.”

Kaelan grinned, his hand sliding over his neck. “Shit, I like her already.”

“I noticed,” Lucien murmured.

“Enough,” I said, though my lips twitched. “All of you smell like hell and look worse. We’re cleaning up before anyone passes out.”

Kaelan’s grin sharpened. “Together?”

I didn’t blink. “Obviously.”

That got their attention.

Lucien’s smirk turned slow and dangerous. “Well, you heard her, boys.”

Even Aedryos, quiet, calm, silver light still flickering in his eyes, gave a low hum of amusement. “The Queen has spoken.”

We started toward the castle, boots and bare feet echoing over stone. The air shimmered faintly from the residue of magic and dragon heat. My body ached, but there was something electric under my skin. A pull. Anticipation.

By the time we reached my suite, the exhaustion had melted into something else entirely.

The door opened to reveal chaos in velvet, marble floors, dark curtains, moonlight spilling over the massive bed and the door to my bath chamber beyond. Steam already rolled from within, smelling faintly of amber and starlight.

Kaelan whistled. “You planning a coronation in there or a cleansing ritual?”

“Maybe both,” I said, tugging my ruined dress down and letting it fall. The sound of fabric hitting marble was indecently loud. “Now move.”

Rhydor growled low, heat rising. “You are going to kill us all one day.”

“Then die clean,” I shot back.

Kaelan barked a laugh, already stripping his shirt off. Lucien followed, his shadows helping him undress with sinful ease. Dryke was next, his dragon heat sending steam curling through the room. Darian fumbled his way out of his torn armor, muttering equations until Kaelan threw a towel at his face.

And Aedryos, he didn’t rush. He watched. Calm. Controlled. The soft glow of starfire danced along his collarbones as he slowly unfastened his robes, every motion deliberate and reverent. He wasn’t showing off. He didn’t need to.

Veyra tilted her head at him, smirking. “You always undress like a prayer, or just when people are watching?”

His lips curved faintly. “Both, if the company is divine.”

Her grin widened. “Dangerous.”

“Undeniably,” he murmured.

The tension coiled so thick I could taste it. My heart thudded. “Alright,” I said, stepping toward the steam. “If you’re going to stare, you can do it from the bath.”

The bath wasn’t a tub, it was a pool, glowing faintly from embedded runes. Steam kissed my skin as I stepped in, sighing as the heat worked through sore muscles. Silver light rippled across the water where my power bled out.

One by one, they joined me. Kaelan splashed in dramatically, making me yelp. “Sorry, little wolf,” he said, not sorry at all. Rhydor waded in with a rumbling growl, more mountain than man. Lucien dissolved into shadow and reformed at my back, his hands sliding through the water to brush my hips. Darian slipped in carefully, still muttering something about friction and temperature differentials.

Dryke entered last, his heat spiking the steam higher until the room felt like a sauna in hell. His green eyes caught mine. “You look good in the light, Princess.”

Before I could reply, Veyra stepped into the water. Slow. Deliberate. Every ripple of muscle under her skin was a dare. The glow from her throat pulsed brighter, resonating with mine. Her thigh brushed mine under the surface, accidental, except it wasn’t.

Kaelan noticed instantly. “Careful, hybrid,” he teased, voice rough. “She bites.”

Veyra smirked. “I hope so.”

Lucien’s shadows twined around her wrist. “You might just get your wish.”

Dryke’s low laugh rumbled through the steam. “I’m not sure if I should stop you or join you.”

“Join,” I said, my voice lower than I meant it to be. “Always join.”

Aedryos chuckled, his voice like starlight through smoke. “The Queen encourages chaos. I approve.”

Veyra’s gaze dragged to him, his eyes gleaming. “You sound like temptation itself.”

“Not temptation,” he murmured, stepping closer, water glimmering over his skin. “Fulfillment.”

Kaelan groaned. “Fuck me, even I’m jealous of that line.”

“You should be,” Lucien muttered.