Chapter 202

Nothing had felt as good as holding Elain in his arms while the Mabon drums beat in quick rhythm with his heart. Lucien gazed down at his mate, acutely aware of the fact that the last time he had been here, moving to this beat, he would not have even considered that he would ever have someone like her for his mate. As if sensing his thoughts, and perhaps she did, Elain's dark eyes lifted to meet his, and she smiled at him. Lucien's gaze dropped to her pretty lips, and he felt his breath catch in his throat. He didn't have to fight how much he wanted her, how much he wanted to bend and kiss her; not now that she was his mate, and not now when they were surrendering to the Mabon drums.

Bending to her, Lucien felt one of Elain's hands slide up his back and across his shoulders. His lips had only just lightly brushed hers when Cassian was suddenly beside them, and Lucien lifted his head with a growl.

"Yes?" he asked, seeing the Illyrian just looking at them and ignoring the many dancing bodies pressing in on them from all sides.

"Have you seen Nesta yet?"

"I can't say that we have." Lucien tried to leash his temper, aware that he wanted to rip apart the next person to get between himself and his mate. Forcing that instinct down, he just looked at Cassian who was continuing to watch them. "She wasn't here when we arrived…"

"I'm sure she will appear…" Elain put in, and Lucien tried to leash the wave of disappointment when he felt her hand fall from his shoulder. He wanted her hands on him.

Cassian tilted his head, and Lucien would have sworn that he saw the Illyrian pout for just a moment. "You're right…"

"The evening is just beginning…" Lucien resisted a smirk, "You have plenty of time to find her…" He wondered then if Nesta and Cassian would be sneaking away into the trees when all the other couples began to disappear. He knew that he would certainly be taking Elain off to a comfortable spot that he knew of. Did Nesta and Cassian have that kind of relationship yet? Lucien wasn't sure, but he figured that he would ask Elain as soon as Cassian retreated from them.

When Cassian didn't move for several moments, Lucien sent an uncertain glance toward Elain who raised an eyebrow at him and then turned her eyes on Cassian. "Would you like us to help you look for her?"

Lucien just about died, and he couldn't help a small flush of resentment for the Illyrian. The last thing he wanted was to have to let Elain go so that they could spend precious time searching for Nesta. Elain's elder sister was probably hiding somewhere Cassian wouldn't be able to find her.

"Six eyes are better than two." Cassian replied, relief clear on his face, and Lucien resisted rolling his eyes.

Sliding one of her hands down to take hold of Lucien's, Elain smiled at Cassian. "If she's not out here already, she will be shortly." She said, her eyes shifting up to look at her mate then. She could feel his disappointment, and also the anger, coming from him. She could tell he was trying to leash the desire within him to rip Cassian apart for interrupting the two of them, and she dearly hoped that he was able to control that desire, because she was sure that Cassian would win whatever scrap he and Lucien got into. Elain did not want her mate dead.

As golden leaves continued to fall gently around them, Elain tucked her arm in against Lucien's and smiled up at him. "Care to check the feast table with me, love?" she asked, and he inclined his head.

"Of course, Petal." The hand that came to rest on Elain's lower back was possessive, and she smiled up at him a little wider, letting him know that she enjoyed his touch. He kept her close to himself as they made their way toward the closest table, and Elain couldn't help letting her eyes roam over everything lay out for them to eat. She had already perused the options the last time that she and Lucien had walked the table, but she still couldn't seem to look away from the offerings. It was going to make it much harder to locate Nesta if she couldn't take her eyes off of the honeyed pears. Elain made a face, and tried to correct herself, but before long she had fallen into the bad habit once again.

"Where do you think she could be?" Elain asked, leaning her head against Lucien and lifting her eyes to the trees above them in the hope that she wouldn't look at the table.

"Probably hiding from Cassian."

Looking up at Lucien, she raised an eyebrow. "You think so?"

"No." Lucien gave her a slow smile in return. "She's probably on her way down, trying to fight the pull within herself. You felt it…" he bent to press a kiss to Elain's forehead, "She would as well… and it seems like she would want to fight anything that meant she was out of control."

Nodding, Elain figured that Lucien was exactly correct. Nesta hated being told what to do, there was no way that she would just obey something like that. She could all too easily see her sister sitting crosse legged with her arms folded and her jaw set as she determinedly ignored the beating of the drums. "Could be…"

"She won't be able to fight if after sundown."

"Oh?" Elain tilted her head, enjoying Lucien's fingers moving up and down her wrist, "Why?"

"It gets stronger." Lucien replied, "The females absorb some of the magic, and they choose a male to take…"

"So she will be out here soon enough anyway."

"That would be my bet."

Elain stopped walking then and turned to look up at Lucien. She lifted a hand, brushing his ruby hair back from his face before going up on her toes to press her lips to his. She could still hear the slight bell-like tinkling around them as leaves fell, still feel the quick beat of the drums as her heart raced to match. "I'm glad I haven't had to go looking for you among all of this."

"Oh, Petal." Lucien winked at her, a lazy arrogant smirk spreading across his face, "I have absolutely no intention of releasing you." His fingers continued to move up and down her arm, over her skin, and Elain couldn't help a pleasured shiver from moving through her.

"Good." She breathed, her own hand touching Lucien's cheek, her fingertips tracing his scar from brow to jaw. Something made her look up then, her eyes sliding from Lucien to the crowd, sweeping back and forth until she found pale eyes. "Ness…" she murmured, holding that blue-grey gaze.

"Oh…" Lucien turned, and Elain could tell it took him a second of his eyes moving over the crowd before he found Nesta too. "Oh…"

Nesta looked resplendent. She was wearing a long crimson dress that Elain would never have been able to imagine her sister in before that exact moment. "Cassian has found her…" She said, watching as the Illyrian cut a straight line through the dancing crowd and directly for Nesta.

"Didn't need our help after all." Lucien said, and Elain leaned into him when his arms snaked around her waist once more.