Chapter 121

Jesse bursts out laughing and grabs Rafe’s arm as my brother lunges for my boyfriend, intent on violence.

Jackson’s eyes go wide and he steps back, holding Marigold close. “Wait, what’s happening?”

“Mooove!” Midnight whines, squeezing in on Jesse’s other side. “I want to see the fight!”

But I just fling a hand up, freezing Rafe in place in the air. His eyes go wide in shock and he moves his gaze – the only thing he can move - down to me, completely freaked out.

“Oh June, let him down,” Anton sighs, dropping his arm from my shoulder and turning to more fully face my brother now. “He’s not going to hurt me.”

“No way, he’s being a jerk!” I bite out, frowning up at Tony.

“How are you doing this?” Jesse asks, awed, dropping his hand and looking at Rafe’s frozen form with a little delight.

“She’s very powerful,” Orion says, coming to Rafe’s other side and looking him over, apparently proud of me.

“It’s very annoying.” Faiza calls, stepping to the circle too, heaving a little sigh.

“Oh my god, Faiza!” Ariel gasps, stumbling around me and reaching for her professor. “What – what are you doing here!? And why do you have a squirrel!?” She gasps again suddenly, stopping when she sees Faiza’s shackles. “Who – who did that to you!?”

“Your little baby sister,” Faiza bites out, turning her head to glare at me. “I’m her captive.”

“Juniper!” Ariel gasps, turning to glare at me. “You let her go right now! This is – she is my teacher –“

“She’s also a priestess of the Goddess of Life,” I say, crossing my arms and rolling my eyes. “And the bane of my damn existence. Did she tell you that!?”

A muffled, rageful sound breaks from Rafe’s closed mouth, bringing us all back to the problem at hand.

“Oh, fine,” I say, sighing and waving my hand again, unfreezing him.

Rafe stumbles for a second, finding his feet before he glares at me and then at Anton, continuing where he left off.

“She’s a fucking kid, Tony,” Rafe snarls, the words slipping from between clenched teeth.

“Do most kids you know have the power to freeze you in place and bind your will to their own?” Anton asks, dry, gesturing lazily towards Rafe’s body.

“Do you think that seriously changes anything!?” Rafe roars, aghast. “You are way, way too old for her!”

I roll my eyes at my brother, hating him for embarrassing me like this. I mean, I know I’m the youngest in the family – but I’ve always been more mature than Mark. And quite frankly, it’s not like I’m a child or anything. Tony is only like, four or five years older than me, and dad is what, a decade older than mom or something?

I toss my hair back, not giving in on this.

“Well, technically he is older,” Midnight says, folding her arms and studying Tony. “But he’s also dead so…she’s definitely going to catch up. And then she’ll get old and he’ll be young and then who will you be mad at, Rafe?”

Jesse grins down at his little mate, clearly delighted with her.

“This is bullshit, Tony,” Rafe growls, taking an aggressive step closer and snarling at my handmaiden. “You are crossing a line and I’m not going to let you take this any further –“

“Back off, Rafe,” I growl, putting myself between the two of them and glaring up at my jackass big brother. “I’m in charge of my own life. I make my own choices, especially here, in my own damn Kingdom.”

He continues to snarl, ignoring me.

“Oh god, give it up, Rafe,” Jesse says on a groan, smacking Rafe’s shoulder. “He’s her fucking mate, okay? They can’t help it!”

The entire room goes silent and then, slowly, everyone turns towards Jesse.

“Whoa,” Jesse says, taking a step back, looking around. “That was…a bigger reaction that I expected.”

“What did you just say?” Orion growls, stepping towards Jesse.

“You stay back, you big idiot!” Midnight snaps, putting herself between Jesse and the Prince, baring her fangs at Orion, her threat clearly very real. “I will bite you!”

Orion flicks his eyes down to Midnight for a moment. He stops moving, but returns his gaze to Jesse. “Say it again.”

“Look,” Jesse says, laughing and putting his hands up, probably aware that he cannot take Orion in a fight. “I’m just repeating what I was told –“

“From who!?” I gasp, leaning towards him, starting to get freaked out. How – how does my cousin have information on this!?

“From fucking Tony, obviously!” Jesse shouts, casting a hand out towards my boyfriend. I gasp alongside everyone else and spin to stare at Anton, who stares at Jesse, his face blank, his skin pale.

Which is an accomplishment, considering that he’s dead and only visible in shades of blue and white.

“WHAT!?” I shriek, thinking that I’m getting a little sick of doing that.

“He said that!” Jesse continues, defending himself against Anton’s clear unwillingness to say a damn thing. I snarl, my fangs extending as I glare at my ghost. “Tony, don’t you dare leave me hanging high and dry on this! It was out on the balcony, and you were all sad and crying because I was yelling at you just as much as Rafe is right now – and you completely broke down and were like ‘oh Jesse! I can’t help it! I’m so in love with her, I think she’s my mate!’”

“That is not what I said,” Anton snarls.

“That is verbatim what you said!” Jesse counters, glaring hard.

“That was –“ Anton sputters out, his eyes going wide with horror as he flounders and then points at Jesse in turn. “That was a between-us, emotional moment, Jesse! Come on, man! Bro code!”

“Well, I didn’t think it was a secret,” Jesse shouts back, his shoulders slumping with guilt. “I figured you were going to tell June, at least!”

“Oh no,” Midnight whispers, pressing her fingertips to her lips. “Oh no, Jesse, you’ve broken the Bro Code. What comes next? Bro punishment? A stint in Bro Jail?”

Ariel bursts out laughing at this, but I ignore her, my face falling slack in surprise and wonder.

“Do you,” I whisper, taking a step towards Anton. “Do you seriously think you’re my mate?”

“June,” he groans, reaching for me, stepping close as he cups my cheeks in his hands. “Of course I do. I’m completely obsessed with you – there’s no one else in the world I could ever even imagine –“

Tears again line my eyes.

“Cut the crap,” Orion snaps, stepping into the circle. Jackson steps aside to let him in and through the gap I see Laila standing wide-eyed, watching everything with worry and fascination. “Anton’s not her mate – he doesn’t have a bond – he just wants her to think that because he wants her –“

“You don’t have a bond?” Rafe gasps, snapping his head back to glare at Anton.

Anton groans and wraps his arms around me, pulling me to him. I let him, but I turn in his arms so that my back is to his chest, completely on his side but wanting to see everyone’s faces. Anton’s silence tells Rafe all he needs to know.

“Well then why the hell are you making claims like that!?” Rafe sputters out. “If you don’t have a bond, that’s a really fucked up thing to do to a kid, Tony –“

“Well, I didn’t do it, Rafe,” Anton snaps back. I look up to see him baring his teeth at my brother. “Jesse’s the one who said it out loud to everyone, not me! I was waiting to have it confirmed!”

Rafe steps back, realizing that Anton is right.

“It’s not going to be confirmed,” Orion growls, stepping towards Anton, glaring hard. “She just likes you because you kiss her ass. She’s my fucking mate – by prophecy!”

“Wait, two people down here want to date you?” Ariel asks, eyes wide, looking between Orion and Anton with fascination. A growl rumbles in my chest at her implications.

“I know, right?” Faiza murmurs, leaning close to my sister with a sigh. “Your sister’s a hot commodity down here in the Underworld. It’s like, do they not have many women or something?”

I growl at her in turn. Faiza just flashes me a mean little grin.

“Do you have a bond with her?” Rafe asks, turning his confused rage on Orion now.

Orion is quiet for a moment before he straightens up, pride and truth warring on his face. “Well, no. The Goddess’s bonds don’t form in this world – it’s ruled by Darkness and Death. But the prophecies –“

“Oh my god,” Rafe groans, slapping his hands over his face and tilting his head back, turning in a circle like he can’t stand all of this unfolding drama.

“But you two,” Ariel says, stepping forward and pointing a finger between Anton and me, a little smile on her face. “You guys are like…together?”

I bare my teeth at her in confirmation, daring her to counter me on it, while Anton just sighs and says, “Yup.”

“Awww!” Ariel says, cooing and clasping her hands together over her heart. “That’s so cute! I mean, I think you can do better, Anton, but –“

“Ari!” I shout, lunging for her. But Anton’s arms around me hold me back as he laughs.

“Thanks, Ari,” he says, sounding exhausted. “I’m glad you’re on board, at least.”

“I’m on board!” Midnight shouts, standing on her toes and holding her hand high up like a little kid in school. “I would like it known that I, too, am on the board!”

Inspired, Marigold likewise raises her hand, making me feel a little better.

“Those are all the votes I need,” Anton murmurs, dipping his head low to whisper it in my ear.

I smile a little, blushing to be seen being affectionate with him in front of my whole family. I mean, I’m not used to this, am I?

So, I just close my eyes and lean back against him, pretending they’re not here. “I don’t need any votes,” I say softly, knowing he can hear me. “You’re mine, Anton. So don’t get any ideas about running back with them to the Academy, or wherever they’re going.”

He laughs and presses a kiss to my hair. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

I smile softly, well pleased with my boy.