Chapter 10
Honesty of a princess:
A soul mate is someone you are supposed to love.
I do not love mine. Thankfully.
I am not sure my mind could handle that presently. But he is sending my thoughts in a fragile spin. Once, he was my enemy.
And therein lies the problem. He still is.
I know who my soul mate is to his core.
He is a beast.
How is it possible that I feel affection for a shifter?
But I am strong. I will figure this out.
Abrush of soft lips against my left cheek woke me from my slumber.
My mouth curved in a small smile, even as the gentle light of sunrise filtered behind my closed eyelids. “Mm. Whatever are you doing awake this early, shifter?”
King Athon chuckled quietly and nuzzled against the side of my face, rumbling in a sleep heavy voice, “I think we should talk before you leave this morning.”
I rolled onto my side and curled my body against his, reveling in his warmth. Placing my head on his shoulder, I opened my eyes and used my pointer finger to create designs on his chest. “What would you like to speak of?”
My soul mate pulled the comforter over us more fully with his free hand, tucking it around my naked body. “About us.”
I tilted my head back a smidgen and looked up at his face. “Is this about last night?”
“Somewhat.” He lifted his head and pressed his lips to my forehead for a small kiss before he lowered his head back to the bed. “You know I could feel your emotions. I know what was running amok inside your head.”
“As I knew yours.”
“I don’t want you to feel like I am treating you like a child when I say this, because I am not.” His solid black eyes captured my gaze, and he stated gently, “If we are going too fast emotionally, you need to tell me. I do not want you to be frightened of me when we are alone. What we did last night caught me off guard, too, but I should have seen it coming. As you should have.”
I sighed and looked back down as I began tracing my finger over his heated skin once more. “You don’t need to do that. I’m capable of handling my emotions, even if they sneak up on me. I must process them in the light of day, of course, but I can do that without running away.”
“Are you positive? Truly, I don’t want you scared of me when it’s just the two of us together being…soul mates. We have forever. This can slow down, if you require it.”
I snickered softly at a thought. “But we are perfectly fine with the other being terrified when we are acting as royals.”
My soul mate grunted quietly. “And there is a truth.” His fingers threaded through my hair and gently gripped the strands, pulling my head back to look into my eyes. He quirked a black eyebrow. “You didn’t answer my question, Trixie. I would like another truth to leave your delectable mouth.”
At the use of my given name in a quiet moment, I bit my lip and breathed deeply. These emotions…were a bother. Still uncomfortable, anxious and scared of the tenderness that I had started to feel toward my enemy, I answered honestly, “You are my soul mate. I should be feeling this way toward you.”
King Athon’s eyes held steady on mine, unwavering in his questioning. “But is it too much for you right now?”
“Would you back away from me if it was?”
He licked over his bottom lip slowly. “I would try.”
My soul mate might even succeed at that, his willpower alone frightening when he set his mind to something. Hewasa patient predator. The man would get whatever he wanted in the end.
I ran my palm over his chest and held his body closer to mine, asserting clearly, “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be. If it was too much, I would leave. You are fine, shifter. I merely need to think about everything with a calm mind, and all will be well.”
King Athon grunted and kissed my forehead again. “If that changes, you need to let me know.” His lips twitched slightly. “I never thought I’d be saying this to an elf, but honest communication between us will only strengthen our relationship. Many pretty and ugly truths will need to be said as time moves on. No malicious lies. They could be our downfall.”
