by having fun when I could… you know, because I wasn’t sure when my illness would come back around to knock me down again.
Tygrys flitted around the flowers that were lining my desk. He crooned as he bounced between the lilies that Ethan had bought me, coating his fur with yellow dust. His tail swished as he looked fondly up at Lodburzan hanging on the wall.
Tygrys was obsessed with the wolven sapphire forged into my sword. He’d stare at the gemstone for hours, admiring his reflection and purring loudly.
My faerie folk was a welcome distraction from the mess that was my life. This was the right time to get a pet. I’d been worrying for days about my medicine. I didn’t know what I was going to do. I didn’t have a lot of options. Free healthcare was one of the major reasons I’d come to Malovia. I couldn’t drop out of school and get a job; my education was important, and I needed to be here to find those stones, otherwise, the entire fae world was doomed. I didn’t want to ask my mom for help. If she paid for my medical care instead of using that money to promote her new restaurant, her business could fail, and then she’d go bankrupt.
I had to remain tied to Ethan now, just to keep getting my medicine. Breaking our bond and leaving our relationship for good would result in me no longer having access to what I needed. I loved Ethan… but the choice to leave him permanently wasn’t an option. I was trapped in a relationship I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in, because it was literally life or death for me.
And if Ethan died, I wasn’t sure the crown would continue to take care of my needs, though Ethan had done what he could to set that up. Would the royal family pay for my medical care even after Ethan was gone?
If Queen Antonia had anything to say about it, probably not. That woman hated my guts.
I was majorly stressed out. I couldn’t sit here and think about this. I wanted to let loose. There was nothing I could do about my situation, so I might as well try to forget about it, just for a night.
Arthur was throwing a party. I needed to go. There was a knock on my door. Odette, Delmare, and Kiara entered. They were dressed to the nines— Delmare had on a lace corset with tight leather pants and knee-high boots. Kiara had donned a yellow dress that rose up her thighs, and Odette was wearing a sparkly pink dress that had a big skirt and twinkled in the light.
Odette immediately gave me a look when she saw my outfit. “Um, what are you wearing?”
“What’s wrong with it?” I had on jeans and my favorite t-shirt. Like, who cared what I looked like?
Odette shook her head. “Nuh-uh. Girl, this is a party. You need to look bangable.”
I scoffed. “If you haven’t noticed, the only person I’m supposed to bang isn’t available right now. He’s got a demon fucking that up for me.”
“Then go bang someone else!” Odette gave a twirl. “Show Ethan what he’s missing out on!”
My stomach wiggled in excitement… and guilt. “Is flirting with other guys really the right move? Ethan’s going through a lot.”
“So are you!” Odette countered. “You’ve been there for him, and he’s not responding. You’ve got to try something else.”
“Odette’s right,” Delmare offered. “Maybe if you make Ethan jealous, he’ll pull his head out of his ass.”
“He won’t even be at the party.”
“Gossip’s big here at Arcanea University, especially about you two,” Delmare pointed out. “He’ll find out.”
I turned toward Kiara. “And what do you think about all this?” She was the responsible one. She’d talk me out of it.
Kiara made a face. “I’d hate to see you mess around with someone who isn’t your mate.”
Then she sighed. “But to be honest… Emma, you’re unhappy. And it makes the rest of us sad to see you so miserable. I’m doing my best to get the exorcism ready, but if it doesn’t work, I want you to be prepared to move on.”
Nervousness sickened me then. If Kiara really thought it was that hopeless…
I refused to consider losing Ethan until the moment it actually happened.
That didn’t mean I wasn’t going to get my kicks while I was still young. I was in college, for the gods’ sakes, and I felt like I was eighty years old from all this