Page 191 of Taken By Touch and Torment

He laughed. “You don’t look it.”

“Hey, only I’m allowed to flirt with Rune,” Uriah said, leaning back in his chair. He glanced between Mason and me with a sigh. “Is there anything we can do on the down low?” He quickly added, “After further vetting, of course.”

I rolled my eyes at Uriah’s over-excited transparency.

“On the surface, I think it’s obvious where my clan stands idealistically,” I said to Kylo. “And it is not with the kingdom. But I will not jeopardize my clan’s rule nor Valentin’s mortal populations. Without the mortals, we wouldn’t have access to the goods you seek, anyway.” I paused. “You may state your case. And, if convincing, we can discuss options.”

“That’s all I can ask for,” Kylo said softly.

By the time he was finished, I already knew where I stood.

I cursed the dickhead for making my life more complicated.

When all I wanted was to escape to some nowhere village and continue to scientifically test if I could impregnate my succubus soulmate.

It wasn’t remotely possible, according to Sadie.

But a man could try.

EPILOGUE

SCARLETT

Rune carried me in his arms. My eyes were open, but all I saw was darkness. The only noise I could discern was the rapid beat of my own heart.

Then I was moving. I squealed the moment my feet touched something like dirt, but softer. My toes dug into the damp grittiness, and I felt Rune’s lips on mine.

He unveiled his shadows.

I gasped, my senses returning all at once. Crashing assailed my eardrums, and I nearly raised my hands to cover my ears. They adjusted to the sound slowly.

Besides, I was too overcome with the vision before me to care about hearing loss.

Ocean waves rose and fell with a power I felt in my bones. The sun was ascending over the vast blue, painting the sky in hues of pink and orange that shimmered in the sea’s reflection.

Rune laughed at me softly, but I didn’t care about that either.

All I could do was walk forward, lips parted and eyes wide. I didn’t want to miss a thing. I looked down at the sand, the way it rose around my submerged feet the closer I got to the sea.

The cool water was up to my ankles, and when a tall wave crashed and moved toward me, I squealed and backed right up into Rune’s chest.

He wrapped his arms around me, bending to kiss my temple. “Look what you would’ve missed out on if you hadn’t woken up when I told you to.” He trailed a finger down my arm, and I shivered. “Bet all that whining and begging feels silly now, huh?”

“It was like, four in the morning!” I protested. “How was I supposed to know your surprise was worth it?”

Rune tsked. “Bad girl. When have any of my surprises ever failed to exceed your expectations?”

It appeared we’d already reclaimed the word surprise. We’d been reclaiming a lot of things lately.

At those glorious mental images of submitting to Rune in increasingly depraved ways, my core tightened. I became hyperaware of Rune’s hold over me, physical and mental.

“Never,” I admitted. I stared at the bright blue waters, unable to hold back a grin.

“Mm,” Rune hummed his approval.

I saw a giant rock in the distance, heard the calls of birds above. I peered over Rune’s shoulder to the sloping hills of sand, rocks, and green plants with blooming pink flowers. The tops of homes and buildings lay beyond.

“Can we swim?” I asked, nearly bouncing with excitement.

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