Chapter 25
The kiss is consuming, overwhelming. Something ancient inside me recognizes Rian and surges awake, answering this pull without hesitation.
I’ve fought against this at every turn—every glance, every touch, every beat of my racing heart.
But I don’t have the strength to keep fighting anymore.
This is the moment everything breaks.
The moment I stop pretending Rian is my enemy.
At least, not only my enemy.
Rian’s palms rest on my waist, searing my skin through my gown. The pads of his fingers press in. I tighten my grip on his tunic and draw closer.
My stomach presses flat to his torso. My breasts brush my wrists. There is no space left between us, and I don’t want there to be.
I slide my hands up over his shoulders, anchoring myself there, holding firm as I tilt my head and deepen the kiss.
Need coils tight inside me.
I am ravenous.
The magic in my chest burns. The marks on my arms tingle.
Rian’s hands slide around my back and press the center of my spine. My breasts meet his pecs, and my nipples harden.
Our teeth and lips clash in a dance of undeniable lust. Breaths come in quick gasps and soft moans. Every sound stokes the fire between us.
I want Rian.
Consequences be damned.
I want him.
A growl vibrates through his throat, tickling my lips. The sensation travels all the way to my toes.
“Careful with those thoughts, Sunshine.”
His mouth presses against mine, his kisses turning sweeter. Softer.
That’s not what I want.
I slide a hand into his hair and grip the dark strands. With a tug, I break our kiss.
An inch of space separates our lips. My core clenches at the blatant want swirling in his stunning irises along with lovely tendrils of blue and purple.
“Did you just read my mind?” I pant.
His lips twitch. “Oh, Sunshine. That is the least impressive thing I can do.”
I press a featherlight kiss to his jawline. “Show me.”
Rian groans.
I trail kisses along the other side of his jaw and down his throat. My eyes snag on a puckered scar in the space where his shoulder and neck meet.
I slide my fingers over the mark. “What’s this?”
He takes my hand and returns it to his shoulder. “Focus on the fun, Sunshine.”
I bite my lip before leaning forward, kissing his throat once more. “Yes, sir.”
A shudder runs through his body.
His hands caress my back, pressing me more firmly against him. “You’re going to be the death of me.”
I smile against his throat, then lift my head and place a lingering kiss to his lips.
A strange lightness fills my chest.
A quiet voice tries to warn me to tread carefully. It attempts to remind me of all the reasons I have not to trust my body to the Shadow Prince.
But the rest of me burns with all the reasons I should.
I meet Rian in another clash of lips and tongues.
He lifts me, hands gripping my ass as I wrap my legs around his waist. The heat of his body between my thighs stokes my desire to unfathomable heights.
From my elevated position, I grip his face with both of my hands and devour his mouth, relishing the control.
Rian doesn’t seem to mind. His lips move in expert rhythm with mine, content to let me lead. He’s almost…gentle.
But I don’t want gentle.
I drop my hands and find his tunic. I claw at his neckline, driven by need, as if I am strong enough to rip the fabric.
He chuckles. “Slow down, Sunshine.”
“No,” I growl.
I continue to pull at his tunic.
One of his hands rises and holds the base of my neck, yanking me forward and capturing my mouth in a toe-curling kiss.
My muscles relax, and I sink into the sensation. Into him.
I don’t realize we’re moving toward the bed until Rian pitches forward.
My back hits the mattress.
He hovers above me, resting on his elbows. His arousal presses against my leg, sending a wave of heat through my core.
I lean up to kiss him.
He pulls back.
My head bounces against the mattress, and I trace his pink-stained lips with my eyes. “What’s wrong?”
His gaze drops to my forearms.
To the dark marks beneath my skin.
His jaw tightens.
He brushes a strand of hair from my forehead. “Nothing.”
“Then kiss me again,” I whisper.
“That’s…not a good idea.” Desire still burns in Rian’s eyes, but it’s no longer in control.
To punctuate his words, he slides back and stands at the foot of the bed.
What…? What?
I sit up, lips swollen, heart racing. “What’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong?” He parrots, barking a sharp laugh.
He runs a hand through his thick hair.
My fingers itch to do the same.
I grip the blanket on either side of me. “Rian? Talk to me.”
He stares at something in the corner of the room.
I don’t look to see what it is.
He’s got all my focus. Like always.
I’m acutely aware of him every time he steps into the room. Every time he looks at me.
And though common sense tells me I should grasp the opportunity he’s giving me and walk out of this room before things go even further, not a single part of me wants to.
“I don’t want to stop,” I blurt.
My confession hangs in the air between us.
The muscle in his jaw flickers. “You don’t know what you want.”
I suck in a breath. “What—”
“This,” he interrupts, finally meeting my gaze as he gestures between us, “this need you’re feeling? It’s because you’re part Fae. I should have realized it long before now.”
The words are a bucket of ice water poured over the heat coiled in my veins.
Not enough to extinguish it completely, but enough to make me ache with awareness.
“What…” I pause to swallow the lump in my throat. “What are you talking about?”
“It’s an instinct.” His expression hardens. “A natural inclination to mate with the most powerful male in your vicinity. I imagine being in Virendrell, around so many Fae, has triggered the impulse.”
My cheeks burn hot. “That’s…”
Mortifying.
For more reasons than one.
I squeeze my eyes shut, willing the desire coursing through my veins to subside.
Seconds pass.
My skin tingles under Rian’s scrutiny, but I don’t open my eyes.
I let him look. I tell myself to breathe.
Could the pull to Rian really be so simply explained?
It would make sense, I suppose.
Fae are powerful creatures. Of course their biological urges would encourage them to pursue relations with powerful partners. Humans aren't so different.
Men in Verdanthia were drawn to women for companionship while women often vied for those who could provide for them.
Lev was considered the most eligible bachelor in town. With his father in charge, I bet that’s even more true now.
I wait for the heartache to hit me at the thought of my former lover with someone else.
It stings, but it isn’t sharp. Isn’t consuming.
I have bigger problems to deal with.
Like the fact that I’m not entirely human.
I exhale and finally open my eyes.
Rian’s head whips to the side, back to staring at something in the corner of the room.
A faint flush stains his cheeks. His hair is disheveled. The silver in his eyes has dimmed, darkening back to black.
I clear my throat. “Is it the same for males?”
His gaze drags back to mine. “Is what the same?”
“Your attraction to females.” Blood rushes into my face, but I force the words out. “Is it tied to power, too? Or is beauty the more desirable trait when choosing a partner?”
His expression smooths into something carefully neutral. “I imagine it’s a combination of both.”
The answer disappoints me.
I can’t quite explain why.
“I see.” I purse my lips. “Well…I should go.”
I swing my legs off the bed and stand, smoothing my toga and running a hand through my hair as I head for the door.
“Where are you going?”
I look over my shoulder. Lines tug at the corners of Rian’s eyes.
“Um…my room?”
The muscle in his jaw ticks again. “Don’t.”
My eyebrows lift. Does he—
“You should find Darius.”
My wayward thoughts deflate. “Darius?”
He nods, the motion stiff. “Your magic seems to have recovered. You should assess the state of his curse. I’m worried his condition has advanced.”
My forehead furrows.
It’s touching that Rian is concerned about his friend, but his mention of my power raises the hair on the back of my neck.
Because he’s right… The magic, the light magic flowing through my veins, feels fuller. Stronger. Mended.
Even more so than an hour ago in the library.
It’s almost like…
My pulse accelerates.
My gaze darts to Rian.
Did…did he somehow fix my power?
I open my mouth to ask when a series of knocks taps against the bedroom door.
“Rian?” Draven’s voice comes through the wood.
Rian rolls back his shoulders and calls out, “Yes?”
A pause. “Is everything…okay in there?”
The tips of my ears burn.
Gods… Draven can’t know what we did.
Can he?
My hands fly over my hair once more, smoothing the strands.
“Everything is fine.” Rian’s eyes slide to mine before swiftly moving away. “Meet me to spar again in ten minutes.”
Another loaded pause follows.
Draven’s uncertainty slips under the gap between the door and the floor.
“Fine,” he grunts. “But don’t forget the decision you made. Don’t allow a moment of weakness to—”
“Enough, Draven,” Rian barks. “I’ll be out in a moment.”
Heat creeps up my neck, and I’m unable to shake the thought that the decision Draven mentioned has something to do with me.
Mutters sound on the other side of the door, growing fainter as Draven moves away.
Rian avoids my gaze while I stare, worrying my bottom lip as my gaze traces the sharp line of his profile. Even flustered, he’s infuriatingly handsome.
Stop it.
I drag in a steadying breath.
You only want him because he’s powerful. Because he’s Fae and you are—
I exhale, my shoulders sagging under the weight of the truth.
Because I’m part Fae.
This is insane.
And yet my magic trills in my chest when I acknowledge its source.
I’m part Fae.
Somehow, I am a descendant of a Light Fae who fled Eranthia during the war.
Somehow, one of my ancestors survived.
I should be reeling.
I should be panicking.
Why am I not panicking?
Because you’ve always known you are different.
I thought I was a human with magic, an anomaly my neighbors would have burned if they ever discovered the truth.
Learning that my power comes from a distant Fae ancestor doesn’t change who I am.
I’m still someone who carries magic, still someone who must hide it.
I take another deep breath.
I’ve been keeping secrets my entire life. What’s one more?
I will be okay.
For now, I need to focus on the situation at hand.
I’m beholden to the Shadow Prince, the heir of the dastardly king who decimated the human kingdom with his shadows.
Shadows that are the result of Queen Calla’s curse…
I rub my throbbing temples.
“Is everything all right?”
I drop my hands and meet Rian’s stare.
His agitation is gone. He’s back to the formidable, stoic prince I’m used to.
But he doesn’t feel as unapproachable as before.
I suppose having his tongue down my throat will do that…
“I’m fine. This is all just…a lot.”
The hard edge in his eyes softens. “I imagine so.”
“Do you, um…” I clear my throat. “Do you think anyone else in Virendrell knows what I am?”
Has Anders uncovered my unknown secret?
“No. Your magic is difficult to detect.” Rian shifts his weight, averting his gaze to the window, facing the ocean beyond. “I suspect it’s because you’ve spent your entire life trying to conceal it.”
I frown. “But you sense it.”
“I’m different,” he replies, not with arrogance, just fact.
“Oh.”
The simple word hangs between us.
The charged air from before has dissipated, but the pull in my gut, yearning for me to dive my fingers into his thick locks, gnaws at me. Incessant.
“I should go,” I say again, rolling my shoulders back. “I’ll find Darius and let you know if anything’s changed about his condition.”
“Thank you.”
I nod, telling myself I’m not affected by his soft-spoken gratitude.
I walk to the door.
My hand hovers over the doorknob as a question pricks the back of my mind.
I spin around.
Rian’s eyes fly up.
Was he checking out my ass?
I dismiss the thought.
“Is Darius’s curse different from the Shadowbound Curse?”
His brows lift.
“Where did you hear about that?” Before I can answer, he scoffs and says, “Never mind. Anders.”
I nod. “He said the Fae queen laid a curse on all those who fought against her. That she’s the reason Fae can wield shadows.”
His expression darkens. “That is a very surface-level explanation, but I suppose it is fundamentally true.”
“He also implied it can’t be lifted,” I say, crossing my arms. “Since there are no Light Fae left…”
Rian’s gaze snaps to mine, razor-sharp.
Invisible power pulses through the air.
“What are you trying to ask, Elara?”
My fingers curl, nails biting into my biceps.
“Could I do it?” My voice wavers despite my effort to steady it. “Could I lift your curse?”
The silence that follows is suffocating.
My own breathing roars in my ears, but Rian doesn’t seem to breathe at all.
“Why,” he finally speaks, his voice low and lethal, “would I ever want that?”
A warning shivers down my spine. “I-I don’t know. I just thought—”
“You thought?” Smoke bleeds into his eyes before he blinks and the smog clears. “Despite what you believe, you know nothing of me, Elara Stonebloom. Nothing of the Shadow Fae.”
He steps closer. The movement is threatening. Dangerous.
“And you know nothing of the Shadowbound Curse the shortsighted queen laid upon us.”
I retreat on instinct. Adrenaline pours into my veins.
Rian reminds me of the beasts in the Forbidden Forest, though the knowledge of his power and abilities elicits more terror than those treacherous monsters ever did.
Rian tracks me. His eyes flash.
“You are here to cure Darius. That is all that matters. Fulfill our bargain so we can sever the tie binding us, and then we will go our separate ways.”
His gaze dips to my mouth, and his lips curl into a sneer. “Don’t mistake my moment of weakness for something more.”
I suck in a ragged breath, cursing the burn gathering in my eyes.
The words should not hurt. They are exactly what I want to happen.
But the contempt in his expression, the way his voice labels me as nothing more than a tool, a means to an end…
It cuts deep.
A flicker of something—regret, maybe—ghosts across Rian’s harsh features. His lips part.
I spin on my sandaled heels and flee the room before he can speak. Flee him.
His door remains open as I race across the corridor and crash into mine. My hands shake, and I fumble to find the handle.
With a twist, I dive inside and slam the door shut, sinking back against the solid wood with a sob.
Tears spill from my eyes. Try as I might, I cannot stop them.
I am unmoored.
Broken.
I left Verdanthia with only half of my heart. Ferria carries the other.
But somehow, Rian came to possess a piece of me.
Fae instinct or not, it doesn’t matter.
My splintered organ aches, and I’m no longer certain there’s enough of me left to survive what comes next.