CHAPTER FIFTEEN
BLEDDYN
“Beth, listen to me.” I conveyed as much compulsion in my tone as possible. “You must not meet the prince. It is dangerous. Do not meet the prince.”
She narrowed her eyes and flared her nostrils. Throwing off my hands, she said in that strange way she had of speaking, “What the hell are you trying to do? Back off.”
Confused, I allowed her to back away. My gift rarely failed, especially with a small thing like her. I probably had not tried hard enough. Focusing on her pretty silver-blue gaze, I pushed the compulsion into her mind with all my power. “Do not meet the prince. Do not.”
She clutched her head and groaned, then rubbed her forehead vigorously. “What the fuck, Bleddyn? I can feel you poking at my brain. Is this some kind of Fae magic?”
Why was this not working? No one in the realm was immune to my compulsive powers, except for the prince and his father—they could not be compelled. It was part of the royal magic.
Royal Magic. By the goddess, Mistress Olwen was right.
The realization made me dizzy. I was standing in front of a member of the royal family and possibly the heir to King Rhys’s realm. My breath caught, and I stumbled forward.
Beth had waited for this. She stepped back and slapped me so hard across the face that my head flew sideways, and my cheek burned as if she had whipped me with nettles. “Don’t you dare to ever, and I mean ever, try to do this again. Stay out of my fucking brain, you hear?”
Her anger colored her skin red, and her eyes shone like an angry blue moon in a black night sky. Her human heritage was trying to assert itself. The effect was so mesmerizing that I barely caught her hand as it moved in for another slap. Her wrist was fragile, bird bones in my much larger palm.
Deftly, I turned her arm against her back and pulled her flush with me. She had to tilt her head to stare up at me, and the heat in her eyes made me lose all reason.
She was mine. Mine to tame, mine to save, mine to love.
My mouth crushed against hers, and I tasted metal where her teeth cut my lip. I did not care. My blood boiled for this little half-human. I let go of her arm and, with my hands under her behind, I hoisted her up so I could kiss her better. Her thighs wrapped around my waist, and her linen shroud fell away, exposing her naked body to my gaze.
***
BETH
One minute, I was leaning into him, feeling his tongue caress mine, drowning in his juniper scent. The next, my world tumbled upside down, and I found myself on my back on top of the mattress.
I wanted to protest, still angry at his intrusion, but then our gazes met. His eyes had turned into pools of molten silver, shining with an unnatural brightness. The words died on my lips, and my breath stuck in my throat as he leaned over me like a predator, ready to pounce.
Without taking his gaze off my face, he tugged on my linen shrug. It parted, exposing my body. It had been so long for anybody to see me naked, I should have been embarrassed.
I swept the thought away. It didn’t matter, not when he looked at me like I was the best thing he’d ever seen. I stayed where I was, trembling, as he traced my outline with his hungry eyes.
My body reacted even though he wasn’t touching me. My nipples tightened, and a shudder ran through my belly, tightening to a sweet ache between my thighs.
Still contemplating me, he braced his arms next to my head, his lower body pressing against mine. On a sigh, I dropped open my legs, craving the feeling of his hard length against my core.
His kiss began as a gentle touch against my lips. “I have wanted to do this since I first met you.”
Then his mouth trailed a path from my earlobe down along my neck. Dragging his teeth lightly past my breasts and belly, he didn’t stop until he reached the apex of my thighs.
I panted, watching with fascination. His long hair was still tied with leather strands, and I wanted to reach out and pull it free. But then he nipped me hard on my hip bone, and I hissed in protest.
He lifted his head and smiled at me, his face transformed from its usual seriousness. There was a tiny voice in the back of my mind, whispering that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Maybe, after everything I knew about Bleddyn, I shouldn’t get too close to him.
But then he moved back up, his hardness under the rough fabric dragging across the top of my pussy until I could barely see straight. He closed his lips around my nipple, and his tongue drew tantalizing circles over the skin.
His large hand cupped one breast, rolling the bud between his fingers, while his mouth was busy on the other side. All my thoughts burned up in the fire he was lighting. I threw my head back, moaning loudly as he blew on the sensitive skin.
Then he lowered his head and nibbled gently, the tiny pangs of pain setting off fireworks between my thighs. I couldn’t move with his weight pinning me to the bed. But I could tilt my lower body against his. He raised himself on his arms, grinning at me with blazing eyes.
“Patience,” he whispered.
I shivered at the promise of the one word.
Soon, he was on the move again. Sliding down my body, he slipped lower, his tongue leading the way. When he kneeled before the bed, he stared at my open pussy with such reverence, my chest clenched.
What was going on? Why wasn’t he moving? I felt so exposed to his gaze that I struggled to hide myself, but he gripped my knees firmly. “I want to see you, little human. Have no fear. You are beautiful.”
His tone was soothing, as if he were gentling a wild animal. Any other time, I would’ve taken offense, but then he bent lower and licked a strip across my slit. Somehow, after that, I didn’t want to talk anymore.
He took his time, his tongue drawing figures of eight across my clit and dipping into my wet pussy. Then he pulled back and blew on the damp skin as he had done to my nipples. The sensation was so intense, I groaned loudly.
I could feel the muscles tighten as my body prepared itself to let go.
But Bleddyn had other ideas. He slipped a finger into me, firmly stroking my walls until I was aching with frustration. It felt so incredibly good, so different from anything I’d experienced before, but he didn’t speed up. I couldn’t come like that.
“Please, Bleddyn. Please…” My voice trailed off in an embarrassing whimper.
“Soon,” he whispered, his lips pulling into an irritating smirk. Then he got back to work, and I forgot where I was. All that was important were his hands, his fingers playing inside my sopping pussy, and the other pinching my nipple.
When he placed his mouth over my clit and sucked, it was all over. I came with a scream, my body convulsing, my legs clamping against his head to hold him in position. When he finally emerged, his face was as red as his chin was glistening.
I was still catching my breath when he kissed me. I tasted honey and myself, a combination so potent that my pussy twitched again, pulling more moans from me.
I wanted to tell him how good he was, how much he’d pleased me, but there were no words. He watched me with a soft expression. For a moment, this didn’t feel like a one-night stand with somebody I’d only just met. No, there was something in his face that promised more, a lifetime of love and devotion.
But that was just wishful thinking. My body had calmed down, and reality was asserting itself. He was not to be trusted. Only half an hour ago, he’d tried to use magic to stop me from meeting the man who might be my uncle. He’d said that Prince Prys was dangerous. Maybe so, but I wasn’t going to give up my shot of finding answers.
Until then, there was nothing wrong with enjoying Bleddyn’s company. Pretending that I meant more to him than a charge or a target. Soon, I’d either be a member of the royal court, or a fugitive, looking to free my friends and find the truth behind my parents’ murders.