The force of the push isn’t what moves me away from Isabelle as much as the surprise of it. She freed herself from the lust haze far quicker than I anticipated. I stumble back a step before regaining my balance. I don’t go far since we are still tied together.
“What the fuck was that?” Isabelle’s shrill voice fills the room. A storm of emotions crashes over her—anger, confusion, frustration, and maybe even a trace of heat she desperately wants to ignore.
I have no smug grin for her or taunting remarks. My hands float in the air. Had it been in her hair? On her back? For a moment, I allow myself to weaken. To fall back into the spell and imagine myself kissing Isabelle within an inch of her life. I’m not certain I would have had the strength to push her away.
Then, my mask returns. My lips curve into a slow, infuriating—to her—smirk. “Well,” I purr, voice low and calm, “that was unexpected. Didn’t realize you’d go from insults to kissing me so quickly. If I knew that’s all it took, I’d have annoyed you sooner.”
“Fuck off, Oziel.” The words don’t land as theyshould because there’s no real heat behind them. I’ve spooked her. Or she’s spooked herself by giving in to me so quickly. Admittedly, I feel the same. The kiss rocked me out of control, and I desperately cling to what I can.
“The Blood of Lucifer heightens the emotion of the sin you feel most in the moment. Both of yours happened to be lust,” Garvan explains, mostly for Isabelle’s benefit. I forgot the demon was still in here. I wish he’d leave.
Garvan reaches out to untie us, and Isabelle instantly jerks her hand away from me. I would be lying if I said it didn’t sting, no matter how much I wish that not to be so. “You are bonded. Congratulations.”
Garvan says “congratulations” like someone would say “I’m sorry” at a funeral. This is the death of our freedom, so the demon isn’t far off. Newfound power slithers inside me, and I feel stronger than I have in weeks. The color in Isabelle’s cheeks suggests she may feel the same.
“So, is that it?” she asks, pretending not to be affected at all, even though I can still smell the lust on her. She wants me, even if she pretends not to.
“For today,” I answer, my body buzzing. From our kiss or the new power inside me, I know not. Though, if I had to guess, I’d presume it was the former. “In the meantime, we will have a ball.”
“A ball? Why the fuck would we do that? We have shit to do, or have you forgotten?”
“Ah, you have such an eloquent vocabulary, Kitten.” My words earn me a slap to my shoulder. Isabelle notices her grave mistake the same time I do. This is the second one she’s made in a short period of time. My queen would do well to learn manners.
No one strikes a king. Not if they wish to keep their head. Garvan sucks in a breath, and the pathetic fool takes a step back. With a single look, Garvan takes this as his sign to leave. Isabelle’s gaze flicks between us before straightening her posture. The woman is brave; I’ll give her that. But she’s also foolish.
I move closer to her, and she takes a step back until she’s caught between the table and myself. “You should know I won’t hurt you, Isabelle. Not unless you ask me to.”
“You’re a dick, Oziel,” she says breathlessly.
"I'm many things, Miss Sinclair," a slow smile curls my lips, “but that one happens to be my favorite." I wink, then lean in until only a breath separates us. Her heart beats like a war drum in my ears—fast, frantic. I can smell the sharp tang of fear mixed with something sweeter, something unmistakable. Desire.
She wants me. As much as she insists she hates me, her body betrays her. And it kills her to know it. I revel in it a moment too long before taking a step back.
“But to answer your original question, no, Kitten, I have not forgotten about the task at hand. This is precisely why we are having a ball. We can keep an eye out for people then. See who is there and make note of who isn’t. See if we hear anything suspicious.”
Isabelle takes a moment to mull this over. “Fine,” she says at last, doing her best to compose herself. “Fine. We’ll have a ball. But in the meantime, I think I should try talking to the Nephilim again.”
“I agree. However, not until we speak with the other kings. Prolonged exposure to the Nephilim can’t be good.We must proceed with caution.” There is still so much unknown about the creatures, and I’m not desperate enough to gamble lives for knowledge. Especially Isabelle’s.
The other kings’ wives, however…
“Oh, and, Wife?”
Isabelle tenses at my switch of tone and the intense, piercing gaze of my eyes. “If you strike me again, be prepared for me to show you what happens to bad girls who disrespect their kings.”
“Literally fuck off.” For the second time that day, Isabelle shoves me away from her, putting distance between us. It’s like, if she allows me to get too close, she might realize she likes the proximity. “Fine. Whatever. Are we done here?”
“We are,” I answer. Though many demons fuck the moment their ceremony is complete. Somehow, I don’t think she’d take kindly to that. And as much as I would enjoy hate sex with my queen, it would be far more enjoyable if she wanted it as well. I’m not a monster. At least not to her.
“Good. Let me know when we meet with the kings. I don’t wish to be bothered.” With that, Isabelle turns on her heels and marches out of the room, leaving me with just the taste of her on my lips and the lingering smell of her lust.
Chapter 16
Oziel
In the early hours of this dreadful morning, I’m summoned to the servants’ quarters. A purple-haired demon had barged into my room, a frantic gleam in her red eyes. I recognize the maid as Lola, one of the demons I assigned to attend to Isabelle before our wedding ceremony three nights ago.
Even now I feel Isabelle’s presence in her quarters, tossing and turning in her bed with unsettling dreams. Dreams are little more than secrets yet to be uncovered, and I yearn to uncover everything my wife hides. Starting with the reason she came here. Knowing what I know about Isabelle, she wouldn’t have made this deal if the alternative wasn’t unbearable.
