Chapter 14 Anastasius
I had thought he wouldn’t follow me at first, a flare of his stubborn Circulus pride flashing in his eyes. But then he stood and followed me to my room, Calian never far from us. We went through the motions of dressing his palms and neck again and now sat in companionable silence before the fire. Claeg yawned, standing and stretching his arms above his head. The action drew my eyes to the muscles in his forearms and shoulders. The firelight highlighted the curves of his body and the sharp edges of his jaw. My lip found its way in between my teeth as it often did. Claeg’s eyes heated as they snared on the simple movement of my mouth.
Our eyes slowly met and locked for a few moments. Lust was evident in his eyes, a mirror of mine. My cock swelled. There was no point in hiding it: my body craved him. I wanted to touch him like I had never touched anyone other than myself. Just as I was about to stand and act on the feelings raging within me, Claeg tore his gaze from mine.
“I should go,” he said, the way the words came out clearly indicating the war within his own mind. I stood and reached for his hands but dropped them at the last minute. He was healing. Physically and mentally. It wasn’t fair of me to push myself upon him when he was obviously still struggling with . . . everything. Only he knew the horrors that had led him here. I nodded, stepping out of the pathway to the door. My heart ached to stop him, even when he didn’t look at me as he shuffled away. I stared at his back, willing him to turn around and stay.
“Eleos…” I trailed off when I sensed him hesitate at the door. “Stay,” I pleaded quietly. He sighed.
“I want to,” he murmured, exciting me, filling me with hope even though we played a dangerous game with Calian just outside the door, waiting for any shortcoming to whisper to my father.
“Then do it,” I invited, closing the distance so that my shadow encompassed his. He would have to either open the door and leave or face me. His breath hitched. “What are you scared of?” I whispered, brushing his hair away from his neck to reveal the healing skin there.
It was the wrong thing to say—or do. I wasn’t sure. His shoulders tensed, and his hand turned the knob.
“I will see you in the morning, Prince,” he stated curtly and briskly stalked past Calian. I met eyes with him briefly, his expression smug. I slammed the door in his face but listened closely for his footsteps to retreat. When the only sound coming from the corridor was the crackle of perfectly sculpted flames, I leaned my head against the doorframe and let my anger out in heaving breaths. How had I fucked up such a simple interaction so badly?
Later, I paced my room, unable to get Claeg out of my mind. Hours had passed, and the sun had been replaced by the moon, the white light reflecting against the smooth stone floor. A gust of spicy air entered my room, but I craved a woodsy scent. The scent of my heart’s Selected. His room was so deep within the stronghold that he wouldn’t see the way the moonlight caressed the tips of the sand dunes or feel the fresh air in his lungs.
I stopped abruptly. He was so stubborn, so utterly strong. He had rejected me, but my body refused to accept that. My cock pulsed at the thought of him, his body perfectly complementing mine. I imagined us together, the perfect harmony we would be for each other. I couldn’t help but compare him to the other Selected. One would think that he wasn’t loyal, or smart, or strong for having his Circles broken, but something told me otherwise. One moment he was submissive, the next challenging me. His odd behavior only intrigued me. He was worth every test—the Prince of Eleos. Uncovering the self-doubt he shouldered and freeing him was my personal mission. I fully intended to uphold my vow to show him how to live. My heart ached for him, knowing full well the despair he likely felt. The familiar cage of helplessness, worthlessness, had enslaved and, in some twisted way, comforted me for a long time.
I thumbed the magic crystal hanging around my neck. I wasn’t blind. It was time to be brave and open my eyes.