The Marriage Game

In Which Camila has Feelings and We Spend Some Time With Alex

Something nibbled on her hair. Camila opened her eyes. Spoon, the family's pet corgi, promptly licked her nose.

"Oh- Spoon! Stop!" Camila shoved him away. The corgi settled for sticking her nose in Camila's ear and panting happily. Camila considered moving, but her brain felt like it'd been run through a blender and she was neck-deep in blankets, cuddled atop her king-size mattress. Despite Spoon's deathly cold nose, there were worse places to be.

Serena sat on a red armchair next to the bed. Her eyes were closed, her head tilted back to rest against a pillow, and a book lay open across her lap. Although she technically worked for Camila's family, Serena was more Camila's aunt than her servant.

Camila frowned. There was something she should be worried about.

She remembered the mating bond snapping into place between her and that prisoner. Working with her parents to save his life. The kiss. The betrayal. And then- Had he knocked her out?

"Serena!"

"Hmmm?" Serena stirred. She opened a single eye. "Oh! Camila. You're awake. We were worried."

"What happened? Is Alex okay? Did they catch Dec- the Vindicator?"

Serena ran a hand through her hair. As always, she looked like she'd just stepped off the set of a shampoo ad, strands of morning sunlight glittering on her smooth, chestnut hair. "Shhh. Everything's fine. You've had a difficult night."

"But Alex-"

"Is fine. We've got men out searching for the Vindicator."

So he'd gotten away. Camila wasn't sure to be grateful he was alive—the idea of her mate dying sparked sudden, irrational tears in her eyes—or angry that he'd escaped. He'd threatened her life and taken advantage of their bond.

"How are you feeling?"

Camila gingerly touched the back of her skull and winced. "Fine. What are we going to do about the suitors?"

"Feed them, get them drunk, keep them busy. You'll have the day off. Camila-" She closed the book and set it on the bedside table. "Camila, why did you go see the prisoner?"

Camila closed her eyes. Because he was her mate and she was curious? But honestly, the best thing for the country—and for Camila—would be if he simply vanished. Maybe now that he was gone, it would be easier to pretend he'd never existed.

"I don't know. It was a mistake."

Serena nodded. "Okay. I'll let you rest now. Alex is just outside the door if you need anything. C'mon Spoon." The corgi, traitor that she was, clambered over Camila's blanketed body and jumped to the floor.

The room felt strangely quiet without them.

Camila tried to go back to sleep, but she couldn't stop thinking about Declan. How dare he? Aside from a kidnapping attempt when she was five, no one had ever laid a hand on her. And her mate? Her Goddess-approved soulmate? He'd held her prisoner and knocked her out.

And how come she ended up with a criminal for a mate? What did that say about her? Camila rolled over in her bed, trying to get comfortable. Maybe the bond wasn't as big a deal as everyone made it out to be. Her parents weren't technically mated and they were happy. Mating bonds were rare. Maybe that was why it was supposed to be some huge, special thing to find your mate, but really—Camila remembered his hands wrapping around her neck—the mating bond was just chemicals. It was lust, no more, no less.

She tried to stop thinking about him, but it was like using gasoline to extinguish a fire.

His lips had been rough, chapped, and raw. He'd tasted like blood and desire. She thought of the bars pressing into her skin as she fought to get closer to him and the hard planes of muscle in his chest.