His knuckles brushed my skin. Then, he hauled me against the bars and lifted me until I stood on my tiptoes. The place where our skin touched buzzed, like uncomfortable static.
His scent of smoke and spice with hints of blood and cypress poured into the cell. “I didn’t ask for your thoughts or opinion, prisoner, so keep your mouth shut.”
I definitely wouldn’t be keeping my mouth closed now. “Oh, you weren’t speaking to the class?” My rubber-soled shoe tips skidded a little on the stone floor, but I strained to keep myself steady. I wouldn’t give the sexy villain any more of an ego boost than he’d already had. He was already too damn arrogant. As theking, he was definitely born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
Bastard.
With my free hand, I seized the bars near his side. I had to change my strategy if I wanted him distracted while I plucked hisblade without him noticing. I smiled brightly. “To be clear, I’m not complaining about you showing off your strength. Do you do this with all the prisoners, or am I just special?”
The way his eyes bugged almost had me laughing, but somehow I managed to swallow it. His grip on my coat collar tightened. “You…” A muscle ticked in his jaw.
“Yes?” I curled my fingers along his chest with my left hand while my right edged toward the blade. “I’m listening. Are you saying Iamspecial? I’m flattered.” My fingers wrapped around a blade handle. “I guess I did fall out of the sky through a mirror portal.”
His eyes narrowed, and the muscles in his jaw clenched so tight I thought he might break his own teeth.
My stomach twisted, and that tug in my chest made me want to press closer to him. What the hell was wrong with me? This would be easier if he didn’t have a smoking hot body, sculpted features, and a glare that cut through me.
“Don’t worry, sweetie. I know I’m special. It’s okay to like me.” I winked as I slid one of his daggers from its sheath and tucked my hand back at my side so the coat hid it from sight.
He stared at me as if he didn’t know whether he wanted to kill me or kiss me. The violet ring around his pupils thickened as the pupils also dilated. How were his eyes changing color? That was weird.
Under his stare, my face heated, completely at odds with the cold gnawing at my legs. His fingers flexed in my collar, tightening enough that the fur brushed my throat. We were too close. His breath slid over my lips, warm and fresh like cider and honey. My heart hammered in my chest like it was trying to punch through the narrow space between us.
I should probably de-escalate this situation.
“Careful,” I murmured, keeping my voice light even as nerves snapped inside me. “If you keep looking at me like that, people are going to talk.”
One of his brows kicked up. “About what?”
I let my gaze drop to his mouth for a deliberate second before meeting his eyes again. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe about the terrifying king of whatever this frozen nightmare place is getting handsy with the strange girl from Tennessee. How you had me dragged down here, pinned me to the bars, and then couldn’t keep your hands off me.”
His nose wrinkled. “You mistake rage at your insolence for interest.”
“Those aren’t mutually exclusive.” I pressed my fingers against the solid heat of his chest. Muscle shifted under my palm when he sucked in a short breath. Good. It was working. “Besides, if this is you being angry, I don’t want to know what you look like when you’re impressed.”
His gaze trailed from my eyes to my mouth, then lower, to where the coat bunched around my chest where he held it. Heat coiled low in my belly, and I had to stop myself from crossing my legs to keep it under control.
Okay, wow. I’d never reacted to a man this way before. I had to get control over myself before I did something stupid. Although…it’d probably rattle him if I kissed that pulse point on his throat.
No.Stop.That won’t de-escalate things.
But my head leaned forward as if it had a mind of its own. The damn traitor. I’d never felt this kind of draw to someone before, and there was no doubt that all he wanted to do was kill me. I had to get him to release me so I could clear my damn head. “The longer we stay like this, the harder it is to insist I’m nothing, don’t you think?”
He jerked back as if burned.
The sudden loss of support made my legs buckle. My knees hit the ground, pain shooting through them, as my butt dropped onto my heels. I caught a bar with my free hand, keeping the blade hidden, and steadied myself, adrenaline pulsing through my veins.
Kai’s fists uncurled, and he flexed his fingers. He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes.
I had no clue if this exchange had worked in my favor or if I'd just hammered the nail into my own coffin, but at least I’d gotten the only weapon available to me in this frigid, damp prison cell.
Opening his eyes, Kai glared icily at me. Whatever conflict he’d had before was now gone. “You think far too highly of your effect on me.” He laughed a little too loudly. “Do not mistake my anger for passion, Hannah of Tennessee. You are not special. You are a problem, and one that I will resolve.”
“I’ve got a fantastic way to solve it.” I tilted my head and got to my feet. “Open up that little portal and send me back where I came from.”
Something flickered in his gaze before a muscle jumped in his jaw. He cut his attention away from me like I’d stopped existing. “Thea.”
Her head snapped in his direction. “Yes, Your Majesty.”
