Cass wiped the corners of his mouth, his grin apparent as he tossed the now more battered chair leg to the side.
Lady Ava’s powers washed over him, so he turned away as he headed for the door. Cass even waved his hand, repairing the clothes he’d damaged while he heard Edgar sigh, loudly.
"He’s not going to keep his mouth quiet." Edgar muttered, coming to his side to walk in step with him. Cass chuckled.
"I have a feeling that he will. He would be too embarrassed to admit that I beat the shit out of him." Cass told him, all grins. He’d gotten some of his aggression out. He was so pleased, and he felt good. He might pay for that later, but he had a feeling that he wouldn’t.
Fiona was the one who gently convinced Lady Ava to treat the man, but it was Lucian who encouraged her sour, bitter behaviour. It was clear that he enjoyed that Lady Ava was too angry at the man, for the gods or otherwise, to do a good deed. It was Fiona that convinced her that she wasn’t doing a good deed, she was making sure that no one in the hero party got in trouble.
"Did you work out some of your aggression?" Lucian asked softly from the other side of Cass. Cass hadn’t even noticed the man coming up, which was a mild shock. Normally, he was able to feel the man, since he wasn’t particularly good at hiding how big he actually was. Maybe Cass was just a little drunk on what he’d just done.
His muscles ached, but in a good way. A way he hadn’t felt in a long time. Cass grinned at Lucian, his eyes bright.
"I think so." Cass told him happily, and Lucian’s eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled down at Cass. He reached out and patted his head, not ruffling his hair. He looked like he wanted to do more, but he glanced behind him and Cass had a feeling he was looking back at Fiona. "Looks like the girls are almost done. Good job on repairing his clothes." Lucian covered Cass with praise, and honestly, Cass was totally willing to take it right now.
Edgar sighed again from beside him, and when Cass turned to look at him, he was shaking his head.
"I’m just worried about how this will work out for us." Edgar muttered softly, and Cass felt his shoulders soften. He had thought the man had a problem with what he had done, given his response, but it turned out he was just worrying about the consequences. Cass reached out, patting his shoulder twice before pulling his hand back.
"It’ll be fine. Worst case scenario, I just reveal the truth, watch them all foam at the mouth, and then Lucian eats someone and we leave." Cass said it casually, trying to make a joke, but Edgar looked horrified and Lucian let out a laugh.
"Can we really have that as a future situation?" Lucian asked and Cass snorted. He rolled his eyes. He’d gotten out some of his anger on the fucking idiot of an older brother that Lord Ridgewood had, so he wasn’t feeling as bloodthirsty as he had before.
"No. I was joking. Fiona, how is Lady Ava doing? And how is your body?" Cass asked, feeling a little playful now that he’d gotten his frustration out. When Cass turned to catch Fiona’s gaze, she looked annoyed.
"Don’t you dare bring it up while we’re alone. I’m still mad at you for not consulting me about it. Avie’s fine, just annoyed at the idiot. Are you going to drop him from his position on the wall?" Fiona asked.
Lord Ridgewood hadn’t moved from his spot, his lip a little swollen from where Cass had missed on the third swing. Cass had apologised, not fully meaning it, but Lord Ridgewood had waved off the apology with a little smile on said beat up lips.
He then said it was a good thing he was marked up. His father wouldn’t believe that he had met up with his brother otherwise. Cass didn’t like the implied violence, but then again, he came from a family that was about silently killing your family members. He couldn’t be one to talk. Hell, Edgar was getting straight up replaced.
None of them had a leg to stand on in the fucked up family Olympics. They were competing in different categories.
"Let me check on something first before I say anything about that." Cass said, turning back to the doors where Byron stood outside. When he opened them slightly, Byron turned to look at him, his dark eyes dancing. Cass wasn’t sure how he could tell, but he knew that the man was pleased.
"Yes, my Lord?" He asked, and Cass turned his gaze to scan the area. About a dozen paces away, big bro’s entourage stood. Waiting. But afraid to come any closer.
Cass grinned, his grip on the door tightening as he slid his gaze back to Byron.
"Just...make sure that they come to pick up the trash, alright?" Cass asked and Byron nodded his head once. He kept his face blank, but Cass could tell that the man was amused.
"I’m telling Sam what you did when we get back." Byron whispered quietly and Cass blinked, before he chuckled.
"He won’t be that mad." Cass told him and Byron’s lips did turn up then.
"No. He’ll be proud, I can tell." Cass’ amusement paused momentarily to grapple with those words. Proud.
Sam would be proud of him. That was...
Cass swallowed thickly, pushing off the door and sliding it closed as he felt his chest tighten. He hadn’t even considered that. Sam was such a lover of who Lord Blackburn was, how aggressive he was, how villainous he was. Of course he would be proud of him for beating up another person. Cass had thought that he would be concerned about how his body was holding up, but that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t...
Cass swallowed again, and felt Lucian step in closer.
"Sweetness? What’s wrong? You look a little pale." Lucian spoke softly, tenderly, and Cass slid his gaze towards the other side of the room where everyone else was. No one was paying attention to them, so Cass carefully lowered the other man to the floor and let Lord Ridgewood and Fiona deal with that as Lucian filled his field of vision.
Edgar was there too, but he had...he seemed conflicted. Cass would have to tease him about that later.
"I’m fine. Just...feeling emotional. Far more than normal." Cass told him quietly and Lucian scanned his face, taking in his nervous twitch, Cass’ breathing patterns and the way he was squeezing his hands tightly.
"Alright. Let me know. There are more broken chair legs and I have a strong body." Lucian offered and Cass felt his eyes widen and dart to the other man’s face. Lucian’s eyes were orange, melting and warm as he met Cass’ gaze.
"Why do you keep offering up your body like this?" Cass asked, almost horrified at the image. Lucian’s grin grew.
"What else do I have to offer you besides my sturdy body?" Lucian asked with a chuckle. Cass’ mouth fell open as Lucian leaned in. It was slow, predictable, and Cass felt his breath fan his ear before he spoke. "Besides, you seem pretty satisfied with it." Lucian teased before pulling back. Cass slapped a hand against his ear, covering it and Lucian pulled back with a smug grin. He stepped back, holding his arms out wide and did a spin. He then made a pointed look down his body. "See? Sturdy. I can take a beating. You can even hire someone else to do it." Lucian said and Cass found himself speaking before he could stop.
"No. I like to be hands on." Cass said quietly and Lucian tossed his head back and laughed. His long hair swayed, his eyes bright, and even though he was wearing fancier clothing, he just looked like a pirate who had infiltrated a fancy location.
"I like the sounds of that." Lucian told him, all smirk, and Cass felt his face warm. Fucker.
"Could you two stop flirting? We’ve been gone too long from the party. I’m worried about what they’ve done while we’re gone. While we are temporarily aligned with my father, he’s a selfish man. He only cares about himself, and the honour of the Vespertine family. If they have convinced him it’s a good idea, he might turn on us." Edgar spoke urgently, and anxiously.
Hearing his words, Cass couldn’t blame the man. He had every right to worry. He knew his father the best.
"Well, we best hurry up so that Daddy dearest doesn’t stab us in the back, hmm?" Cass joked, and Edgar gave him a hard look.
"Please, do not ever call him that again. I think I just threw up a little in my mouth." Edgar said and a feminine voice spoke up from behind them.
"I agree with Eddie." It was Lady Ava, and she sounded...done. Passed the point of pissed. "The gods just let me know that Eddie is right to worry. We need to hurry." Lady Ava said, somber, and Cass felt a knowing wash over him.
Call it the gods or whatever, but he had a feeling he knew what they had done while they were gone.
"They have probably introduced the man you are supposed to marry, Lady Ava." Cass said. "That’s easier to do than announce that Fiona is a royal without her there." Cass pointed out and Fiona grunted. Lord Ridgewood came to join the group, on the outskirts, and Cass narrowed his gaze. "You need to stay closer to the group, Lord Ridgewood. If I have to make a fool of myself again for your sake, I’ll be pissed." Cass warned, and watched as the ginger turned red behind the ears.
He nodded seriously, keeping his head down. It was interesting to see him this meek, and when Cass glanced at Edgar, the man had a complicated look on his face. Cass wondered if this was going to affect him helping Cass out.
Cass then blushed at the thought.
Why the hell was he thinking about that right now? And why did it sound like he was jealous about it? He really wasn’t. They had the childhood friends to lovers trope written all over them. Cass didn’t need to interfere. He also didn’t need to care about what Edgar did or didn’t do.
Cass spun and placed his hand on the door again.
"Alright, let’s go cause havoc to their plans." Cass said, feeling everyone behind him. They honestly felt like a group of villains compared to a group of heroes. They certainly were going to be the bane of someone’s existence tonight.