“You’re on my land.” Rowan and I turned to see Caelan prowling back and forth at the back of the property, stopped by the glowing wards.
“No,” Mom said. “The fae has claimed this land. It belongs to my daughter, the fae queen. Your territory begins where hers ends.”
Caelan slammed his hands against the ward again, his eyes widening when he spotted me. Confusion lit his face as he took in the man holding me—Rowan under a glamour.
A derisive laugh broke from him. “Why am I not surprised by another man holding you? Does your Lord know?”
Rowan’s arms tightened around me in warning. I didn’t know if he’d give himself away if he spoke.
Mischief reared its marijuana-soaked head. “My Lord knows everything.” I ran a proprietary hand over Rowan’s thigh, higher and higher until I reached the apex of his thighs. I pressed a kiss to his jaw and nipped his chin.
Rowan sucked in a sharp breath and closed his eyes. He tilted his neck to give me better access.
“Every single touch, every single word, Rowan knows.”
Caelan’s eyes glowed with fury. “I judged you correctly,” he growled. “Who is he? Someone who can help you get wherever you need to go?”
I pressed my nose against Rowan’s throat, then replaced it with my mouth.
He went pliant under my hands. I licked up the column of his neck and nipped him again.
“Gods,” Rowan whispered, so low only I could hear it. “Evie.”
“Yes,” I said to Caelan. My eyes glowed azure blue, casting light over our skin. “This man is sexy and powerful and doesn’t give a shit what my womb can or cannot do for him.” My fingers wove through Rowan’s hair, the silken tresses sliding through my fingers like satin.
Caelan slammed against the wards again. I laughed and turned to straddle Rowan. His hands wrapped around my waist.
“You faithlessbitch,” Caelan seethed. “I will call the Lord and tell him exactly what you’re doing.”
I grinned at Rowan. My body felt both connected and disconnected, warm and supple. “You should,” I said to Caelan. “Describe in great detail what we’re doing tonight.” I bent to kiss Rowan. “He’s a little voyeur and likes to know what I’m doing with my body.”
Our tongues tangled, the taste of him setting my nerves on fire.
“Leave, Lord,” Mom commanded. “You have no dominion here.”
“Your daughter is doing a fine job of making an enemy out of me.”
Mom laughed. “My daughter did nothing but love you when you didn’t deserve it. She fought by your side and would have died there. As far as I’m concerned, you did her a great favor. She’s no longer your concern, and if you’re smart, you’d leave her alone.”
I heard the words, but Rowan was busy sliding my shirt up and running his hands over my bare back.
Words fell away when his hands moved up and his thumbs brushed the tips of my nipples through my bra.
“We should go,” Moira said, choking on a laugh. “Before we all get a little too voyeuristic.”
There was more whispered conversation and shuffling before Mom touched my shoulder. Rowan’s hands stilled. “He’s gone, but I wouldn’t linger outside.” A pause. “I’ve furnished your bedroom. Text me in the morning and I’ll be back to get you.”
A shift of wind and silence fell.
Rowan opened his eyes, showing me the telltale gold that would have given him away to Caelan. I leaned over him, my hands on his powerful chest. “I want to taste you. Everywhere.”
“You say the sweetest things to me.” Rowan’s smile was slow and lazy. He rose up and claimed my lips in another searing kiss. He pulled away, amusement glimmering in his golden gaze. “We must be careful tonight, Evie. Our senses are dulled by pleasure and drugs. I want to touch you everywhere, take you against every surface, but if we go that far, the mating bond will seal.”
His thumb brushed the undersides of my breasts. I lifted my arms up and raised an eyebrow. A wicked chuckle was his response as he slid my shirt over my head. Rowan wasted no time in removing my bra, his lips and hands everywhere.
“I’m serious,” he murmured against my skin. “I won’t let you go that far, no matter how much you may want to.”
I wanted to. Gods did I want to.
