Page 202 of Captive of Secrets and Storms

Leaving the ballroom with Rian could complicate everything.

Could ruin everything.

But staying here while desire and magic wage war around us is its own kind of disaster waiting to happen.

I make a choice and pray to Olyra that it isn’t a mistake.

“Take me away from here,” I demand, breathless.

Rian’s grin turns feral. “Sunshine…I thought you’d never ask.”

38

My footsteps sound against the mosaic tile with a ring of finality that echoes throughout my entire body.

What am I thinking?

Being around the Shadow Prince is complicated enough in a room full of people.

But alone?

With no buffer to help me fight the pull to him?

It’s downright reckless.

The connection linking me to him, be it from our deal or his incredible power luring in the small amount of Fae blood in my veins, is impossible to ignore when his masculine scent surrounds me, invading my senses.

Rian’s hand rests on the small of my back, searing my skin with delectable heat as he leads me down the corridor, away from the ballroom.

A pair of servants in wide skirts rush to step out of our way, wide eyes gaping at us as we pass.

The shadowed tendril around my wrist has dissipated. I suspect the shadows that had been hovering over Rian have also disappeared, but I’m too nervous to check.

We reach the main staircase.

I pick up the front of my gown and step onto the first stair.

“You’re quiet.”

I nearly trip when Rian speaks the words into my ear.

My cheeks warm. “I’m thinking.”

“Indeed?” On the second landing, Rian steers me left, his hand returning to my back as if he can’t resist touching me. “What are you thinking about?”

I press my lips together and peer at him from the corner of my eye. “You’re hiding things from me.”

His gaze stays forward. “I am.”

I stop walking.

He draws up beside me. When I turn to face him, his hand falls to his side, and he tilts his head.

“What is this, Rian? What do you want with me?”

He uses a single finger to brush a strand of hair over my shoulder.

His touch leaves a trail of sparks in its wake. “You already know.”