She stared up at him, heart pounding against her ribs.
"I don't want an Emperor," she said, her voice cracking."I don't want a crown.I just want to be seen.I want to be chosen for me, not my DNA."
She released his jacket and laid her palms flat against his chest, over the thundering beat of his heart.
"You see me, Raaevik.You're the only one here who does."
He made a sound low in his throat, something between a groan and a snarl.
Then his control snapped.
Cupping her face, he traced the line of her jaw and looked at her like a starving man looking at a feast.
"I see you," he breathed."I have seen nothing else since the moment I walked into that room."
He lowered his head, and she rose on her toes to meet him.His mouth crashed down on hers in a collision, desperate and starving.
Raaevik tasted of darkness and heat.He kissed her like he wanted to devour her, his mouth hot and demanding.His hands tangled in her hair, tilting her head back so he could deepen the kiss.
The pull in her chest locked tight, and her knees nearly gave way.He caught her easily, holding her safe against his larger, harder body with a hard arm around the back of her waist.
The world narrowed down to this… to the scent of him and the heat of him and his tongue sliding against hers.
It was treason.It was death.
But it was the first breath of air she'd taken in days.
