27. Rosalina
27
Rosalina
B riars shift beneath the Prince of Thorns and carry him down to the ground. He steps from the shadows and into the red twilight.
Someone who created this evil briar has no right to such unparalleled beauty. His eyes are like the night sky, dark and deep, with hidden flecks of vibrant purple. Dark waves cascade upon each side of his face, and a thin silver circlet graces his forehead with a single, brilliant blue gem. His lips curl into a roguish smirk as he approaches.
“Well,” he says softly, “it looks like my little princess has made herself quite at home in a castle of beasts.”
“I’m not yours . ” I swallow in a dry throat. “I don’t even know you.”
He quirks his head in mock sadness. “But you know who I am.”
“You’re the Prince of Thorns,” I say. Caspian. That’s what Farron had called him. But I can’t make myself say it. Somehow, it seems too intimate.
“That’s what they like to call me. Can’t imagine why.” He gestures around us.
So, I’m finally face-to-face with the monster who is trying to destroy the princes’ castle.
He clasps my wrist and tugs me toward him. Eyeing the droplet of blood on the tip of my finger, he frowns. “Sorry about that. But what’s a little pleasure without pain?”
“You were watching me,” I gasp.
He raises my finger into his mouth and sucks it, long and wet and warm, savoring each and every drop of my essence. His gaze meets mine, and I see a spark of mischief in his eyes. “Delicious,” he purrs.
He slowly releases my hand and electricity runs through my veins. His touch has awakened a deep craving in me, and my traitorous body wants more. It wasn’t just the blood he was tasting on my finger…
Angry at my body’s reaction, I snarl at him, “I half-expected your tongue to be forked.”
“Sorry to disappoint,” he murmurs in my ear. His breath is hot against my skin. His lips, stupidly soft, dance along my jawline until his mouth finds its way to my cheek. I gasp as his tongue gently caresses it, leaving a wet trail of heat behind. I squeeze my eyes shut as a strange sparkling pleasure rushes through my body.
“You’re so wasted here, with Keldarion and his pups.” His voice drops lower, as if sharing a secret. “We know how to appreciate beauty down Below. I’d never dream of putting you in a cage.”
“Get off—” I don’t get to finish. The next thing I know I’m being tugged back, and all I can see is Caspian flying into the thorns.
Keldarion stands in front of me, his whole body curled around mine.
Oh shit.
Caspian rises from the thorns, picking brambles off his black jerkin and smoothing his pants. Then he looks over at Keldarion, and his expression is anything but fearful. The smile, the bright flash of his eyes… If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was playful.
Meanwhile, the white-haired giant in front of me radiates with all the rage I’ve become accustomed to.
“What are you doing here?” Keldarion growls.
“Oh, you know, just admiring my landscaping.” Caspian gestures to the towering thorns.
I try to step out from behind Keldarion, but he pushes me back. “Leave.”
Caspian stalks toward us with all the grace of a slinky black cat. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your…” He pauses, dark eyes burrowing in me, before flicking to Kel. “New friend?”
Why did it sound like he was about to say something else?
“The four of you have been tight for so long,” Caspian continues when Kel doesn’t answer him. “And you haven’t kept any of my offerings, as delicious as they are. You can’t blame me for being curious.”
“She’s none of your concern,” Keldarion says.
Caspian stops in front of us. He’s taller than me, but next to Kel, he still has to look up. “Haven’t you learned by now, everything regarding you is my concern?”
Keldarion stiffens, his breathing becoming labored. A chill runs through me and I glance down to watch the ice rapidly expanding from beneath his feet. “You’re nothing to me.”
Caspian flicks his dark eyes down to the ice, then back up to Kel. “Don’t you wish that were true?”
Kel shudders, and I twist my face enough to see his expression. His teeth are gritted, brow furrowed. And I realize he’s trying not to explode, trying to keep a rein on his magic.
Caspian walks back toward the briars, but he turns around at the edge. The wind tugs the thick waves of his hair. “The castle’s magic is weakening; I can feel it. You’re running out of time.”
“Leave.”
Those starry eyes shift to me. “I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon, princess. He’s made it so obvious already.”
A tangle of shadowy briars sprout from the ground, circling around him. There’s a spark of magic and he’s gone.
I take in a shuddering breath, then the anger I’d been too scared to voice bursts to the surface. “Well, he was freaking rude. I can see now why everyone hates him.”
Keldarion grips my shoulders, whirling me around to face him. “Did he hurt you?”
“No. I’m fine.” Physically, at least, if you don’t count the prick on my finger. But my mind’s all kinds of fucked up from his sexually charged evil.
“Everyone here knows you can’t trust anyone from the Below,” he says, and his voice darkens. “However, you are not from here, so I will tell you this only once. Everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie. He may look charming, and he’ll promise you your greatest desires. Never bargain with him. Never make a deal with the Prince of Thorns.”
There is such desperate urgency in his voice. I nod and try to lighten the mood. “Thank you for coming out. He was super creepy.” And beyond beautiful. But I opt not to say that to Kel. I don’t think he’d appreciate that fact.
“Are you sure he didn’t hurt you?” Kel scans my face, then his gaze works down my body. His hands shake on my shoulders as he comes to my chest, the laces loose.
Loose from when I’d undone them and touched myself thinking about Dayton and Farron. My body heats, and I feel my cheeks redden.
“What were you doing in the garden, Rosalina?”
“I…”
His hold tightens on my shoulders, and we’re moving. He’s practically lifting me. My back hits the solid castle wall, his chest presses against mine, and one of his hands clutches the stone above us. “Distract me.”
“Distract you?” I gasp. He’s so close I can feel his icy breath blowing back the hair from my face. “Distract you from what?”
His grip on my shoulder is as light as his grip on the wall is hard. His fist clenches and a few stones crumble to the ground. “Dammit, Rosalina.”
I could duck out of his grasp; I could push him away. But I don’t. Something about this encounter with the Prince of Thorns has left him untethered.
Or more untethered than usual.
“Kel.” I push some of the messy strands of hair away from his face. His expression crumbles in a strange sort of agony.
A deep growl radiates through his body. “Talk about something. Tell me about one of your boring books.”
“Hey!” I shove his chest, but that does absolutely nothing, figuring it’s about as hard as the stone behind us. “My books aren’t boring.”
He takes a shaky breath, then the ghost of a smile flashes on his face. “Farron’s research books are. There are more interesting books in the library.”
“I’ll have to…” My voice is nothing but a whisper, as my hand drifts back to his face. “I’ll have to explore—”
Keldarion lets out a pained groan and spins me around, so he’s braced against the wall. “The sun is setting, Rosalina, and I am not in control.”
“What?”
“You need to run to your room and lock the door.”
“Kel.”
“Night is upon us.” Keldarion’s eyes glow like blue fire. “And I cannot control my beast. Not after… Go.”
And this time, I listen to him. I push away and run to my room.