Chapter 481

Irritation flowed through Lucien, and he knew that he was being possessive. Trying to leash the urge to hurl something fiery or heavy at Cassian, he instead released a long sigh of a breath and turned his head to look at the others. These males should have known better than to interrupt a mated couple when they were trying to make the most of time alone. He was sure they hadn't known quite what he and Elain had been up to, but they should have understood that he wasn't going to take kindly to the presence of others, especially other males who were not family. Not his family, anyway. He knew that neither Rhys nor Cassian were interested in Elain in any way that should make him jealous, but the urge to protect, to keep her from them, was coursing through him in a way that his brain was finding difficult to overrule.

The soft caress of Elain's hand against his cheek distracted him and he looked away from Cassian and straight into his mate's eyes. She knew, he realised. She knew how he felt, and what he was struggling against, and she gave him a gentle smile. "I'm not going anywhere." She told him softly, her fingers moving over his scar. Lucien never really knew why she liked to touch that scar so much. He hated it. Every time he caught his reflection in a mirror, or glass, it still surprised him. That mask that had been stuck to him for decades had hidden the scar enough that he hadn't gotten used to seeing it for so long, and it was still new enough that it caught his eye, drew his attention, each time he looked at himself. He knew it was probably vain, but the negative emotions that filled him each time he caught sight of it had yet to lessen, and he knew it would take time. Still, Elain's hands were always so gentle when she touched it, and he remembered how she had once told him that she liked it. This was the only face of his she had ever known, and she had told him that his face had become familiar to her well before she had accepted the bond. If she loved it, Lucien didn't think he had any cause for complaint. "Silly male…" She breathed, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing herself firmly to his chest, eyes still holding his gaze.

She had done this before. That first night she had walked into Rhys' kitchen and the possessiveness had taken him. Elain had walked toward him, wrapped her arms around him, instead of running away. It had worked that night, when he had been able to hold her close to himself, and he felt it working now. Whatever threat he felt from the presence of the two other males was lessened with Elain pressed firmly against him. She was all his. He tried to focus on that, tried to tell himself that it was fine because she was in his arms and she wasn't going anywhere. She had said so herself. Distantly, Lucien felt her tugging on the bond, felt her pulling at something within himself, and he tried to focus on what she was doing. "Petal…?" he breathed, tightening his arms around her again, and she grinned at him. In his mind he found that golden thread that linked them, and he saw what she had done.

"Feel better?" She asked, having finished winding the golden thread of their bond around the both of them, binding them together. Lucien nodded, feeling a little more at ease knowing that there would be no separating them for quite a while.

"I…" he gave her a sheepish smile, "I know I need to get better at … controlling that…"

Elain gave a half-shrug, her eyes still on his face. "It's instinct…" She replied, "It's natural."

"Yes…" he agreed, "But I don't need to turn into some mindless animal every time it happens." Especially as Heir to the Day Court. Lucien tried not to imagine what could happen if, one day, some important visitor to the Day Court happened to look Elain's way and Lucien was unable to control the protectives that took hold. The Heir couldn't very well go around ripping people apart.

Elain had distracted him so completely, that Lucien hadn't actually noticed the others moving closer, and he was a little bit startled when Rhys spoke from nearby. "You will get better at controlling it." Lucien glanced at the older male, a little embarrassed that they had apparently been aware of his struggle, but then both Rhys and Cassian had senses for this kind of threat. They were both warriors and needed to be able to detect when things were about to get violent. He shouldn't have been surprised that they'd been aware. "It comes with practice."

"And what happens if during this practice I slip…?" Lucien muttered, hands firm on Elain's waist, still needing her close, and unwilling to let her go.

Rhys tilted his head. "Make sure you've got decent Healers on call." Lucien thought about what he had done in the past, both to his brothers, and those horrible males who had tried to destroy the Day Court, and he wasn't convinced that any Healer would be able to do much for whoever had inspired that kind of rage from him. He didn't say anything about that thought, however, and just fixed his familiar courtly mask upon his face and smiled. "What did you come looking for us for?" he asked, eyes shifting from Rhys to Feyre who stood beside her mate.

"Oh, you know…" Feyre sounded vague, and Nesta snorted.

"We needed to get Cassian away from Helion." The eldest Archeron sister said flatly. "Before he offered to rub lotion into the High Lord's back." Lucien slanted a glance at Cassian, wondering if the Illyrian was going to protest this comment, but Cassian was just smiling, clearly amused as he watched Nesta. The look in Cassian's eyes as he looked at Nesta made Lucien relax a little more, his hold on Elain loosening just a little.

"Well, if you had let me rub lotion into your back, Nes, I wouldn't have needed to ask Helion…"

Elain's soft laugh drew Lucien's attention back to her and he pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. She smiled at him, and adjusted herself into a more comfortable position, legs still around his waist as he held her.

"I don't imagine my mother would have taken kindly to someone else offering to rub lotion into Helion's back…" Lucien glanced again at Cassian.

"Very right." Cassian said simply, "She did not."