and sighed. I didn’t know how Richie was reacting to Rydstrom kissing me possessively, as I couldn’t see his expression. And I didn’t care.
“Both of them, for real?” Megan asked with undisguised envy.
“There used to be a third,” Nox narrated, enjoying the role of being the inside man. “His name is Rowan. He’s very rich, too, and he bought us lots of expensive gifts.” Nox loved money as much as Cassidy, though he was less snobbish than my little brother. The twin had been worried about our lack of money when my parents disappeared, so in his eyes, being rich was the number one qualification to be my beau. But I bet after this ordeal, he’d change his opinion. He’d probably go for powerful, and Rydstrom and Baron had both just proved that they could protect us. “I liked Rowan, and my twin Asuka liked him, too, but Evie dumped him. She said to shoot him in the face if he and his knights ever showed up at our house.”
Anguish ripped into me at my brother’s mention of the Winter King. I wondered if he was warming my evil sister’s bed right now while I fought for my life. But at least he hadn’t joined the Wild Hunt. I didn’t know what I would do if he came to hunt me down.
Would I slice him open if it was either him or me? Could I?
The image of cutting down the Winter King instantly sent a deep wave of sharp pain into my chest, even though I still hated him for his heart-wrenching betrayal.
Rydstrom anchored his hand on the base of my skull and tilted my head back for a scorching kiss, seducing me back to him. The pain eased in me, and passion for the Night King ignited my cells. I kissed him back wholeheartedly, and then I realized that he wasn’t just kissing me. He was pouring his energy into me, wave after wave, and the agonizing pain from my broken ribs faded to a dull ache, then vanished. My broken bones mended, and the wounds on my leg and shoulder closed.
My mate was feeding me with his starlight and healing me.
Love and gratitude saturated me, but anxiety and confusion also rose in me. This was the null field, so how could my mate heal me with magic? Then a thought clicked in me. The Night King wasn’t using magic. My mate was feeding me through our mating bond, a mythic force that was beyond any magic, power, or force in the universe.
“Get hold of yourself, Rydstrom,” Baron hissed, glaring at the Night King. “She’s my mate, too. We’ve talked about this. You’ve claimed Evie, and now I must claim her before the hunt controls us. It’s the only way to fight the coming compulsion. We don’t have much time left since I need to heal her first.”
Rydstrom glared back at Baron. “What did you think I was doing just then, Summer King? I was enjoying my mate while healing her.”
“I can continue with that,” Baron insisted. “You know my magic has the best healing elements.”
Rydstrom pulled away from me reluctantly, and I darted my gaze between the two kings. Baron wanted to claim me now? This was hardly the place, and we had no time for that, no matter how much I wanted him.
Rydstrom nodded gravely. “We’re the last huntsmen. We should have hunted you instead of battling the aliens, but we bypassed the rules of the Wild Hunt. We came to the scene earlier to obliterate the obstacles for you. However, the wild force will soon overwhelm our minds, and there’ll be nothing left but the burning need to kill you—our own mate. I’ve claimed you, my love, so I can use the power of our unbreakable bond to counter the coercion. You haven’t formed an official mating bond with Baron, and thus it’ll be more difficult for him to fight the bloodlust that will soon overcome him. You need to forge the bond with him right away before…”
“You’re wasting time with your long-winded words,” Baron growled.
My mouth opened in question, then closed as the Summer King spun me away from Rydstrom and crushed his mouth to mine.
Chapter 22
The Summer King’s kiss pumped sunshine, heat, and raw need into my bloodstream. I opened my mouth to him, and he thrust his tongue through my parted lips, sweeping over my hard palate to declare his dominance.
I almost forgot how demanding Baron was. He hadn’t changed a bit! But