CARLYLE

I must have drifted into sleep on the beach, because Kana’s blissed-out groan woke me from a really nice dream of kissing Sol.

She flopped onto her back and stretched her arms high above her head, groaning again. “This is fucking heaven. I mean, not as good as Haret, but damn close. Memories of home were the only thing that kept me going in that fucking circus.”

“What’s it like there? In Haret?” I asked, curiosity surging - I didn’t want to hear about the circus right now, but I’d love to know more about this other world I supposedly belonged to. Maybe someone would finally be open with me.

“There are horrible places, for sure, just like everywhere. But so much of it is just gorgeous, pristine wilderness. Waterfalls and forests and magic everywhere.”

“Aren’t there different countries, though? Like for each, ah, type?” I wasn’t sure if vampires were a race.

“Of course. Haret isn’t nearly as large as Earth, but we have separate land masses and climates and languages and all that. But the magic adds a slick sheen of beauty that Earth never quite matches. Like glitter sparkles everywhere.”

“Why did you leave?” I asked, ready to be shot down again for a too-personal question.

Kana sighed and leaned up on one elbow. “Haret looks perfect, but it can be just as corrupt as Earth. Haretians still want things they don’t have, just like humans. My father’s land borders the fae realm, and he struck a deal with Killian’s family. I love Kills like a brother, but mating for politics? I’m meant for more than that, and so is he. So, as soon as Jai and the others left on their mission, I snuck away, too. None of us expected the betrayals Earth would bring.” Her voice faded to a whisper, and she turned her honeyed skin back to the sun, sliding her black, almond-shaped eyes closed.

I had a million questions and too much fear to ask a single one.

Being offered up as a trade deal sounded so medieval. Then to leave everything behind, just to escape being mated to a friend? Kana had to be over-simplifying things.

“I wish I hadn’t left.” She flopped onto her stomach instead, hiding her face in her arms.

“I’m glad you’re here,” I said, meaning every word of it. She’d offered friendship, and I’d be damned if I let that go to waste. LuAnn had been okay to talk to, but she’d always kept a clear line between us – adult to child, or even employer to employee. I sighed to myself - I’d wasted too many years with that bitch.

Kana turned her head back to me and smiled, her cheek smushing against her arm. “You’re good for them, you know. At first, I kinda hoped they wouldn’t find the lost Qilin, because all the ones I’ve met have been total domineering bitches. Just lapping up all the goddess treatment. And I didn’t want my brother charged with protecting some stuck-up, holier-than-thou princess.”

I laughed. “I doubt Jai would put up with that, either.”

“He likes you,” she said, and I shook my head.

“He tolerates me.”

She grinned, pushing up again, fidgeting like she couldn’t quite get comfortable. “No, he likes you. I even saw him smile at you. Fuck, Car, that’s more than he’s ever given a girl. Besides me, of course. Jai’s so tight-laced I’m surprised he can even breathe.”

“What’s an aima?” I asked, the word popping back into my head.

She sighed, an expression of bliss settling her features. “It’s the sexiest thing ever. So much dirtier than mating,” she said, winking at me and flashing her fangs. Jai nearly always kept his hidden, but Kana seemed to relish the shock value of hers.

“But only other vampires can be your aima?” I asked, already feeling the disappointment. I had no right to want something like that with Jai, especially after mating with Jack, but I still did.

She considered, then shook her head. “It’s not common, but I’ve heard of a few. You have to be able to participate equally in the blood-letting. A Qilin could learn to do it.” She grinned wickedly at me. “Qilin are hella lucky anyway, though - you’re practically expected to take more than one lover, from any race you want.”

“And you’re not supposed to do that?” I was still trying to understand the way relationships worked in Haret. I mean, sure, some humans had multiple partners. General society seemed to frown on it, though, placing it way outside of what was accepted. Was it the same in Haret, with Qilin being the exception?

“Vampire males often take multiple aima. It’s a status thing. But it’s much rarer for females, and nearly unheard-of for a royal daughter like me. I’m just a prize to be gifted.” Her tone was so bitter that I almost missed the detail.

“Ah, wait. You’re actual royalty?”

She smiled, but it had a raw edge to it, and I guessed that being royalty in Haret came with just as many difficulties as privileges, like here on Earth. Not that I had experience in either, of course.

“Jai’s third in line for the throne. Our father rules now, and our older brother will take over when Father sleeps eternally. If something ever happened to Erik, Jai would rule.”

“Wow,” I managed. Now he seemed even farther out of reach.

“Don’t be intimidated,” she warned, guessing my train of thought with ease. “Most of your guys have some ties to their country’s royal family. It’s one reason they were chosen to come to Earth to hunt the Qilin. All the teams were the best our world had to offer, and losing so many puts everything in incredible risk.”

I swallowed hard around this. Sure, the Ringmaster had alluded to it. Even the guys had mentioned how only elite Haretians had been chosen to come to Earth.

“I’ve just always been such a nobody. It’s hard to adjust to all this savior-goddess shit,” I said, forcing a laugh.

Kana nodded, her eyes sympathetic. “But the benefits have to be making it better, right? I mean, just think of all the sex and sugar you’re getting.” Her grin grew sly again, and she jabbed my arm with a long fingernail. “I mean, they totally should have warned you about the mating thing. But just because you and Jack are a thing now, that doesn’t mean you have to stop fucking anyone else. You’re a Qilin, bitch. And Qilin get what Qilin want.”

I felt my cheeks flush as her words sank in, mirroring the same sentiments Dair and Killian had told me before.

I’d actually been worried about how serious the mating bond might be - if I’d need to stop flirting with Dair and Jai now, or stop letting Sol sneak into my thoughts and between my sheets.

“How many mates do Qilin usually have?” I made myself ask instead, confronting the fact that I wanted more than Jack.

“Oh, you greedy girl! I fucking love it,” Kana said, tilting her head back in a raucous laugh. “I don’t guess there’s a limit, but most of the ones I remember meeting or studying about had three or so.”

I chewed my lip. Three? I wasn’t sure I could pick three. Ah, I was so screwed.

Just because I’d been given the world’s biggest candy bowl didn’t mean I had to eat so much I got sick. I couldn’t hoard all these yummy men to myself. Could I?

There probably wasn’t even enough of me to go around. How could I possibly keep more than one man happy?

“I know what you’re thinking,” Kana warned. “And I think it’s bullshit. You take want you want, Car. You’re probably the last fucking Qilin. Haret is just as dark a place as Underbelly - you’re gonna need all the shields and weapons you can get. There’s none better than those men in that house. Take them all if you want them, and make them into your goddamn army.”

My eyes connected with hers, and my heart began to pound as I took in the ferocity of her gaze.

“There’s a war coming, Car. We don’t even know the half of it yet, but I know I’m on your side, and I want you to be as strong as you possibly can be. If those guys are offering their power, you fucking need to take it.”

“How much power can I even hold?” My voice had dropped to barely a whisper as our conversation took a threatening turn.

Kana shrugged and gazed out over the sparkling ocean. “I don’t know, but it’ll be fun to find out, right?”