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“Yes,” I breathe, catching myself looking at his lips, licking my own as the anticipation of what comes next races through me like wildfire.
“So, if I were to kiss you again, you’re not going to swoon into oblivion?” His voice is a caress, his presence an intoxicating spell. Asmo’s dark eyebrows lift playfully, the devilish smirk on his lips stirring something in my core that has my thighs clenching together. “You look ready to hyperventilate.”
Wrong. I look ready to come. Right here. Right now. And gods, that’s embarrassing. All he has to do is touch me, stroke his fingers between my legs and I’d shatter into a million pieces before him.
What is wrong with me?
I’ve never been this way. Not once.
I never lost my virginity because the one man I’d had the slightest interest in had kissed me and I’d felt nothing. I’d thought it was bad timing or an off day. I’d let the man strip me bare, touch me, and I might as well have been numb.
With Asmo? The man could look at me wrong and I’d turn into liquid lust on the floor.
This isn’t right. It’s not normal.
How the hell am I supposed to keep my wits about me now? It was bad enough when he was grumpy. But him looking at me like I’m the entire world, the center of his universe? It’s like he gets off on the chase—cat and mouse—and it’s become his secret mission to see how close to the edge he could drive me without lifting a finger.
And unfortunately, I suck at this game.
Asmo tilts his head down, resting his forehead on mine. My breath catches, eyes ensnared by the memories of that mouth, of the things it can do. “I suppose now might be the best time to tell you that we’re sharing a room.”
“Huh?” My breaths are shallow. Maybe he was right, I might hyperventilate, and gods,pray for me, because that’s a long way to tumble down the stairs.
He slips a finger along the shell of my ear, making my knees threaten to buckle.
“Fuck…” I breathe, trying to bite back the moan.
A dark chuckle fills my ears, making every part of me tingle at the sound. “Because of these, I don’t trust leaving you alone. Not with all that’s happening between my people and yours. So, we can sleep in separate beds, or you can take me up on my offer to snuggle, but you’re staying where I can see you. People do stupid things when they’re scared, and I won’t risk them hurting you because they see your ears and nothing more.”
“I can’t be the only elf here.” Giving in, I let my hands glide off the soft fabric of his shirt. It’s long sleeved, flaring around his wrists. The laces around his cover have been left undone, revealing the hard planes of muscle underneath.
“You’re not, but it’s not them I care about.”
My heart swells as I drag in a breath, deep enough to fill my lungs to full capacity. “You care about me?”
“Of course I do. You’re the Lady of Grim’s Keep. It’s my job to protect you. Not to mention, your life is still linked to mine.”
The air deflates from me so fast, it’s as if it never existed. I’m a job.
He doesn’tcareabout me in the way I want him to. Helustsfor me, the same way I do him. A pang in my gut makes me wonder, if our deal were to break, our lives untethered, would he bestanding in this stairwell, pressing me against the wall? Would he have shared that moment with me last night?
I’m not even sure I can be mad.
I haven’t shared with him the truth of who and what I am. Even if he did care, that might change the moment he discovers I’m a Nightborn.
“We should probably get going,” I whisper, doing my best to steel my resolve, schooling my face into an emotionless wall. “They’ll be waiting for us.”
Asmo steps back, studying me a moment before extending his hand. “You’re probably right. We’ve been up here longer than I intended.”
When I take his hand, darkness and light explode into ribbons around us, and instead of our room, he brings us straight to the meeting hall.
26
Valeria
Asmo reaches for thedoor to the meeting hall, pausing before turning the handle.
“I should warn you, I might seem colder. It’s not you. I promise, but it’s my job to ensure they respect Alice and my brother.”I hear his voice in my head, my eyes flicking to meet his.
