He was my Kingdom’s enemy, and I was his prisoner. But the hardness pressing into my stomach and the needypulse between my legs betrayed us both. I tilted my head, with wide innocent eyes. “Commander,” I whispered, reaching up onto my tip toes to curl my fingers through the hair at the base of his neck. “Please help me.”
Something inside him cracked. Not outwardly. Not visibly. But I felt it. The air changed between us, my skin prickling uncomfortably with his need. He swallowed, scooping an arm beneath my thighs and lifting me. For one tense heartbeat, my bare skin pressed fully against the heat of him. Against every wild, forbidden thing that lived under his hard body. His breath stuttered. Victory swirled in my chest.
But he exhaled slowly. Controlled. And gently—almost reverently—lowered me into the steaming bath. The water closed around my aching muscles. Despite the hot water, my skin felt cold where he had touched me. He remained kneeling beside the tub, shoulders rigid, the lantern light flickering across his sharp features. “I am not… him,” he growled suddenly.
I blinked up at him, confused. “Who?”
“Whoever hurt you so deeply that you think your flesh is a weapon.”
Shame surged up my throat. I resisted the urge to wrap my arms around myself, suddenly feeling exposed in a way that had nothing to do with nudity. “You can just say you do not want me.” I raised my chin, ignoring the soft sting of rejection.I didn’t want thiseither,I reminded myself. His voice dropped, dangerous and soft. “I do not have the energy to lie.”
Something inside me melted, that stupid warmth in my chest growing brighter.
“But this show you are putting on, is notyou.”The shadows lashed up his throat, punishing him for the confession.He reached for a cloth and dipped it into the rose-scented water, wringing it out slowly. He held his hand out expectantly and hesitantly, I extended my arm out to him. He washed the dried blood from my shoulder like he feared hurting me. He smoothed the cloth down my arm like he had memorized the shape of me. When his fingers brushed the nape of my neck, I shivered, and his own breath fractured.
“What is your name?” I almost whispered into the quiet moment. This isn’t what I wanted.Thiswas intimate. Dangerous.
His eyes snapped to mine, dark veins pulsing around their edges. He shook his head once. “Ask a different question.”
“No.” I tugged at my arm, but his grip tightened.
“I don’t have one anymore,” he said, voice rough. “Ask a different question.”
His finger grazed my neck as he brushed my hair over my shoulder. Just the smallest touch. But it lit every nerve ending on fire.
“Why are you being kind to me?” My voice broke and I cursed inwardly.
His answer was a blade that sunk into my skin. “Because one day soon, I’ll be cruel. I want you to have one memory of me that does not end in blood.” The water swayed between us, something unspoken sinking into my bones.I pushed it down.
“Lean forward,” he said gently, reaching for me. Gods, he wanted to wash my back. Panic flared sharp and sudden.
“No.” I straightened instantly, spine rigid, teeth clenched hard enough to ache.
For a suspended moment, his gaze held mine, heavy and searching.
“Why?” He asked slowly, as if worried he would spook me.
“Ask a different question,” I whispered.
The weight of his gaze felt dangerous, like if he looked into my eyes a moment longer, he would see how broken I really was. I blew out the small flame flickering inside my chest.He is my enemy, I reminded myself. I was the one meant to be manipulating him.
I seized his hand in mine, holding onto it as if it were my salvation. He could sense my lies before, but perhaps if I took a more direct approach, he would break. He was so close to giving in.
“I’ve been afraid for a long time,” I said. “And I have wanted to die for even longer.” I reached out and cupped my hand against his face, trailing my thumb over his cheekbone.
“I’m hurting, Commander,” I whispered. “And I think you are too.” I leant in, just enough to feel his breath, my gaze slipping to his mouth. “Make me feel alive again,” I murmured. “Please.”
“Fuck,” he growled.
He moved before I could breathe. One moment I was in the water, and the next, his arms were wrapped around my waist, pressing me against him. My bare skin was slick and trembling against the hard plane of his chest, my feet dangling off the ground. He moved us backwards; a wall pressed into my back. I couldn’t breathe as he gripped my chin with his thumb and forefinger, tilting my head until I was forced to meet his gaze. His eyes burned, not only with lust, but with fury.
“Tell me to stop,” he almost pleaded. “Tell me you don’t want this.” The timbre of his voice had gotten deeper. Huskier.
My chest ached with a longing I had never felt before. “You told me not to lie.”
Before the words had even left my mouth, the air between us vanished. Replaced byhim.Crisp night air, and caramel mixed with something dangerous. His mouth crashed into mine with feverish need. It wasn’t soft. It was a collision. A war between hate and lust.
His tongue pushed into my mouth, warm and strong. His lips were so soft against the roughness that I felt like I was floating. The only tether I would ever need was him and his touch. I wrapped my legs around his waist, shoving my hands into his hair and pulling in closer. I slid my tongue against him, my hips moving, searching for friction. The growl that ripped through his throat sent a wave of heat to my core.
