Chapter 175

I have to admit that the entire world feels a little surreal three hours later when I’m sitting pressed between Daphne and Ben in a booth, laughing and watching as Jesse, and Rafe, and Luca spray bottles of champagne into the air and down onto the crowd below, who are all going mad for it, screaming their approval and their love of the nation’s Prince, and Duke, and renewed national boxing Champion.

“Oh, come on, Daph,” I say, pressing a hand to my chest because I’m laughing so hard, “how can you go home after this!? It’s way too much fun!”

“I have to admit!” she says, having to raise her voice almost to shouting levels so that I can hear her over the pounding music. “You guys are making it really hard!”

And only about to get more difficult, I think as Rafe, grinning, comes over to the table and holds out a hand for her. Daphne smiles broadly as she places her hand in his, and then she laughs as Rafe pulls her up and into his arms, starting to dance with her.

I lean into Ben next to me, who wraps an arm around my shoulder. “I have to admit it,” he murmurs, bringing his mouth close to my ear so I can hear him. “It does not make it any easier, knowing that your brother can dance.”

I burst out laughing, snuggling closer to my friend and shaking my head. Poor Benny!

But he just laughs along with me and gives me a wink, passing me another shot of tequila from our collection on the table.

I take a little sip from it even as Ben downs his, because I’m already feeling pretty tipsy. It’s been an incredible evening. It took a moment, of course, to get out of the stadium. Mom was waiting for us in Luca’s dressing room, as I predicted, to fuss over him and magically heal all his wounds before Luca gave some press interviews.

Rafe pulled me begrudgingly away from Luca’s side as mom worked and Luca interviewed, checking in on me and making sure that I was all right. But things got quite a lot easier after mom healed Luca’s broken rib, and then after that short bit of press, the party began.

Luca came with us in the limousine, to my pleasure, and brought his mom and his Gran along. His Gran cried the whole time – happy tears as she pressed herself to her grandson’s side and looked around at the royals, clutching a glass of champagne that she didn’t drink. Gran and Linda declined to come into the club when we arrived, instead taking the limo home, but my parents and aunt and uncle shocked me by coming in with us.

“Oh, we need a little fun,” mom said when Rafe protested that it wasn’t safe – or appropriate – for the King and Queen to be out at a nightclub. “Besides, the people should see that their monarchs can party.”

Honestly, I think that the whole reason they came was because it was very clear that Markie and Juniper really, really wanted to go in. The two of them were having a blast, and Jesse was doing a wonderful job of making sure that they were included in all the laughs, even slipping them a couple of drinks when our parents pretended not to be looking.

Still, about after an hour of that, mom and dad declared that they were taking Mark and Juniper home, and Cora and Roger sighed that they had to get home to the rest of their passel.

“They’ve probably tied the babysitter up again,” Cora murmured to Roger, her face genuinely worried.

He just shrugged and took another sip of his drink. “Kind of a crappy babysitter, if she allows her charges to tie her up in square knots that she doesn’t know how to un-do.”

Mom had kissed us all goodbye and wrapped Luca in a warm hug, telling him again how proud she is of him, how proud he’s made the nation. And Luca had beamed to hear it – I think needing it after a lifetime of his uncle subtly implying that he’s not good enough.

Since then, it’s just been this – drinks, and good times, and dancing, and all of us blowing off a great deal of steam after a crazy semester and an even more stressful night. We’ve been dancing, and singing, and celebrating our hearts out – and I’ve done most of it in Luca’s arms, which has been…amazing.

Something has shifted between us now, after tonight – after I’ve finally realized how deep our bond really goes. Luca and me – we’re tied now, both in the nation’s mind and in our souls. I don’t really know how to describe it, even now as I watch him dancing with Jesse, both of them singing along to the music, looking gorgeous and young and free, like they haven’t got a care in the world.

“Where do they get the energy,” Benny murmurs, his arm still slung casually around my shoulder, and I glance at him, pleased to see as much love for our boys as I’m sure is beaming from my own eyes.

“I don’t know,” I say, a little wondering. “Must be something about warrior track that gives them…a crazy amount of stamina.”

“Drugs,” Ben says, nodding wisely and making me laugh. “They must put some kind of drugs in their water bottles. Or steroids.”

“Very plausible,” I say, grinning. He’s right, though – Ben and I are wiped, but the boys – it looks like they could go all night.

Daphne, however, is defying our predictions – because the way she’s dancing with Rafe right now, with a huge smile on her face as he turns her around and then pulls her close to him…

Well. To be honest, I think she’d be perfectly happy spending the rest of her life doing this. Unlike Ben and I, she doesn’t have a tired bone in her body, and clearly has no intention of going home anytime soon.

Still, even if I am more tired than the rest of them, I’m more than happy to stay and bask in the happy atmosphere, quietly sipping at my drink and relaxing. Because it was a stressful and taxing night. I definitely need to unwind.

“So, you’re okay, after all of that?” Ben asks, easy and conversational.

I turn to him a little. “What do you mean?”

He shrugs. “It just looked very upsetting,” he says, looking at me seriously. “The way you ran down there, and were pounding your hand on the mat, shouting his name – it was intense, Ariel. And obviously way more intense for you, since you were living it.”

I laugh a little, shaking my head. “It was intense,” I murmur, shifting my eyes back to Luca. “But worth it. He needed me.”

“It was awesome,” Ben replies, a little mystified. “Like, everyone could see the two of you connecting, see the way you brought him back. It was very cool.”

I hum a little in the back of my throat, remembering that moment, wondering what it looked like from the outside. But, I mean, obviously there’s footage of it – I guess if I really want to know, I could watch a recording.

I grimace a little, thinking that that might be a little embarrassing and deciding against it.

“Is it always like that?” Ben murmurs, his words a little slurred and curious.

“Is what?” I ask, needing clarification.

“Your bond – being mated. You’re just…always connected like that? Can feel what each other feel? Can…like pass emotions around, trade them?”

“Oh, god, no,” I say, my eyes going wide as I glance over at Ben before returning my eyes to my beautiful mate, laughing with my cousin as Rafe and Daphne come back over to them at the end of the song, the four of the easily chatting. “I mean, like, I can feel that he’s happy now –“

“You can also see it,” Ben points out, gesturing towards Luca, not really getting it.

“I know,” I say, grinning and tapping my chest. “But I can feel it too. But what happened tonight – and it happened before, with Jackson, during the examination – where we really connect like…super deep?” I hesitate, knowing I’m not being very eloquent or very clear, probably because of all the drinks. “That’s not…every day.”

“Hmm.” Ben says, nodding as he takes another sip of his drink, his eyes going a little far off.

We sit quietly, companionably for a moment, before he surprises me by continuing to push on the subject. “What did it feel like?” Ben asks softy. “When you…when you first knew? That they were your mates.”

“When I first knew?” I ask, kind of surprised that he wants to go this far back. Ben meets my eyes and slowly nods.

And then I tilt my head to the side, wondering why on earth he’s asking about this now.