Page 17 of Prince of Wrath

“He’s here,” I choked out. “You promised he wouldn’t be.”

Everything in me was fighting the urge to melt into his hold. It would be too easy to escape into him like I’d done time and time again.

His eyes pinged between mine. “You can’t escape the demons you enjoy playing with,” he finally said.

Another of his cryptic riddles.

I didn’t like feeling cornered by Ben or Seere. At one point, I may have been addicted to the pain of wanting to please men who could never be pleased.

Ben had broken my spirit into pieces he only picked up and looked at when he was bored. I’d praised him for every small favor. My expectations for him as a partner or even a friend were on the floor. Even lower if we were being honest.

Seere was a literal demon who enjoyed the way his former grace had been twisted into the demented power he wielded over all mankind.

For too long, I had pushed away my morality because being with Seere gave me a high that I’d only ever read about in classic love stories. But when his ferociousness showed itself again, the bubble of lust would burst and I would drop into the deepest lows. I could have walked away. But there was something about the way he worshiped me that had me coming back for more.

“You’re wrong.” I did my best to sound convincing.

“I know you, Sloane. I can feel it in you now. That fire you keep alight just for me.”

I pulled out of his arms, and he let me.

I folded my arms over my chest. Looked at him fully. He’d been waiting for me to call. I realized that now. His clothes were fresh, his hair perfectly styled. His cologne was still bright and followed me when I took a step away.

“You say you know me, but you only know my sins.”

“I know you better than you think.”

“Prove it.”

That cocky, crooked smile was back. “You wonder if you’ve ever truly loved anyone. Men you’ve dated in the past were either comfortable or obsessions. You’ve never had a stable relationship that didn’t feel boring. Same as you’ve never been desperate for someone who didn’t have their eyes on everything else but you.”

The sting of that truth enflamed my cheeks.

I’d only ever loved those who’d hurt or ignored me. I’d only kept men around who were dependable, but I never truly cared if I knew them fully.

The thought had haunted me at night for as long as I could remember.

“You don’t know if you’re even capable of love.” He continued his attack on my already broken heart. “If you dwell on it too long, you don’t think you’ve ever felt or seen pure love.”

“Stop, Seere. You’ve made your point.” I needed him to stop before I allowed him to take advantage of the weakness he so clearly saw.

“No, I haven’t.” His dark tone curled around the stone in my stomach and settled heavily into its new home. “My point won’t be made until you admit that you reject me the way you do because you don’t want me to get bored. And you don’t think you could live with yourself if you let down your guard. Because in the darkest and most depraved recesses of your soul, you’re just as obsessed with me as I am with you. And that terrifies you.”

“I couldn’t love you,” I snapped. “You are hate, destruction, and manipulation.”

“And what about that is so different than what makes you who you are?”

My eyes widened.

He moved closer. “You summoned me out of hate to destroy a man’s life and manipulate his fate.”

“He abused me. He hurt me.” My voice cracked. “I summoned you to give him a taste of his own medicine.”

He nodded but his intense gaze didn’t waver as he edged closer. “For that, I ruined him. And the moment you tire of watching him dangle on the hook, I will rip him apart slowly until nothing but blood and bone are left.”

“You enjoy killing and hurting people. That’s the difference between us.”

“I fell from Grace long ago and have come to peace with my freedom from morality.” Finally, his fingers feathered over my bare thigh, my skin coming to life under his touch. “You gave me your soul and nothing will compel me to let you go. When your mortal body leaves this plane, I will follow your soul to the depths of Hell until the end of time. The sooner you accept your unique position, the sooner you can enjoy the aspects of your urges that you suppress because of human expectations.”