“It’s not what you think. It isn’t bad.” I flicked my gaze away from his, unable to stand the intense scrutiny of his red eyes. A part of me was screaming inside and begging me to keep my mouth shut. Yuto could use this information against me. Trusting him might be one of the worst ideas I’d ever had in my life—and I’d made some scorchers.
But his reaction to the punishment had given me hope. If I asked him not to tell the prince about my father, I didn’t think he would.
Eyes hooded, he crossed the room to stand before me. With a gentleness I didn’t expect, he took my shoulders in his hands, centering me with the solid strength of him. “Tell me, Aradia.”
I nodded, and then nodded some more. “Alright. Okay. Here’s the thing. I lied to you before. I didn’t actually steal those necklaces. My father did.”
Confusion rippled through his eyes. “What?”
“My father stole the necklaces. And then he ran, leaving me to take the fall for his crime. That’s why I was being chased. The prince thinks I stole them. But I didn’t.”
I swore I saw a flicker of relief in his hardened expression, but it was quickly replaced by confusion. “But the portal didn’t let you back through. Why would it do that if you’re innocent?”
“I don’t know, Yuto. I don’t understand how any of this works, least of all that,” I whispered. “But I’m telling you, I did not steal from the prince. He’ll never believe I didn’t do it, especially because I will never give my father up to him. And he’ll torture me. For years.”
“You should not pay for the crimes of your father,” he said roughly. “When I take you back through the portal, you should tell the prince the truth.”
“I can’t do that, Yuto,” I said around a hard lump in my throat. My eyes burned as tears threatened to cascade down my cheeks. “He is my father. My blood. He might have turned on me, but I willneverturn on him.”
Pain flickered in his eyes. “He doesn’t deserve your devotion, your love. Not if he would do something that terrible to you.”
“Maybe not, but I can’t change how I feel.”
Yuto shook his head and curled a finger beneath my chin. “I misjudged you.”
“It’s alright.” I tried on a small smile. “I’m pretty sure I misjudged you, too.”
“I thought your soul was blemished, but I was wrong.” He shook his head in awe. “It shines as bright as the stars.”
“Yuto,” I whispered, fingers itching. My heart pattered a million miles a minute, and a strange urge took shape in my core. Everything inside of me screamed to reach toward him, to press up on my toes. I was consumed by the desire to be close to him. I wanted to trail my hands down his chest. I wanted to feel the hard planes of his stomach. And I wanted to feel his hands on me, too.
His very gloved hands.
“Yuto, there’s something I want to know,” I whispered.
“Not now,” he murmured, rubbing his thumb against my lip. The steel was cold to the touch, but everything else about him burned with the heat of a thousand suns. His head dipped. Warm lips spread across my jaw. Shuddering, I clutched his shirt in my fists, leaning into him as if I might fall.
“You taste even better than you smell.” His mouth moved north, softly caressing my lips. My eyes fluttered shut as our kiss deepened. Desire shot through my core. All I could do was stand there, clinging on, and kissing him with a need I’d never felt before.
I couldn’t stand it anymore. Boldness charged through me. I pushed against him, sliding my leg up his side and around his hips. He groaned against my mouth, and the sound of his need drove me wild. As he stumbled back, we knocked into the nearest shelf. Books tumbled onto the floor, but for once, I didn’t care. I needed more.
“Ahem.” Someone coughed. “My lord.”
Heart in my throat, I whirled toward the voice. Eryx stood there, a pained expression pinching the skin between his eyes. He shot me an awkward smile and then smoothed down the front of his tunic, even though there wasn’t a single wrinkle on display.
“What is it, Eryx?” Yuto barked.
I didn’t dare look up at him. Not afterthathad just happened. What had I been thinking? Yuto was my captor. He was a dragonlord. No, he wasthedragonlord. The Lord Master, banished from his own realm. And here I was, throwing myself at him like some kind of fainting lady.
Worse, I couldn’t wait for Eryx to leave us alone so that we could go right back to it.
“We’ve spotted Panos in the forest at the bottom of the cliff. He’s close, my lord. I wouldn’t be surprised if he decides to attack tonight.”
13
Aradia
“Ineed to figure out what to do with you.” Yuto paced back and forth by the half-empty bookshelf. The one we’d nearly knocked over when I was climbing up his body, not that I could let myself think about that right now. If I did, I might accidentally do it again.
