Tristan grabs my hand and lifts it to his lips for a kiss. “To you?”
I chew on my lip, but when his mouth dances over my skin, I hardly keep in the moan pushing at my throat. How come he has such a powerful hold over me? He told me this is improper.I know I belong with someone else and this was meant to be a secret affair, but he makes me feel seen and understood in ways I’ve never been.
It’s crazy.
And surely, I’m only projecting my romantic fantasies onto this budding infatuation, but—
“Yes.”
When instead of an answer, he kisses my wrist, I bet he can sense with his lips how quick my pulse has become. It’s as if the stars have aligned to make this happen. Richie proved himself unworthy, I lost my job, so there wasn’t much to hold me back. I even got my grandma’s blessing to go.
“Well, you.”Kiss. “Are.”Kiss. “Important to me.”Kiss. Each planted higher on my arm and making me shiver. I feel his words to my very core and believe them
“W-we only just met, and you know I belong with someone else,” I whisper, but somehow my body leans even closer, until I’m on my knees, facing him.
In a move that makes me gasp, he grabs me by the waist and swings me above the abyss to pull me into his lap. Am I an adrenaline junkie now? One past boyfriend dumped me because I was afraid to go rock climbing, and here I am, with my back to the void behind me.
“I will court you officially once you become his Dark Companion. That’s what? Three weeks from now until the full moon. He can’t stop me.”
I shiver at the intensity of his words. He means it. And as I fall into the depths of his golden eyes, my arms lock around his neck, because he’s my only lifeline.
My heart trembles, as if it’s about to knock its way out of my chest.
But it’s not safety I crave.
“Will you still want me in three weeks?” I rasp, combing my fingers through the red waves at the base of his neck. “Or do you just enjoy the challenge of taking something you shouldn’t have?”
His hands glide under my T-shirt, thumbs tracing my sides. “Ouch. That’s how you see me? Should I commit? Take an oath? Make you my purpose?”
A hot shiver crawls up my body, digging its claws into my thighs and leaving small scars all over, because yes, this is what I want. For a man to choose me for good and stand by me, no matter what happens.
Inhaling the smoke and leather clinging to him like the most tempting fragrance, I rock forward, feeling an eerie tension between my legs, as if the offer of a promise physically arouses me. “Would you?”
He doesn’t blink, his shimmering eyes pouring honey straight into my soul. “I would.” When I slide my hand to his chest, I can sense his heartbeat so clearly. “I see it now. Gloombane’s just a stepping stone.”
He’s joking, but I’m not happy at all. I don’t want to be Gloombane’s anything. He means nothing to me, and he needed to be talked into accepting me, as if I’m an unwanted scrap of food, fit for the pigs rather than human consumption. “You were the one to save me.Youpulled me out of the river.”
Tristan’s features twitch, as if they’re about to crack and reveal the true expression underneath. He groans and squeezes me tighter, pressing his face to my chest. “I know, but it’s too late now. The thread binding your shadows cannot be broken. I’m not allowed to make my intentions known until you’re his Dark Companion. Once it’s done, I will make the arrangements. There’s no law against marrying someone else’s Dark Companion.”
My brain glitches. Did he just… propose to me?
Is this real?
An elven prince who can fly on wings of shadow, and who sees my soft heart as an asset wants to make me his husband?
My hands shake, and I entwine them on my own nape, because I should reject this crazy offer. But why would I when it feels so very right?
“Yes…”
Tristan lifts his gaze at me, and oh, he issohandsome when he smiles. “Yes?”
I yelp and grab his shoulders when he twists, but his grip remains solid. He wouldn’t let me go. My back hits the soft moss, and the warm, herb-scented air whispers over my face.
I think getting manhandled might be my new kink.
“Yes to you,” I tell him, sinking ever deeper into the fragrant bed under me. Above him is the cavern’s ceiling, faintly lit by crystals glowing between the stalactites. Some are green, others golden as Tristan’s eyes or red like his hair, and their glow transforms the cave into a romantic nest just for us.
When he rocks between my legs, it’s clear he’s as excited as me. I’ve never had sex outside, but… it’s not like anyone else canflyup here, right?
