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Ruslan chuckled, his hot breath tickling my ear. He nipped the lobe lightly, then trailed his tongue to the crook of my neck, where my pulse fluttered under his lips. He nipped there too, and I clenched my thighs together, both to relieve the tension building in me and to prevent his leg from advancing between mine. I lost on both counts as he hoisted me higher, one hand behind my head to prevent it from scraping against the stone like my back did. My legs fell apart and wrapped around him, and I cursed my body for betraying me.
“I can smell how much you want me, want this.” He punctuated each word with a sinful press of his lips against my neck.
I said nothing, unable to deny that my body betrayed my heart and head. He nipped my ear again, and a moan slipped unbidden from my lips. “I get so hard when you’re angry.” He ground into me to prove his point. The roll of his hips into me was perfectly placed against my clit, and another moan escaped me. I couldn’t deny that I wanted him most when we fought. His fire thrown against my own was a force to be reckoned with, and someday soon that reckoning would come for me.
“I want to take you right here, right now, but then I risk someone seeing your flawless body, and I’d have to kill them on the spot,” he groaned as he rubbed against my core again. Sparks flashed through my center, and I bit my lip to contain any further sound. His eyes met mine, and he yanked my lip from between my teeth. “Do that again, and I will fuck you right here.”
Ruslan stole the whimper from my throat as his mouthcrashed against mine, sucking my lip between his teeth and drawing blood. He lapped at the blood, his tongue dancing with mine and coating my mouth in the metallic taste. I threaded my fingers in his hair, lost to the inferno of passion that consumed us with no care for who might overhear or stumble upon us.
What I was doing was so wrong, yet it felt so right.
Ruslan lifted the hem of my tunic, calloused hand finding my nipple through the lace binding my breasts and twisting hard. I gasped, but he swallowed it, his hand continuing to work over the peaks. Arching my back, I rubbed against him, legs shaking from holding back my desire for so long.
He left me breathless as he pulled away, his hips still pinning me against the wall. He cocked his head, apparently listening to something. I strained my ears, but the only sound was blood rushing through them.
Without a word he released me, retrieving my discarded cloak I hadn’t realized he’d been carrying. I wasted no time clasping the diamond around my throat, needing more fabric between me and the male who made my blood sing with delicious darkness. He opened the door to the large entry hall, then guided us back to the courtyard where we’d left the horses.
My mind was spinning, my body was still on the edge, but I could not find words to ask what had us racing from the citadel. Any longer and I would have given myself to him, despite the fact that he had just tried to place a tracking spell on me so I could never pass the Iron Realm’s borders without him.
What the fuck was wrong with me?
It wasn’t until we breached the city’s last houses that I finally asked, “Why did you want to leave so suddenly?”
“My father,” was his response, his bitter tone revealing that perhaps father and son were not on the best of terms.
“Would you have been ashamed if he found us in the stairwell?” I prodded.
To say that Ruslan was touchy about the mate situation would have been an understatement. I never knew which side of anger he would land on when the subject surfaced. His head snapped to the side, and his hard expression told me that I treaded dangerous territory.
“I am not ashamed of you, my mate. I simply am not ready to share you with him.”
From what I knew of King Azim, I hoped he did not mean literally sharing me, my body merely a toy for his pleasure.
Deciding other subjects would be safer, I asked, “What did Rares mean about needing ‘muscle work’?”
“He meant that you need to get stronger. We have an expedited way of doing that if you are interested. But as you said, you do like to exercise.”
“So can I exercise when we return to Roc?” I asked.
“That is the plan,” he gritted out. Clearly he needed to work something else out, but I kept my mouth shut. We finished the ride in silence, but my head and heart circled incessantly, not leaving a moment's peace on the cold winter day.
14
King Airre and Queen Immonen hosted us for breakfast the following morning, a much more casual affair than dinner the previous night had been. A marble table was pushed against a far wall, a spread of cheese, cured meat, eggs, and fruit beckoning me as my head pounded with each step in its direction. I drank far more than I should have the previous night, and I was grateful Kaztar, who walked the length of the table in front of me, seemed to have forgiven my outburst.
Some of the noble houses of the Crystal Realm were also in attendance, and we mingled with them as we ate. Kaztar and I conversed with High Lords Mikko, Aake, and Tukka, males we had met on previous visits to Vlisa. Aake and Mikko had both been married since the last time we visited Vlisa, and I congratulated them on their unions.
“What’s this we hear about you having a mate, Kazimir?” High Lord Aake grinned.
“That’s actually why we’re here. She was taken by the Iron Realm who attacked Este Castle during a celebratory feast,” I replied grimly.
High Lord Mikko whistled. “Not okay. Those Iron bastards have been trafficking too long. What would they possibly want with a princess?”
“We’ll get into more details during the council meeting later, but she wasn’t meant for trafficking. They want to use her as a weapon for war,” I seethed.
Mikko’s answering grin was filled with mischievous delight. “I look forward to covering my blade in Iron blood.”
I glanced at Kaztar, who merely shrugged. If Mikko was restless enough to want a war, I was not going to complain. He and King Airre were close, and having him on our side would definitely sway other council members.
