And at this angle, looking down at him, she guided their rhythm, the heat between them rising with each movement. His hands roamed—sometimes gentle, sometimes claws—and she felt the growing intensity of his inner turmoil in every grip, every quiver.
His eyes squeezed shut for a moment, and when they opened, were framed by white hot lightning, looking through her, instead of at her. With no time to think, Caramyn leaned down, plunging her lips against his mouth. When she pulled back, his eyes followed, finding her again as they faded back to soft silverthunder. He reached up and squeezed beneath her jaw, tender and grounding, while she moved with him in a shared rhythm, lost in the sensation of his strength beneath her body. Then she found herself moving her hips more urgently, lifted and lowered by a need that had narrowed her world to nothing but him.
Suddenly the prince cried out with a sound that might’ve been a howl, her name spilling from his lips. He shivered against her, and a warm, surging energy flooded the space between them. Outside, the Shadows screamed their wailing song, and the candlelight flickered as a strange wind whispered through the room. She crested with him once more, their bodies rising and falling as one, fire sparking between them in the heart of darkness.
Spent from it all, Caramyn leaned down, planted a kiss on Asterious’ swollen lips, and laid her head on his bare chest. She traced his scars—both flesh and Shadow—with her finger as his breathing slowed, and he reached an arm around her to stroke her hair. He pulled her to him, tucking her in the crook of his shoulder as he kissed her head and let his lips linger there.
“That was…” he began.
“Absolutely reckless?” Caramyn smiled.
“Hmm…reckless indeed.”
“And yet, you didn’t lose yourself,” she said.
He chuckled softly with a relieved breath. “Oh, I lost myself. Just not in the way I expected.”
She lifted her face to him, their lips meeting in an embrace before Asterious pulled away to whisper in her ear. “Caramyn of the Shadow Woods,” he said softly, touching his forehead to hers. “You are both my ruin and my salvation. And I would have it no other way.”
The fire in the hearth waned down to a flickering kindle, and the chill of the cold air finally settled on Caramyn’s bare skin. She reached over to pull her pile of blankets and beddingacross them both, burying her face into Asterious. She snuggled down into the mattress, entwining her legs with his beneath the blankets, treasuring the feeling of his strong body in this bed that for so long had only known hers.
She meant to say some words of devotion in return—to tell him she wanted to feel like this for the rest of her days, with him and only him, whatever the cost. But the candles’ last light faded, and she was too tired and dazed to think. So, all she managed before her weary eyes closed to dream was, “And you, Prince Asterious, are mine.”
A shiver woke her in the morning as dawn broke. She was on her side, her back nestled against Asterious, whose arms were wrapped around her as if he feared something would snatch her away in the night. She ducked deeper into the covers, wondering if what she remembered of last night had really happened, though their naked bodies pressed together like this was confirmation enough, and slight soreness between her legs made it all the more undeniable.
“Good morning.” The rumble of Asterious’ voice tickled the back of her neck. She rolled over to face him.
“Good morning.” What else could she say? What could she possibly say to him after spending a night in the Shadow Woods entangled with him like nothing else mattered? After giving herself to him completely, all while his guard waited at the edgeof the forest and his sister lurked within it, seeking its power for herself?
“How did you sleep?”
“Better than I have in a long time.” He smiled, a lock of unruly hair sweeping across his forehead. “Far better than spending the night alone in chains, never knowing what emotions would be unleashed in my nightmares.”
“You don’t have to fear anymore,” Caramyn whispered. “You were strong enough. Youarestrong enough.”
“Only because of you, Cara.”
She smirked softly. “Then I suppose you’ll have to make sure you keep your eyes on me.”
The prince’s mouth curved into a smile. He closed his eyes and breathed deep, relaxed and free.
“There’s a stream where we can wash up nearby before we set out.” Caramyn sat up, despite every fiber of her yearning to stay in the warm, safe bed. But the intruder was still out there. And the Shadows were gathering. She could feel it. “Hopefully Nocthar has found something…anything.”
The prince pushed himself upright, the covers sliding off him and revealing his perfectly muscular body. “Hopefully.”
He stood and began to redress, and Caramyn looked at the shreds of her torn shirt and pants on the floor. Turning to her small wooden wardrobe by the bed, she rummaged through her clothing to find something new to wear.
“Sorry about that.” Asterious muttered as he fastened his pants together. “I wasn’t thinking.”
“As you shouldn’t have been. Because instead you werefeeling.” Caramyn shrugged with a playful curve in the corner of her mouth as she selected a black long-sleeve tunic. “I’d rather my clothing ripped to pieces than me.”
The prince grunted, blinking those dark lashes as she left him with those words, and she proceeded to finish getting dressed.As she poked her head through the shirt collar, Asterious caught her eye, still sitting on the edge of the bed. Still staring at the floor as though his thoughts were holding him hostage.
She turned away, looking toward the small hearth where her kettle still hung. “I may have some oats and oil and whatever else that hasn’t spoiled. Hopefully enough to make something warm to eat before we brave the rest of the Woods.”
Asterious dressed in silence and then joined her at the hearth. But by the look on his face she wasn’t convinced he’d finally settled whatever he warred with inside himself. It wasn’t the time to ask him, but she only hoped he wasn’t silently regretting everything—regrettingher.
She shuffled to her herb shelf, just as the thought occurred to her, and swiped a jar of Moon thistle and Erri leaves—an effective contraceptive if taken within a day after the act. Regretful or not, the last thing she wanted to even consider was the possibility of it.
