Their Fireheart

Chapter Sixteen

Twenty minutes later, I had returned to my meeting spot with Aelin when she literally dropped from the tree above me, scaring my shitless. I hissed at her, "Cauldron's sake little warrior, are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

She smirked at me before leaning down to speak softly in my ear once more. For Cauldron's sake, I had just gotten my cock to calm the fuck down. Thankfully she quickly shared her plan, and I was able to focus again. The more she spoke, the more impressed I became. She really was a bloodthirsty little thing. I was matching her grin when she finally pulled back, a mischievous thirst for violence alight in those enchanting eyes. Thank the Cauldron and every petty, idiotic God for bringing this vicious creature into my life. I never wanted things to go back to how they were before she quite literally dropped into the Night Court.

Aelin

Cassian's eyes were glinting after I shared my plan. He really had been the best choice for this little adventure, even if my mind had been whispering about all the other ways we could get into trouble together. I shook those thoughts away, as I had been doing ever since he pressed me against his strong, muscular chest to fly us here. I smirked at him, "All clear?"

He shook his head, "I like the way you think little warrior. Give me 20 minutes and I'll be in position for your distraction." I grinned, nodding, before turning to make my way to my own position. I paused when his hand caught mine and he continued, "Just one thing first."

With that statement, he whirled me around and tugged me towards him. His hand went to the back of my neck as he pulled me in and kissed me, hard and rough. My mind went blank and I kissed him back before realizing what I was doing. My sharp inhale of shock allowed his tongue access to my mouth, which he took full advantage of, plundering it harshly.

He pulled away all too quickly, sending me a wink. "For good luck." Next thing I knew he was gone, and I was standing there stuttering. What was with these Gods damned males? Cursing viciously, I stalked towards my position, almost imagining Cassian's bark of laughter. For fuck's sake, next thing I knew Azriel or Rowan would be adding on to the list of males who - except Rowan would never. The sobering reality of his hatred for me hit me like a ton of bricks. For once I was thankful for it. I need to be focused on creating an appropriate distraction, not the obnoxiously gorgeous males who seemed hell bent on taking over every waking thought.

I crept towards my position in the shadows of the commander's tent, keeping track of the minutes internally. Once it was time, I sent a small spurt of flame towards the edge of camp, grinning when I heard the shouts start. As most of the soldiers ran towards the magically enhanced fire, I slipped into the commander's tent. The man in question was yelling to his guards outside his tent, demanding to know what was going on. Quick as an asp, I snuck up behind him, knocking him unconscious.

I let out a low whistle, and Cassian popped in behind me, gagging and securing our new Valg friend. Gesturing for him to keep quiet, I peered out of the tent and sent another wave of flame soaring, ensuring that the rest of the camp was thoroughly distracted as we slipped out with one of their captains into the forest. Cassian had the male slung over his shoulder and we moved quickly, waiting until we got to a clearing for Cassian to adjust his hold on the male and pick me up as well. Shooting up into the sky as the camp of Hybern's soldiers still fought against the now raging fire. The fire that would somehow manage to consume the entirety of the camp before it was successfully extinguished.

I smirked at Cassian as we flew towards Velaris. "Well, that went rather well."

I felt his rough laugh jolt through both of our bodies, warming me somewhere deep within. His breathe was hot on my neck when he leaned forward, "Everything is always an adventure with you, isn't it little warrior?"

I hummed, "How angry do you think the rest of them are going to be?"

I felt, more than saw, him grimace at that. "Rhys is not going to be happy with me for putting you in danger, it will be a toss up to see how the rest of them react."

I scoffed out loud, "You do realize that I'm the one who goaded you into this scenario right?"

I was confused when he seemed to pause, almost as if he was weighing his next words carefully. That was unusual for Cassian from what I had seen. "He can be very...protective of those he thinks he is responsible for."

I thought on that, "He does know I'm not a member of his court, right? He isn't responsible for me in any way." Cassian just grimaced at that, but looked away, which confused me. Oh well, I had just captured a Valg grunt who would be very useful in the coming days, I refused to ruin my triumph.

I almost groaned out loud as we approached the training area of the House of Wind. Three large male figures stood, obvious against the glaring sun. Cassian touched down and we were met with the full force of Rhysand and Rowan's glares. Azriel stood to the side with a vague look of understanding tinged with disappointment.

I stepped away from Cassian and cleared my throat delicately. "I promise this has a fully logical explanation."

Both Rhysand and Rowan raised an eyebrow at that. It took everything in me not to laugh at just how similar they looked in that moment, but I'm sure they would not appreciate that. Over-protective fae bastards.

"Explain, Aelin." Rowan growled.

This was sure to be fun.