His silver eyes met mine, filled with a loss so profound it made my own chest ache. I knew this was a devastating blow. Everything—his identity, his home, his future—had been stripped from him in a matter of minutes.
“It’s official,” he said, the word cracking. “I’m a bastard. No throne. No kingdom. No home. Just a price on my head and?—”
“But you have me,” I said. “Am I not enough?”
“You are more than enough,” he vowed, his voice raw. “I don’t care about the throne or any of it for myself. But I wanted to give it all to you. I wanted to give you the moon, and now…now I have nothing to offer.”
“You can offer you,” I said fiercely, framing his face with my hands. “You’re all I want!”
He gazed into my eyes, and I let him see the absolute truth in them. I meant every word.
“You have to shift your mindset, sugar,” I whispered. “We have each other. We have Barbie. That’s an empire right there.”
He nodded, his mouth finding mine in a hungry, claiming kiss. I met him with everything I had—lips, tongue, fangs, and passion no other man could match.
I was just starting to rock against the hard ridge of his massive erection when somebody cleared their throat.
“Food will be here soon,” Pucker announced, his phantom form phasing through the closed door with zero regard for privacy. “And don’t stop on my account. I’ve seen worse. Or, well, better, depending on your perspective?—”
Rowan tore his lips from mine and turned, a low growl rumbling in his chest. “Fuck off, poltergeist, before I find a way to make you regret it!”
“This shit is getting old,” Pucker said, looking offended. “I’m not a poltergeist! And Barbie never minds when I pop in here.”
“I’m not Barbie,” I snapped.
“ThisisBarbie’s old room, isn’t it?” he protested. “Well, I’ll see myself out then. I know when I’m not wanted!” He drifted toward the door, pausing for a final, dramatic lament. “I miss Goddess Barbie terribly!”
He let out an exasperated huff before vanishing.
I shrugged and turned my focus back to my mate. Only he mattered. Especially when my prince—he would always bemyprince, no matter what title some asshole stripped from him—gazed at me with the heat of a thousand suns.
I peeled his bloodied tunic away. The fabric was stuck to wounds that had already sealed, thanks to my magic and his own rapid regeneration, leaving only rust-colored stains on his skin. My eyes traced the ghost of every blow, every place they’d tried to break him. Many had died in the attempt. I vowed that no one would ever hurt him again; I would make sure they were dead before they got the chance.
My fingers found the faint, silvery line of a gash across his ribs, and my rage spiked.
“That’s in the past, little monster,” he said, his voice soft. “You’re here. I’m here. We’re fine. We’re together.”
He kicked off his boots, and I shredded his leather pants with a flick of my claws, dropping the ruined pieces on the floor.
He returned the favor, undressing me with hands that grew steadier with each revealed inch. I could have snapped my fingers to vanish my clothes, but I loved the sensuality of his touch, the intimacy of his hands moving with pure male need. When I was finally bare before him, his fingers brushed the hollow of my throat, and I arched into his touch.
“You’re different,” he murmured, his silver eyes tracking over my nudity with reverent hunger. “Still you, but…”
“Butmine,” I finished, my voice low. “This body is completely mine.”
He swallowed, his gaze bright with love and possession. “And all mine now, little monster. Every perfect inch of you.”
I guided his head to my breast. I could feel the hard press of his cock against my thigh.
I needed him. I needed to feel him inside me. I wanted to be fucked so badly.
“Not yet.” His voice was rough, his control hanging by a thread. “Shit, Sy, I want to bury myself in you and forget the world. But you deserve better than this.” His thumb brushed a smudge of dirt from my cheek. “Let me get you clean. Let me take care of you. And then I will spend all night fucking you senseless.”
Chapter
Fourteen
Sy
