“You know my name, minx.” His deep voice vibrates along my throat where his wicked lips deliver the most delicious punishment. “You were moaning it not long ago.”
Anticipation tightens my stomach as his hungry mouth slides across my skin. “Senan… We don’t have time.” He is under strict orders to return to the castle before sundown.
Senan falls onto his back with a quiet curse, his arms splayed wide and toned chest heaving. I miss him already, and he is still within arm’s reach.
My hand slides to where his heart rattles his chest, and I “walk” my fingers down to his ribs, over each ridge of his stomach, to where the sheet keeps the rest of his glorious body hidden. “Why don’t you cancel your trip and come with me? We would have the most glorious time together, dancing anddrinking among the humans. And afterward, perhaps we can deal with this.” I cup his thick erection over the sheet.
Senan twitches with his sharp intake of breath, his fingers slipping around my wrist, putting an end to my wicked plans. “If I don’t go to Nimbiss tomorrow, my brother will murder me.”
Ah, yes. His brother. From what I’ve heard about our new king, Boris Vale is not one to be trifled with. Even more reason to let go of this obsession with a man I cannot possibly keep.
I tug free of Senan’s grip and stare up at the rust-colored canopy. Everything in this space is some shade of orange, from the tangerine plaster to the reddish-orange wood of the four-poster bed.
I have a love-hate relationship with this room. On one hand, some of my fondest memories have taken place here. This has become a sanctuary where Senan and I can be together without judgement or consequence.
On the other hand, it is theonlyplace.
All the sneaking around is thrilling, yes. But it’s also exhausting.
He used to come to my tower until someone reported his whereabouts to the king.
Once, we met in the mountain park, but there were too many witnesses milling about. Despite the glamour he wore, people recognized him and swarmed like locusts.
Now he is leaving for Nimbiss, to meet the princess he is destined to marry.
That’s right. He is marrying a beautiful foreign princess, while I’m probably going to end up with some pockmarked lord with a flintlock fetish.
Senan’s fingertips brush mine, a lifeline dragging me back to shore from a sea of melancholy. “I wish… Stars, Allette. I wish so many things.”
I learned long ago that wishes are like prayers to the heavens: a waste of breath. This is our fate. Best to accept it and move on.
Still, my fingers anchor around his. Because I am stubborn—and thankfully, so is he. When we first met, I fought this attraction but quickly realized that one cannot declare war on the inevitable.
And inevitable is what we are.
Our love. Our passion. Our ending.
A discreet rap echoes through the quiet room, the sound of knuckles on wood carrying with it the weight of finality. “Sire? It is time.”
A silent storm tears through my soul as my heart breaks. The trouble with falling for someone you cannot keep? Goodbyes always come too soon.
Senan and I scramble to our feet. The muscles in his broad back strain as he reaches for his discarded clothes. Each article of clothing becomes my sullen shroud until my nakedness is hidden and my hair is concealed beneath my hood.
I linger next to the door leading to the adjoining chamber, where I will exit after he is long gone. Senan finishes buckling his boots and then closes the gap between us, pulling me into his strong embrace.
Tears prick the backs of my eyes as I inhale the intoxicating scent of sage and bergamot that clings to his soft white shirt. “I’ll see you when you get back?”
Senan lifts my chin with his knuckle, urging me to meet his star-kissed gaze. “I will be here a week from Tuesday.” His fingertip grazes beneath my lashes. “Please don’t cry, my love.”
As if I can control my body’s reaction to such an acute loss. He inclines his head until his soft mouth molds against mine, melting me like chocolate left too long in the sun.
Another knock sounds, followed by a firm demand.
“You need to go,” I murmur between soft, sweet kisses.
His tongue sweeps into my mouth, claiming what has been his for the last seven months. “I know. But I am weak and without self-control.”
“Just what I want to hear when my lover is about to meet his betrothed.” This faceless princess will be all the things to him that I cannot be. When they are wed and their mating bond is in place, I will be nothing more than a distant memory, fading with each passing day.