Page 45 of The Blade in the Ashes
“I love you,” I whispered to her, needing her to know it as much as I needed to say it.
She pulled back, a gentle smile on her face as dark blue eyes stared down at me. The point of her finger traced along my jawline, and for a moment, I thought she knew exactly how much power she had over me. Her gaze was sparkling with the knowledge that my heart beat only for her.
“I know you do,” Thea told me, her long hair tickling the skin of my chest. “That’s what’s so funny.”
I squeezed her thighs, loving the feeling of them on either side of me. Her skin was impossibly warm as I traced her spine and pulled her closer. I needed to feel her bare skin against mine. She was softer than the finest of silks, warmer than the loveliest of spring days. Perfect. She was perfect.
Far too perfect to be mine.
“And why is that funny?” I asked her, nipping against her jawline and feeling my heart clench at the sound of her pleased giggles.
“Because,” she drew out the word, shifting her weight to run her slick heat up and down me without ever letting me sink inside her, and I hissed in equal parts satisfaction and need. Fuck, I craved her. My every waking minute was spent hungering for her.
“Let me taste you,” I begged, pushing at her hips to try and guide her to my face.
She clenched around me, refusing to move as her hands ran down my chest, nails like claws running down me.
“This is all so tragic, don’t you think?”
“Let’s not talk about that.”
If I had only this one fleeting moment with her, then I wanted to enjoy every second of it. I could worry about the distance that separated us when I was awake.
Thea frowned, dark brows pinching together. “How can we not?”
The room dimmed as a sudden flash of cold against my stomach drew my eyes downward. Metal. Metal bands on her hands.
Marriage bands.
My inner dragon roared, hating the sight of someone else’s claim on her.
“You’re supposed to be a king, aren’t you?” Her voice hardened, that perfect smile twisting into something so sinister it seemed out of place. “How can you expect to rule over anyone when you choose to be ignorant of what’s right in front of you?”
She snorted a laugh as she twisted off me. Without her on top of me, I was now abundantly aware of how frigid the room had become. Darkness lingered in the corners, creeping steadily towards the bed.
“Thea.” I moved to sit up, only to find my wrists abruptly tied to the headboard, locked in place. I tugged against the bindings, growling in frustration.
“Tell me you love me,” she commanded, glancing over her shoulder.
“I do. You know I do.”
Her eyes never left mine, even as her face twisted into something unrecognizably vicious. “I wasn’t talking to you.”
The shadows around her throbbed, pulsing larger and larger until they gathered into a single form.
Caldrius wrapped his arms possessively around her, grasping onto her bare skin comfortably, as if he’d done it a million times before. One hand reached for her backside as the other stretched around her throat, guiding her gaze up towards him. His lips claimed hers mercilessly.
Nightmare.
This was a nightmare.
“You’re mine,” he told her, staring down at her with hunger in his gaze.
Thea nodded up at him.
“My wife. My queen.”
Once again, she glanced at me. I fought at the ropes that tied me to the bed, thrashing helplessly as she tangled her fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck. My throat tightened, her name a dying prayer on my lips, and for a moment she smiled in a way that made me question if she heard me. But then she was pulling his mouth to hers again.
