Chapter 36
There is no other way to describe this unrelenting, primal urge to strip myself naked and sink myself onto the male in front of me. It consumes me.
The correlation between my wanton emotion and the unfamiliar drink skitters from my thoughts like a roach exposed to light.
This sensation…this desire. It’s animalistic. Fierce. And it demands to be experienced. It yearns for release.
One of Leto’s hands glides over my shoulder and down my arm until my palm rests in his. With his other hand still pressed against my back, he pivots and begins to lead me into a dance.
A cyclone of lust wraps around us as we spin in time with the music. The orchestral melody is low, sensuous. Each strum of the instruments plucks at my core. Pulses of heat radiate through me.
I count the flecks in Leto’s brown eyes. Most are gold, but odd hints of aquamarine shimmer in the chandelier light.
The skirt of my gown flares as we move, tangling between the small space that exists between our thighs. Each brush of our legs sends another bolt of lust through my center. My skin pulls tight, sensitive to the air kissing my flesh as we move.
The powder-blue fabric covering my torso feels both tight and loose. Breathable yet stifling. I long to take it off. To bare myself. But a hint of modesty overrides the effects of the delectable pink liquid, ensuring I keep myself covered in a room filled with strangers.
Leto stops our spins and guides me into the steps of a dance I am not familiar with. He moves with effortless grace despite his broad physique and height. My fingers resting on his shoulder press down, savoring the feel of his toned muscle.
“Shit…” He exhales a deep, masculine sigh, tilting his head forward to rest his temple against mine. “I didn’t realize it would be so effective.”
A dulled throb hits my chest. My power, maybe? I ignore the subdued sensation and hum in agreement.
“What is it?”
“The drink is aptly referred to as Lover’s Temptation.” He licks his lips. “It’s an aphrodisiac.”
“I’ll say.” My nose brushes his jaw when I turn my neck and breathe in his clean, yet smoky, scent. “You smell good.”
“And you, Elara,” he growls back, “smell divine.”
An ache grows between my thighs. I push out my chest, desperate to feel him everywhere.
“Kiss me.”
A pained groan passes his lips.
His fingers dig into my back even as he pulls his head away. “You’re making this difficult.”
“It doesn’t have to be.” I don’t recognize my sultry voice.
My free hand dives into his hair. A pout tugs at my lips. His hair isn’t as smooth or silky as Rian’s inky-black strands. I want to revel in that texture. I want to dig my fingers into Rian’s hair and hold tight while he thrusts himself inside me with so much force that I—
Leto chokes. “Easy, Elara.”
I blink away the lusty vision. “What?”
Heat swims in his eyes even as he inches back so there is a sliver of space between our now-sweaty bodies.
“Careful with your pheromones." His gaze darts to the side.
My eyebrows draw down.
My what?
I follow his stare.
We’re still close to the dais. A larger space has cleared around us. Only we and the other two contestant couples dance.
Lust-filled stares and open mouths line the edge of the makeshift dance floor. Heaving chests rise and fall among the crowd.
I spot several men and women locked in each other’s embrace, as if they, too, are affected by the Lover’s Temptation.
A heady moan rises from behind me.
I turn. A gasp tears from my throat.
Hali and her partner are dancing, but not in a way I’ve ever seen.
They don’t spin. They don’t glide from side to side. Their sandaled feet are planted on the shining floor, and their bodies press together in a way that has me seriously wondering if they are coupling on the dance floor right here, right now, in front of everyone.
But no.
Their clothes are firmly in place.
And no one in the room looks at all surprised by what’s happening.
No one, except me.
Hali’s hands squeeze and press into her partner’s biceps, his waist, his ass.
His hands also roam, kneading Hali’s ample breasts, pinching her nipples, and sucking on her neck when she throws back her head in ecstasy. Their bodies roll and press, grinding against each other.
Beads of sweat gather on the base of my neck. One rolls down the dip of my spine, continuing under my gown. I shiver and avert my gaze.
Gerald and his wife move intimately against each other. Their eyes are locked. Hands roam, lips part, but they have not lost themselves in the effects of the Lover’s Temptation like Hali and her partner.
Like a moth to a flame, my head swings back to the sensuous couple. Hali’s hand has slipped between their bodies. She cups her partner’s manhood, and the moan that leaves his lips makes my legs press together.
“I want to dance like that.”
Leto groans then spins me away, blocking the enticing scene from view with his broad shoulders. “Don’t tempt me. I don’t want to die.”
My head snaps up, and my hazy vision narrows. “Why do people keep saying that?”
“Like me, I imagine it’s because they have a strong sense of self-preservation.” Leto’s palm flattens, drawing my body close once more as his nose nuzzles my hair. “It’s the Fae in us.”
My eyelids flutter closed. “I don’t know what that means.”
And I don’t care.
I lay my head on Leto’s chest and listen to the quick beat of his heart as we sway to the music.
His breath tickles my scalp as he murmurs, “Even those of us with the smallest drop of Fae blood would sense the scowling one’s power and his claim over you.”
My forehead furrows.
Scowling one?
I crack my eyelids open. A blurry glance toward the side of the dais confirms Leto’s observation.
Rian’s legs are spread in a wide stance. Muscular arms cross his chest, and a fierce, terrifying scowl mars his firm lips.
Fire blazes from his eyes.
I rip my gaze away and stare at the base of Leto’s throat. His pulse flickers in time with the music.
“No one has a claim on me.”
Not Lev. Not Rian.
I am my own woman. I will not be reduced to being viewed as property.
My subdued power begins to chip away some of the mind-numbing effects of the pink drink.
“What is life like for you?” I lift my chin to meet Leto’s gaze. “In Virendrell?”
The lusty curtain draws back from his eyes a bit. “Fine.”
He pivots on his heel, pulling me along with him. My back is to the dais.
“Just fine?” I slide my hand to rest on the space where his neck meets his shoulder.
The curtain pulls back even further, and his jaw works from side to side. “Contentment and safety can be found behind Virendrell’s sea wall, but I am not resigned to suffer a life not of my own choosing.”
I press my lips together.
The urge to tell him of Hali’s escape plan sits on the tip of my tongue. I want to invite him to join them.
But that is not my right.
“Don’t look so sad.” He places a soft kiss on my temple. “There are worse fates. Like growing up on the continent, ignorant of basic magical knowledge.”
He’s teasing me. Trying to comfort me.
But the words sting. My forced ignorance was one of the cruelest parts of living in Verdanthia.
Still, I swat his bicep with a playful scowl.
He huffs a deep laugh. The sound vibrates against my ear, and another shiver courses down my spine.
Tingling desire spreads through my core once more.
I draw back and bite my lip, searching Leto’s eyes.
“What?” he asks.
“You’re not involved with anyone, are you? Romantically, I mean?”
His lips curl into a sexy grin. “No, I am not.”
“Good.” Heat spreads: the ache in my center grows, desperate for reprieve. “Neither am I.”
His answering laugh is strained. “You may not think so, but as tempting as you may be, I will not risk my neck over it.”
“Really?” I rise on my toes. “Are you sure about that?”
I press my lips to his throat
He sucks in a breath, and his hands land on my waist. His fingers dig into my dress.
“You know what?” He pants when I kiss his neck again. “I’m starting to think you may be worth it.”
I smile against his skin and slide my hands to grip his shoulders. I lean back and search his eyes.
He’s already leaning forward, eyes bright.
I tighten my hold and lift my chin to meet his lips with mine—
A loud, guttural snarl punctures the haze of lust and music like the crack of a whip.
The marks on my arms burn.
I jerk back and stare at my skin. It’s unmarred. Normal.
But when I rest my palms back on Leto’s shoulders, the searing sensation returns.
“Ah!” I wince and pull back, curling my hands against my chest.
“Elara, are you—”
A pulse of energy crashes into me.
Energy I’ve felt before.
Energy that shouldn’t be possible with those astlerium manacles in place.
My head whips around to Rian, and my mouth falls open.
Time slows.
A dark shadow billows at Rian’s back. It rises high like a wave, ready to plummet to the earth and smother all in its furious path.
But no one reacts.
It’s as if I’m the only one who sees the powerful display.
Brilliant silver eyes catch and hold mine as the Shadow Prince prowls forward.
My hair stands on end. I take a step back, pressing into Leto’s torso.
“Fuck,” he mutters.
His hands hold my arms, as if to steady me, though he is the one trembling.
Around us, the final contest continues. Hali and her partner grind against each other. Gerald and his wife make out.
Most of the crowd’s attention remains on the contestants, enraptured by the sensuous ministrations elicited by Lover’s Temptation.
But a few note the formidable male stalking toward me and Leto like a furious beast, ready to attack. But no one looks alarmed.
In fact, they grin wide. Those in the back rise on their toes, as if they’d love to see a brawl break out in the middle of all this desire.
Rian is a body’s length away.
My stomach clenches at his fierce expression.
“What an impressive display!” Augustus’s voice booms through the ballroom.
Time resumes its normal pace.
The orchestral music drifts off, fading into a low hum.
Rian stops. The shadow at his back disappears.
His eyes flare as they move from Leto’s hands on my arms to the way I lean into the fire wielder’s body.
My roaring pulse drowns out Augustus’s next words. Except for Hali’s name.
Raucous cheers follow.
I blink.
Servers appear from every corner of the room and distribute the pink liquid to the crowd. Men and women toss the drink back quickly. Faces begin to flush. Hands begin to roam.
Through it all, Rian holds me captive with his stare. The marks on my arms preen from the attention.
My heart thumps wildly. The strength of my light magic finally cracks through the worst of the pink elixir’s dulling effects.
Music picks back up around us. The newly drugged couples break into a dance.
Only then does Rian move.
In two long strides, the Shadow Prince stands in front of me. Less than a foot separates us.
“Move,” Rian growls without taking his eyes off of me.
I shudder.
His voice is beastly. Dangerous. And it makes my soul ache.
Leto’s grip tightens. “Elara?”
Rian bares his teeth.
“It’s fine,” I’m quick to say, shifting forward. “I’m fine.”
After a beat, Leto’s hands fall away. “She’s all yours, my lord.”
“Yes.” Rian swoops in, strong arms wrapping around my back and yanking me into his chest.
I gasp.
“She is,” he whispers with a note of reverence that caresses my soul.
Before I can respond, sheer shadows encircle us and Rian spins me away.