Sol cried out and sprinted harder.
She darted around another glittering hill. A cascade of rings and pearl necklaces spilled in her wake. Her chest heaved with every breath. Her power flared in her hands again, but there was nowhere to aim, nowhere to flee.
And then. . .a sliver of something caught her gaze.
Is that a way out?
Up ahead, tucked between two jagged mounds of treasure and a wall embedded with sapphire veins, there was a vertical split in the rock, narrow but real. Light filtered through it—faint, gray-blue.
Yes. I can squeeze through that.
Her heart pounded.
Sol beelined for it, ducking under a throne half-buried in gems, skirting the edge of a silver pool of melted armor and forgotten crowns.
Just a few more steps.
Then. . .
WHOOSH!
Wind and heat blasted her from behind.
A thunderous clap came from snapping wings.
She spun just in time to see Korin’s enormous form leaping over the hills of treasure.
Oh no!!
His wings unfurled mid-air, blotting out everything. The gale-force wind of his descent sent coins raining down in a glittering storm. Rubies bounced. Gold coins flew like thrown daggers. A whole pile of diamonds shattered under the impact.
Sol shielded her face and screamed.
He landed in front of her with a sound like thunder cracking the bones of the world.
Dust and gold flared upward in a shimmering explosion.
Korin’s wings spread wide, brushing the edges of the cavern, his talons sinking into the treasure, claws curling around mounds of silver like they were sand.
And then. . .as if he could hear her thoughts and read all of their intentions, he blocked the exit.
Blasted beast!
Fire simmered in his throat. It pulsed, dim but visible, deep in his belly. His chest rose with the weight of it.
Magic cracked in the air.
And those eyes—oh gods, those eyes—held hers with a wildness no dream could ever capture.
Sol stumbled back.
The bear pelt slipped again, exposing her breasts to the cold air and his molten gaze.
Korin let out a groan. “Why do you cover yourself?”
She shivered. “Why have you brought me here?”
Korin’s monstrous voice rumbled again, lower this time, more intimate—but no less terrifying. “You are ours. You are our mate.”
