I stare at the man lying across from me, his bright red hair a tangled mess and his legs twisted in the soft black sheets. He’s attractive in a sort of wild way, face sharp and angled with a body to match. I don’t remember how I got here, although I remember meeting him at the bar last night. He was cheerful and charming, with an irresistibly wicked grin and talented fingers. It was an easy decision to spend the night with him, although that fae liquor has made the events a blur. I guess we accomplished what we set out to do, though, since my ass and back are aching.
Turning away from the stranger (what was his name?), I carefully sit up and slide out of the tall bed. My feet silently touch the floor, and after gathering my strewn clothes and pulling them on, I quietly leave the messy room.
The first thing I notice as I walk through the hall is that everything is expensive, and we’re not in an apartment, as I originally thought. The guy’s rich, obviously, and popular, judging by the photos on the walls. The stairs lead me down to a large foyer, and I barely glance at the large chandelier before my eyes go to the shoes by the door. There are different sizes and styles, and my stomach rolls.
Fuck. I think I went home with a married guy.
Guilt gnawing at me, I turn away from the shoes and look around until I spot a wallet on the foyer table. Inside is a surprisingly thick stack of bills, which I quickly pocket. I might engage in a long stream of one-night stands, but I only do single men.
“You’re free to the cash, but leave the cards, will you? They’re a pain in the ass to replace.”
I jump and spin around, face settling into a glare when I see the man leaning against the wall at the bottom of the stairs. “You’re married.”
He shrugs, scratching his head. “You want breakfast?”
“No,” I reply sharply, going over to the front door to find my shoes. I must’ve been wasted to miss the signs of a taken man. “I’m leaving before your…whatever finds out you cheated.”
“I didn’t cheat,” he says, walking past me and retrieving my shoes from the rack.
I take them and cram them onto my feet. “So you’re not married?” That would be a relief.
“No, I am.”
Gritting my teeth, I straighten and reach for the doorknob. “Then you cheated.” I yank open the door, squinting against the bright sun. I step outside, but the man’s voice stops me.
“So is this what you do? Sleep with men and rob them?”
When I turn to look at him, he’s watching me with raised eyebrows. I merely smile, shaking the hair out of my eyes. “Your own fault for bringing me home with you.” Turning away again, I head down the garden path and through the front gate. As I thought, he lives in one of the city’s rich neighbourhoods, all old houses, neat gardens, and fancy cars. He must’ve been slumming last night to bring me home.
I keep my head down while practically running down the sidewalk, feeling like everyone’s staring. The only comforting thing is the cash in my pocket, which is enough to get me a good meal and a night at a cheap motel—unless I find a new guy tonight.
A couple of blocks away, the intimidating suburb gives way to a long street of stores. Fingering the money in my pocket, I hurry across the street to a small café (they don’t have greasy spoons in this part of town) and step inside with a furtive look over my shoulder. No one’s following me—no one ever is—but I doubt I’ll ever be able to stop checking.
“Just for one?”
I return my attention to the hostess, whose hair is falling out of her high ponytail to hang in front of her tired eyes. I nod, and she attempts a smile, before leading me to a small table in the corner. It’s getting busy, the Saturday brunch crowd, so I make myself as small as possible while I read the menu. I hate crowds, but I’ve got no choice but to eat out since I no longer have a home. I order a bunch of things, enjoying the luxury of having enough to afford more than one dish. I used to feel bad about the stealing, but I’ve long moved past the guilt, my empty stomach more than enough incentive.
Tracing the marks in the table, I look up at the sound of footsteps to smile at the server—but frown when I instead see the man I went home with. “Did you follow me?”
He takes the seat across from me, stifling a yawn and leaning his elbows on the table. “You didn’t think I’d just let you go, did you?”
“Are you kidding me?” I demand, staring at him. “What, you thought we could go for another round? If I’d known you were married, I wouldn’t have fucked you in the first place.” I’ve dealt with clingy guys before, but none that have followed me after I left.
The man smiles slightly, eyes flicking around the restaurant. “I wanted to talk, actually.” Glancing at me, he tilts his head and studies my face. “I’m Felix, by the way. I told you last night, but I doubt you remember.”
Well, he’s right about that. “Isn’t your wife gonna wonder where you went? Or husband?”
Felix ignores the question, leaning back to give the server room to set down an array of plates. She puts a menu in front of Felix with a smile, which he returns. “Could I get a coffee, please?”
With a nod, she heads back through the restaurant, and Felix looks at the food in front of me. “You seriously gonna eat all that?”
“What of it?” I pick up my fork and reach for the plate of blueberry pancakes. I can’t remember the last time I had pancakes.
“Nothing, you just don’t look like you could eat all this.” Felix snags a piece of orange from the plate of eggs, but I don’t object, because I hate oranges. “You’re way too skinny.”
Swallowing a mouthful of pancake, I mutter, “Not like I want to be skinny.” It’s hard to eat properly without any money—not that he seems the type to have experienced that, of course. “Is that what you want to talk about? My eating habits?”
Felix shrugs, resting one elbow on the back of his chair. “Just want to get to know you, is all. We didn’t really do much talking last night.” I’ll bet we didn’t. “Where did you grow up?”
Stiffening, I snap, “None of your business.”
“What are you parents like?”
“Dead.”
The server returns with a cup of coffee, and Felix orders a plate of waffles, before turning his attention back to me as she walks away. “Sorry.”
“Then stop asking questions,” I retort, stabbing viciously into my last bite of pancake. It’s hard to believe I ate so fast. I push aside the plate and move on to the omelette. “I have no intention of seeing you again, so I don’t want to get to know you.”
Felix says nothing to that, and for a moment, I think he’s given up—then he starts talking again. “I grew up here, but my parents moved across the ocean a few years ago to live with my grandparents.”
“Did they raise you to be a cheater?”
“I didn’t cheat,” Felix insists, sounding exasperated.
“Then what do you call sleeping with someone else when you’re already married?”
“It’s…complicated.”
“Cheater.”
Felix sighs and drinks his coffee (black, I notice, which is disgusting), before picking up another slice of orange. It isn’t long before the server comes back with his waffles, and we sit in uncomfortable silence as we eat. I keep expecting and bracing myself for more questions, but Felix seems more interested in studying the other diners while he slowly chews. I’ve noticed that he’s always observing people, his bright green eyes almost uncanny.
My stomach finally protests halfway through the French toast, so I get the rest of my food packed up. If I’m careful (and have access to a fridge), I’ll be able to make it last a few meals. When the bill comes, I can’t help but relish the feel of money in my pocket—even if it isn’t mine.
“Well, I’m glad you robbed me for a good reason,” Felix drawls, finishing the last of his waffles. “Least it wasn’t for, like, meth or something.”
Dropping a couple bills on the table, I reply, “Don’t think I’m returning this.”
“Oh, I don’t.” Felix pulls some money from his pocket for his own bill, before standing. “C’mon.”
I raise an eyebrow and collect my bag of leftovers. “What? I’m not going with you.”
“We’ve…really got a lot more to talk about.”
“Like what?” I step back as a ring is suddenly shoved into my face, Felix’s serious face behind it. “What’s this?”
“A wedding ring.”
Rolling my eyes, I walk past him. “I already know you cheated.” I quickly reach the door, hearing footsteps behind me.
“I didn’t— Kit, we got married last night.”
Those words stop me instantly, a bell ringing merrily as the door shuts behind me. Felix reaches my side, still holding the ring and studying my face. I stare blankly at him, before letting out a bark of laughter. “You’re lying.”
He shakes his head, face solemn. “I’m not. I only vaguely remember it happening, but then I found your ring on the nightstand…”
“How is that proof of anything?” I demand, shoving past him yet again. “That’s complete bullshit. I would not marry someone I just met—”
“Then tell me why there’s a marriage license with your name on it sitting on my dresser!”
I stop again, teeth clenched and lips thin. I would not do that, but…but I had a lot to drink last night, and I really don’t remember much after we got to the club… I’ve done stupid shit when drunk before. “Show me the license.” I need proof before I do anything. If he’s lying, then I’ll leave, done, but if he’s not …
“It’s still in my room.”
“Fine.” This could be a trap, a way for him to get me back in his house (and that thought terrifies me, deep down), but if it’s not, I need to know.
Felix holds on to the ring when I refuse to take it, and the sounds of the world moving around us seem strangely alien compared to the tense silence between us. We arrive at his house all too soon.
“Are you home alone?” I ask, noticing that there doesn’t seem to have been any movement in the house since I left.
Felix shakes his head and starts up the stairs, pausing when he notices that I’m not following. He gives me a questioning look, but I just say, “I’m waiting down here,” and he shrugs, nods, and disappears down the hall. As I wait, I cast frequent, nervous glances at the door and around the foyer, expecting at any moment for someone to appear. By the time Felix returns, I’m ready to say fuck it and leave.
“Here.”
Felix shoves a thick certificate at me, its edges embossed with gold. I gingerly take it, blood going cold when my eyes sweep over the swirling letters.
—certifies that Felix O’Malley and Kit Singh were joined in marriage—
“This can’t be real.”
“Believe me, it is.” He looks tired as he runs his hand back through his messy red hair. “I called the courthouse before I came to get you, and they confirmed it.”
I’m shaking now, lungs painfully squeezed. “You…you…” With a strangled cry, I throw the certificate away from me, yelling, “How could you do this to me?!”
Felix frowns, arms crossed. “I know it’s not the most ideal situation, but it works out for you, doesn’t it?”
“How the hell does this work out for me?!” I demand, taking an angry step forward. “You forced me into marriage!” I whirl away, bag of food thumping against my leg, and stalk toward the door. “This was supposed to be a fucking one-night stand!”
“Kit, wait.” Felix catches my arm and gently pulls me back. “Let’s talk about this, okay?”
I’m in no mood to be coddled. I tear my arm away, and snarl, “Talk about what? Talk about how you own me?” Because that’s what marriage is, isn’t it? If I’m married to him, then he controls my life. And, wait— “You’re already married!”
Felix sighs, reaching out to touch my arm again. “That’s what we need to talk about—”
“Don’t touch me.”
Growling in frustration, Felix steps back. “Fine. So what’re you gonna do? Storm off? We’ll still be married.” Even though the words are harsh, Felix looks more sad than anything, although I don’t see why, since this is all his fault. This was supposed to be so easy, so fucking routine, and he just …
“Why?” My voice breaks, making my teeth clench against the sign of weakness. “You’ve just…you’ve ruined everything.”
“What did I ruin, Kit?” he asks softly. “You have no home, you have no friends—”
“How do you know that?!”
“You talk a lot when you’re drunk.”
I rub at my eyes, trying to calm myself down. I can act mature about this, I can be rational. I can. “And what are you gonna do about your other marriage, y’know, the person you cheated on?” Although maybe that’s what he meant about not cheating, since we fucked after getting married.
I sense movement and quickly look up the stairs, eyes fixing on a tall Sinrian man with long, silky black hair. He’s somehow stunning, although his features are merely attractive. His dark eyes meet mine, and I freeze, a strange thrill of fear running through me. It’s a relief when he looks at Felix instead. “Felix, what the hell’s going on?” His voice makes me shiver.
Felix lets out a long sigh, rubbing his eyes. With a weak wave, he says, “Sei, this is Kit.”
Those dark eyes fix on me again, topped by raised eyebrows. “Okay. What’s he doing here?”
And suddenly, Felix looks nervous. “Well, it’s…”
Lip curling, I snap, “He cheated on you,” because I can see the ring, and this is obviously the husband. Why Felix would cheat on him with me… “Although apparently it wasn’t actually cheating, because we got married.”
Sei’s slow steps pause halfway down, expression dark as he leans over the banister. He moves like a panther, seeming dangerous even when wearing only a pair of low slung pyjama pants. Although his eyes are fixed on me, his words are directed at Felix. “Is that true?”
With a quick grimace, Felix dips his head in a nod, guilt twisting his face. Sei shoves a hand back through his hair, turning away to head back up the stairs. “I’m going to get the rest of them. Just…wait in the living room or something.”
“Okay.” Felix’s voice is quiet, and he waits until Sei is gone before catching my hand and pulling me through a doorway behind me. Although I don’t want to be caught up in family drama, I do want this sorted out.
It’s only when we’re sitting on the couch that it hits me: “What did he mean ‘the rest of them’?”
Looking uncomfortable, Felix licks his lips and avoids my eyes. “Well…what you don’t know about us—”
“Felix, what the hell did you do?!”
Felix quickly stands and catches the man storming into the room before he can reach me. “Neve, calm do—”
“Who the hell is this?! You just married some stranger without telling any of us?!”
“It was a mistake. We were drunk—”
“Oh, drunk, that makes it all better!” He manages to free himself of Felix and stalks over to me, caging me in against the couch with his arms. There’s murder in his grey eyes. “Did you think you could just sneak your way in here?”
Although there’s something otherworldly about him, he doesn’t evoke the same feelings of fear that Sei does. Gritting my teeth, I grab his narrow shoulders and shove him back, before surging to my feet. The man, Neve, stands his ground, his chest pressed against mine. The silver hair that curls around his ears looks soft, but his pretty face is twisted into a glare.
It’s then that I notice how cold he is.
“Neve, stop it.” Felix pushes a hand between us, pulling Neve away. “I know I fucked up, but can we at least talk about this?”
“I don’t want to talk about this—”
“We can hear you yelling from upstairs.”
Two more men enter the room behind Sei, one a slender blond, the other just as tall with warm dark skin and his braided hair pulled back into ponytail. They both look like they just woke up.
“Neve, we’ll get this sorted out, so please calm down,” says the blond. He walks over to us, brushing Neve’s cheek with long fingers, his light blue eyes flicking toward me. He studies me for a moment, before looking at Felix. “I can see the appeal, but I think you missed a few steps.”
“Believe me, I know.” Felix collapses back on the couch with a long sigh, fixing tired eyes on me.
I look around at all the men in the room, before demanding, “What the hell is going on? Who are all of you?” I recognise them from the array of photos, but what are they all doing here?
The blond looks surprised. “Felix didn’t tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
The blond pointedly looks at Felix, who grimaces. But before he can say anything, a gust of icy air hits me, and Neve snaps, “We’re polygamists.”
***
The house is even bigger than I initially thought, which makes sense with the amount of people living in it. I’ve been wandering from room to room and floor to floor since Felix suggested I wait outside (so they could all yell at each other, I guess)—I’ve also been thinking. I’m still angry about the whole thing (after all, marriage is just a politer term for slavery, really), but…this can definitely work to my advantage.
I’m not a legal citizen of Correna. I’ve managed, so far, working almost any job I can to survive, but having to worry every day about being discovered and deported…it hasn’t been easy. But now that I’m married to Felix (and his…husbands), I don’t have to worry about that anymore—I’m now a citizen.
Of course, I’m now also in the government’s records, which means that if Felix divorces me…they’ll send me back. My stomach turns at the thought, and I leave the office I found, heading back down the hall and eyeing the photos hanging on the walls. I need to make the rest like me so they don’t want me to leave.
Quiet steps bring me back to the living room, but rather than go inside (where I can still hear them arguing, although without the yelling from earlier), I slide down the wall and sit curled just next to the doorway.
“—nowhere to go.”
“That’s your reason?”
“Well, no, it’s not my only reason…”
“You can’t tell us you’re in love with him.”
“And if I am?”
“How the hell—”
“Sei, please. Let’s sleep on this, okay? None of us are thinking rationally.”
“The one not thinking rationally is Felix. How can he bring that kid here and expect us to accept him?”
“Sei—”
“Where did you find him, Felix? A club? A bar? He’s probably a whore.”
“He’s not a whore.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I—” But the rest is lost under the sound of the front door flying open, and another voice snapping, “He’s not staying here!”
Neve storms into the house, the tall man with the braided hair (Faolan, I think) close behind. His dark eyes meet mine a second before Neve spots me, his pretty face twisting into something ugly.
“You little slut!” he snarls, and before I can fully get to my feet, I’m shoved against the wall, the air turning icy around me. “You must think this is all so funny!”
Anger wells up in me, but it’s laced through with panic. “Let go!” I try to pry Neve’s hands away from where his nails are digging into my shoulders, but my palms burn, and I pull them away with a gasp. Neve presses close, chest pressing against mine, and I clench my teeth, turning my head away. Before I can say anything, however, he’s pulled back. I try to calm my breathing, watching the puffs of white that form in the cold air. My shoulders burn.
“Let’s go upstairs, okay?” Faolan says to Neve, stroking his silvery hair.
Neve looks as though he’ll refuse, cold eyes still fixed on me, but his mouth thins, and he nods sharply. Without another word, they head upstairs, and when I glance back at the living room, the blond (I think his name is Sage) is watching them with a frown. Before I can look away again, his eyes meet mine. He smiles.
“Done exploring?”
Sudden nerves closing my throat, I only nod. Gaze returning to the stairs, he says, “This situation isn’t going to get resolved today.”
I lick my lips, managing to find my voice. “I didn’t think it would.” Not with four husbands. What the hell was Felix thinking? “But…what should I do tonight?” I lost my apartment days ago.
“You can live here until we figure things out,” he replies, frowning when Felix starts yelling again. With a sigh, he turns around and returns to the living room.
I remain where I am, biting my lip. I might only have one night here, so I have to work quickly if I want to convince them to let me stay. I need to make them believe that I could be a good husband.
I can do that.