Page 92 of The Fox Heir

“Every.”

Bolt.

“Single.”

Sizzle.

“Day.”

Flare.

Tristan blocks my attacks with a shield made of darkness, but he’s slower to meet my power. I dig deep into my core and call forth a glaring flash of light that paints the world in shades of white. Tristan drops his wall of shadow to cover his eyes with his hands.

“Red, enough!” Tristan’s voice is far away, lost in this uncontrollable storm of emotions that’s making me spiral.

I’m gasping and exhausted, fueled by a fire I can’t smother now. It’s like I don’t know where I am anymore. Like I’m back in Caerwen Palace, trying to survive in a den of foxhounds. I am never good enough. Never wanted.

“I am done being a burden to everyone.” I extinguish the blinding light and send another lightning bolt that he barely blocks. “I’m not an inconvenience!”

The Wolf dodges every attack I send at him, but with less grace than he did moments ago. It’s as if I’m actually besting him at his own game now. As if my anger matches his skill.

“I am not weak!”

“I never thought you were.” His voice is sincere, and it catches me off guard, breaking through the fog of anger.

He’s right. In every situation we’ve ever been in, he always believed in me. In the foxhound kennels, in Korrigan Forest, in the wraith-filled battlefields—he always believed I was capable of more than I believed in myself.

Then he shoots an onslaught of shadows my way. Each attack catches me off guard, but I manage to block every single one. Too late, I realize he’s been pushing me backward. My heel grazes a boulder as his shadows press into my chest. He leans toward me, his eyes fierce. At first, I think it’s fury. It isn’t until his face is inches away from mine that I realize what it truly is.

Desire.

“You are not a burden, Red.” His breath is shaky, trembling.

Slowly, he releases the shadows between us, but he doesn’t step away. I should take advantage of his lowered defenses and attack, but I don’t. I let him lean even closer until my back is pressed up against the boulder.

“You are infuriating.” His voice is rough. “You’re thrilling. Fucking intoxicating.” He says these words like a swear, biting and hot. “I can’t get you out of my head. It feels like I’m starving.” His eyes are on mine, tortured. He looks at me as if I’m the only one who can release him from his torment.

Tristan leans forward, the tip of his nose brushing lightly against the shell of my ear. “I’ve wanted you ever since I first saw you, dancing with Hunter at your engagement ball. Dressed head to toe in scarlet.”

My chest rises and falls like I can’t get enough air. Heat surges through my body, pooling low in my belly.

“I can’t get enough of you,” he whispers, his breath hot against my neck. “That is why I find it so hard to be in your presence.”

He puts a hesitant hand up to my waist, and the briefest touch ignites me like an inferno. He stares deep into my eyes, his eyebrows pinched together as he studies me.

I can’t hide the longing in my voice. “You want to devour me, Wolf?”

He leans forward and brushes his lips over my jawline. “Every. Last. Inch.”

Goosebumps prickle all over my skin. “Then do it.”

His mouth crashes onto mine. This is nothing like our kisses in the cave. There is no hesitation, no vulnerability. No secrets or holding back. This is fire and flood and famine all rolled into one. This is pure animalistic need.

Tristan pushes his hips against mine, his desire fully evident. I moan at the luscious pressure of his hard length against me. Without thought, my thighs spread open to feel more of him. But even that doesn’t feel like enough. He smells of cedar and salt and fire. And, gods, I need more.

Tristan weaves his hand through my auburn hair, loosening the braid that’s come undone. He presses his mouth into mine as his hands roam roughly over my hips, my waist, my breasts. My back presses into the boulder behind me, and I relish the pain. I want him to push harder, deeper into me. To devour me until I’m nothing but bone.

“Tristan,” I gasp between kisses. My chest heaves, unable to get enough air.