“What are you doing?” I drew away from him. Water splashed up my bare legs as I stumbled back a few feet.
“Do not fear me, Princess,” he teased, continuing to tug at his buttons. “I just fancy a quick swim. You are most welcome to join me, though.”
My heart raced. Part of me wanted to run – back through the woods and straight up the stairs to my tower bedroom, until I was nestled deeply under my bed covers and no one could witness the crimson blush on my face. The other part of me, the more devious part, wanted to keep watching as the faery prince unhooked the last of his buttons.
Despite my rushing thoughts, my feet remained firmly rooted to the wet stone floor. Then, without realising I was doing it, I gasped as the prince shrugged off his dark shirt and tossed it to the shore.
Ancients, save me.
I’d never seen a boy in this state of undress before. Although, in that moment, it felt wrong to call him a mere boy. His incredible height, broad shoulders, and toned abdomen suggested he was much more than that. I tried so hard to pull my gaze away, but my hungry eyes betrayed me as they continued to feast on all the exposed pale skin of his chest. There was so much skin. And I wanted nothing more than to run my fingers down each perfect line of muscle.
“Something caught your eye?” Arenn asked in a mockinglyinnocent tone.
I swallowed, wanting to speak, but no words would come out. It was like my throat was full of thick and sticky honey.
The prince laughed deviously. “Are all human girls this easy to torment?”
A warmth rushed through me that had nothing to do with the temperature of the water around my feet. But before I had a chance to answer for my silence, Arenn shot me a playful grin, turned his back on the deeper area of the pool, and let his body fall backwards into the water. My eyes squeezed shut as water droplets splashed high into the air, wetting my cheeks. Finally, when the water settled, I wiped my face and let my eyes fall open.
The prince was gone.
“Arenn!” I cried out, panic washing over me. The water of the pool was mostly clear, apart from near the centre, where the colour deepened to a murky blue. It was so cloudy down there I couldn’t make out anything below a few metres. Ice-cold fear gripped my thoughts. Had he sunk to the bottom? What if he’d hit a rock on the way down and was now drowning? Would I be held responsible for the death of a prince?
Chest tightening, I forced my legs through the water, racing to the deeper section. Warm water soaked through my midnight gown and onto my skin as my panicked movements sent waves splashing all around me.
“Arenn, please, I don’t know if I can save you – I can’t swim!” I yelled towards the waterfall. The water had now reached my shoulders, and I was struggling to move quickly. How long had he been under for? It’d been barely a minute, so maybe if I turned back and sprinted to the guards outside, they could help him.
Suddenly, something hidden by the depths of the pool brushed by my thigh, and I let out a piercing scream that echoedthrough the cavern. Then, two familiar arms hooked under my legs and back, and a short moment later, I was lifted out of the water. Droplets cascaded into the pool around us. My shaking body was swiftly pressed against a bare, hard chest – the same bare, hard chest I had so desperately wanted to run my fingers down just a few minutes ago.
Deep laughter rumbled from his body into mine as Arenn held me firmly. “Did you miss me, little human?”
CHAPTER 21
Water dripped from the prince’s soaking wet hair and onto my chest as I remained scooped up in his arms. I wanted to smack his smug face. Clearly, this was all some kind of trick to get me into the pool with him, and like a fool, I had run straight into his stunning faery arms.
“Please put me down,” I told him. My words were short, and I made no effort to hide the anger storming across my face.
“Are you sure?” Arenn taunted, turning us both towards the centre of the pool. “I thought I heard you shout that you couldn’t swim.” Slowly, he began to loosen his hold on my body as we approached the deeper water just ahead of us.
He wouldn’t… Would he?
“Wait!” I thrusted my arms up and wrapped them around his wide shoulders. “At least take me back to the shore first.”
“Relax, Princess. I’d never let you drown.” His thumb brushed against the skin of my thigh, sending a shiver down mybody. My heart was pounding, but it was beating in a way that was different to how it raced around Lukas. With the Prince of Drothmore, it fluttered nervously like a little butterfly. But here, in this cave, with my body pressed against Arenn’s chest, the pounding was so intense it almost hurt.
With all the care in the realm, the faery prince lowered me into the water, keeping his hands on me at all times. Carefully, he moved backwards towards the centre of the pool, and I drifted with him, my arms wrapped around his bare shoulders. My feet couldn’t touch the stone floor anymore, but somehow I trusted him not to let me dip under the surface.
“Isn’t this nice?” he breathed, letting his hands rest confidently on my waist. Our bodies were positioned as though we were dancing, and the echoes of our voices against the crystal-filled walls were our music. It should’ve been romantic, but I couldn’t forget how I’d ended up here, entangled in his arms.
“Do you use that trick often to get innocent ladies to enter the pool with you?” I questioned with a scowl.
Arenn snorted. “You know mostinnocent ladiesin your situation would be too busy thinking about how to kiss me.” A smile tugged at his lips, and I felt his grip around my waist tighten. “But not you, little human. Would you rather I apologised for rescuing you?”
“Rescuing me?” I blurted out. “I only came over here because I thought you were drowning.”
The prince chuckled and spun us around in the water. The waves lapped gently against my shoulders. “I’ve been swimming in these caves for as long as I can remember. You needn’t worry about me drowning. And to answer your question, only royals are permitted to enter these caverns, so… no. I have never brought another lady, human or fae, into this pool.”
I blinked a few times. His words sounded sincere, but still,there was something at the back of my mind that seemed unsure.
