He let go of the hold on his shadows. Let them weave their way around them, enclosing them in a cocoon of night.
“You sent me away. You let go of everything we had, and for what? What did it get you? I told you Ilovedyou, and you still made me go. Why? Tell mewhy.”
Ribbons of lightning wove around her fingers and arm, and Daemon sent some of his magic to play with hers. They twined together in a rope of light and dark. Opposites that shouldn’t have worked, forming something new and beautiful. He leaned in further, his body close enough that when she breathed, her breasts brushed against his chest.
“I hate you,” Auraelia seethed, the ferocity of her lighting ramping up as her emotions rose.
Daemon chuckled. “You know, I don’t think that you do. But I can work with hate. Hate is just on the opposite side of the coin from love. And whether or not you’re ready to admit it to me, even to yourself, we both know that you love me, Princess.”
Her magic flared around them, ricocheting off his before they tangled together. He could feel the heat of her lightning as it danced with his shadows. Could feel the cool caresses of her wind as it battered against the shell of magic surrounding them. And it made all the blood in his body rush south.
Smiling, he closed the space between them until his body was pressing hers against the wall, and his leg was wedged between her thighs. Their gazes locked with a heat and intensity that could set the world ablaze.
Fuck this.
Daemon leaned down, but her hands flew to his chest when his mouth was but a breath away from hers.
“Daemon.”
His name was a breathy plea on her lips, and the heat from her hands on his chest was like a branding iron as burning streaks of light coiled around her fingers.
His eyes softened as he whispered, “I’m not afraid of you, Auraelia.”
Then he crashed his lips to hers.
There was a fraction of a second where she tensed against him, and he’d begun to regret his choice to push her this far. But the moment passed faster than it came, and she melted into his touch.
Her fingers tangled into the loose fabric of his shirt before migrating upward to the nape of his neck where she held him to her.
Daemon added pressure between her legs with his thigh, and he felt the moan escape her lips and travel into his own.
But as soon as his hands landed on her hips, a gust of wind slammed into his chest and pushed him back until he hit the desk.
They stared at each other, breathing heavily as magic clung to the air.
“That shouldn’t have happened.” Auraelia finally spoke. Averting her eyes and breaking the connection between them.
“Aurae—”
“Don’t. Just—don’t.”
“Fuck!” Daemon snapped as he ran both hands through his hair. Spinning around, he paced the length of the room a few times before coming back to stand a few feet from her. “Why? Tell me why, Auraelia. I fuckingloveyou, and I know that you love me too, and you keep pushing me away. Why?”
Anger and pain filled every word, and he could see the walls crumbling down around her as his words hit home.
“Tell me!” he shouted.
“I can’t!” she yelled in return. “Wecan’t.”
“Why?” He wasn’t yelling anymore, but his voice was still raised and vibrated with all the pain he’d been holding onto for the last two months.
“Because ofher! Goddess, Daemon. Do you not understand how hard this is? Ican’tbe in love with you becauseshewill usethat against me. She will use it against you, and your family, and your people.” Auraelia’s head fell back as tears trailed down her face.
Daemon watched as the wall he’d just begun to tear down got built back up brick-by-brick until she squared her shoulders and pushed away from the wall.
“We can’t do this.You shouldn’tbe here. This was a mistake.”
“It wasn’t, and I can see that nothing I say will change your mind. Butthis—” he gestured between them, “isn’t a mistake. This is inevitable. We’re two halves of the same soul, and I know you feel it. So, you can send me away again, but I’ll be back. I’ll always come back for you.”
