Eternal Kingdom
Chapter Thirteen

**Bastion's POV** "Achoo!!!"

She looked fucking miserable when Lysander brought her back to me the following morning. So miserable that I couldn't even be mad at her for ignoring my links all night.

"What happened?" I asked in a strange mix of concern and frustration, lifting the back of my hand to her forehead. "Fuck, Aria, you're burning up."

"I, um, went swimming last night." She confessed timidly, avoiding my gaze but shooting Lysander a scowl when he chuckled. I directed my attention to him, trying to ignore the fact that he still had his arms around my mate. "Can't you heal her, or something? Let her drink?" His cleared his throat, releasing Aria into my embrace. "Sorry, no can do." "Why not?"

"It would not be wise to allow her to drink from me." He stated plainly, stepping back and watching Aria's sniffling form with regret. I wanted to be angry at him for letting her swim when it was still technically fucking winter, but she was a grown woman and I didn't want her to think I was treating her like a child, so I let it go.

"Come on, baby. Let's get you in a hot bath, then bed, okay?" I whispered into her ear, grinning from ear to ear when she asked to be carried. She used to complain every time I carried her places, so it was a pleasant change to the norm. Of course I obliged, scooping her into my arms and cradling her tightly to my chest. I didn't give a shit if she got me sick. I would take care of my girl like I always had. I lived for nothing else.

Once we got to the bathroom, I set her on the counter while I started the tub. The smell of saltwater was heavy on her. It was no wonder she got sick, I didn't think she even showered after her dip.

I began stripping her of her clothes, which she assisted me with, but her movements were stiff and she still hadn't looked at me.

"Baby?" I rubbed my hands up and down her bare thighs. Normally her being naked would drive me and my wolf wild, but I couldn't even consider it when she was looking so sick.

She chanced a glance at me, her shaky green eyes meeting mine and starting my heart back up, my heart which ceased beating the moment she left with our babies.

"Can you join me?" She mumbled, as if she were afraid I'd deny her. Like hell would I ever deny her, especially not when she was asking me to bathe with her.

"Of course, Aria. Let's get you in first, okay?" She nodded, wrapping her hands around my neck so I could carry her to the bath.

As soon as her skin hit the water, she hissed, her nose scrunching in discomfort.

"Is it too hot?" I asked, lifting her back out. She shook her head, pushing against me until I set her into the tub.

She sank into the large basin, stifling her cough as she leaned her head against the edge with her eyes closed. She looked so peaceful, so beautiful.

I wanted to kiss every single inch of her. I wanted to heal her with my touch.

She had been through way too much shit in the last month to get sick all of a sudden.

I removed my own clothes, bit by bit, and by the time I turned around to climb in, I noticed her eyes running up and down the length of my body. I smirked, displacing the water as I lowered myself. "If you keep looking at me like that, I won't be able to hold back. And you're sick, so that would be a terrible idea." My voice was husky as I gripped her wrist and pulled her over rest between my legs. She melted against me, turning slightly so she could curl up in my lap. Trickling water over her smooth skin and pressing tender kisses into her neck had her sighing in contentment. "The house sure is quiet without the kids." I mumbled, watching her lashes flutter open.

"It is, isn't it?" Her eyes locked with mine, a certain sorrow trapped inside of them. "Look, I... I'm sorry I haven't been helping much this past week."

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"You don't need to apologize, baby. You were going through some shitty things." I clenched my jaw, preventing my mouth from rattling off just what I thought about the situation with Rory. That fucking bastard abandoned Aria, our Queen, with the stupid ass excuse of doing it for her sake. I couldn't forget the moment her eyes first scanned that damned letter. I had to keep her from collapsing. She cried all through the night over that dick. She trusted him. Hell, I trusted him.

We agreed early on that she would be our top priority, and she was for a long time. Whatever happened in that fucked up mind of his was beyond me. He said he would be back, and I knew one thing for sure, when I saw that asshole again I would beat the sense into him for hurting Aria.

"That's not an excuse to ignore you or the twins. That makes me no better than him." I could see the tears brimming in her eyes. I was tired of seeing her cry over him. It wasn't fair.

"Do you still love him?" I muttered, already knowing the answer, but hoping I was wrong anyway. Her defeated slouch told me her answer.

"Of course I still love him. He's my royal."

"Why don't you just renounce your bond?" I regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth, and she pushed off of me before I could even react, curling into a ball on the opposite side of the spacious tub. "Fuck, I'm sorry, baby. I know you wouldn't do that, it's just... I mean, shit. I hate seeing you in so much pain over him."

"He had to see me in pain over you, too, Bastion. For a month." She spat back.

"That's not fair, Aria. I didn't choose to hurt you. Rory did!" My voice was laced in the hurt of her attack, but it was also making me angry. How the hell could she defend what he did? Was she really that hooked on him just because of their bond?

She seemed to recognize my agony and immediately softened, crawling her way back to my arms and snuggling her face in the crook of my neck. Her heat was almost too much to bear and I could feel the sweat forming on my brow. "Baby, let's get you clean so you can head to bed. You don't look so good." Too bad the nearest court vampire was Dylan. There was no way I'd let her drink from that pervert. She would just have to get over her cold the old fashioned way. After washing and toweling her off, I dressed her in a long sleeve tee and a pair of fuzzy pink pajama bottoms. I tried my best to blow dry her hair, but just ended up tangling it. It was so damn long that I didn't know how to work with it. She was nice about my failure, though, and finished it herself while I went to get her some medicine from the pantry downstairs.

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By the time I returned she was fast asleep, curled up on top of the covers on Rory's side of the bed.

"Silly girl." I muttered, setting down the two pills and glass of water on the bedside table and sliding the duvet from under her so I could tuck her in. I gave her a loving kiss on her forehead, savoring her sweet and addicting scent with a deep breath, before turning to leave the room.

A shrill ring from downstairs caught my attention and I knew the sound to be Aria's cellphone. Who the hell would be calling her? Maybe it was her mom.

I followed the sound to the sofa table, my eyes turning black at the picture of Rory holding Aria flashing on the screen.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." I growled, picking it up trying my best not to crush the damn thing as I answered.

"Love?" His soft, lovesick voice rang through the speaker, making me want to choke him through the fucking phone.

"What the fuck are you calling her for? Don't you think you've done enough, asshole?" I gritted, not wanting to wake her by shouting. Rory's cold tone responded to me immediately.

"Oh, it's you. I want to speak to Aria. Give her the phone." I scoffed.

"Fuck no. Do you have any idea the hell you've put her through? Do you honestly think she wants to talk to you?" I hated how wrong I was. I knew she would jump at the idea of talking to him, but it wouldn't be anything but painful for her in the end. Rory sighed into the receiver.

"Bastion, I know you're pissed, but you can't keep her from me. I have just as much of a right to her as you do."

"Like hell you do! You surrendered that right when you walked out that fucking door. You're acting like you've done nothing wrong when you weren't even here to see the pieces you left behind. She just started talking again. No way in fucking hell am I going to let her talk to you and regress while she's already sick!" Shit, I knew I shouldn't have told him that, because that's the only damn thing he picked up on.

"Aria is sick? Is she okay? What happened?" His sudden concern was pissing me off even more and if I didn't get off soon I would drop dead from a stroke.

"It's not any of your damn business anymore, Rory. I'm taking care of her, and if you really loved her like you claim to, you would just stay away. She doesn't need you." With that, I hung up.

Within seconds his name popped back on the screen, but I forwarded the call, quickly blocking his number and shutting off her phone.

I'd rather die than let him hurt her anymore.