I felt my lips lift of their own accord but instead of answering her, my hands went to my pelt, sliding it off before I pulled my tunic over my head.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked, her eyes going wide.
When I kicked off my boots and my pants shortly followed, I crouched and slid, naked, into her furs. I sighed, her bed plush and comfortable, and the warmth from the fire flickered over my skin.
“Seerin,” she snapped. She was in a long tunic that reached her thighs. Her legs and feet were bare, her hair curling around her shoulders and down her back wildly.
“You can begin your duties asrei alukkiritomorrow,thissie,” I murmured. “I need sleep.”
“That is what your own bed is for. This ismy voliki, in case you’ve forgotten.”
“I like this one just fine,” I rasped. Her expression was baffled and I couldn’t help but say, “AsVorakkar, I can sleep wherever I please within the horde.”
She paused, nibbling on her bottom lip, hesitation playing over her features. “You can?”
My irritation from the meeting slid away in an instant, replaced with amusement and affection for the littlethissie,who was slowly driving me to madness.
“Lysi, now come here,kalles,” I murmured, holding out my hand for her. “I want to kiss you more.”
She frowned. “More? We haven’t negotiated for more.”
“Nik, no more bargains between us,” I said, my gaze burning into her. “No longer.”
Chapter Nineteen
The demon king wanted to kiss me again?
My heartbeat raced in my ears as I looked down at him, sprawled on my new bed, underneath my new furs. His massive erection tented the material and I swallowed as I watched it bob slightly.
Fear took root in my belly, but not of him. Ofme. Of this new thing that flushed my skin and made my stomach flutter.
He was watching me carefully, his golden hair spread like a halo around him, his markings flashing with the fire’s flames. He was beautiful, achingly so. I’d thought so the first moment I’d seen him, even when I’d believed he would kill me for breaking the laws of the Dakkari.
I cleared my throat and pointed out, “If there are no more bargains between us, then that means you have to answer my questions when I ask them.”
“Lysi,” he murmured in solemn agreement, rubbing at the deep scar on his side.
My brow ticked up in surprise.
“Then again, so do you,” he added. Something in his eyes changed and he continued, “I’ll begin. Did you like when I kissed you last night?”
My face heated, but I felt uncomfortable telling even him a lie, so I said, “Yes.” I didn’t wait for him to respond. “How many Dakkari have hair the color of yours?”
“That I know of? Myself and another.” I opened my mouth, but he beat me to it. “Do you want to kiss me again,rei thissie?”
I stared at him. When I swallowed, it was loud. It sounded more like a gulp.
I’d been thinking about that very question on and off throughout the day, trying to make sense of what it would mean.
But I didn’t think of myself as a coward. The possibility of kissing him again excited me—heexcited me. He fascinated me more than anyone had before.
“Yes,” I whispered, shifting on my feet, still standing in the center of my new domed tent. A growl escaped him and my eyes flitted to the low table, where the remnants of my meal remained, remnants that I’d been planning to save. Still, I asked him, “Have you eaten yet?”
“Nik,” he rasped.
I frowned and brought the tray over to him. Those eyes pinned me when I knelt beside him on the bed and tucked my bare legs under me. I’d fashioned underwear that day to secure the fresh cloth between my legs but it still felt strange.
He sat up in my bed when I placed the tray on his lap. His eyes flicked from the food to me and he murmured, “You care for me, don’t you,thissie?”
