Page 36 of The Last Heir of Elsewhere

They looked at each other, sharing one of their silent conversations, and finally seemed to come to an agreement.

“We’ll all go,” Bael announced, standing up.

I looked down, stalking angrily toward the door. It seemed I was to be allowed no reprieve from either of them, and I couldn’t decide if I preferred this new protectiveness, or when both had been out to kill me. At the moment, I might rather have the latter.

15

LONNIE

THE INN, THE VILLAGE OF FORLORN

The air felt heavy and charged with unspoken tension as we entered the dim, grimy bathing room.

The room was small and cramped, less than half the size of the too-small bedroom. The wallpaper was peeling in places, and only decorated by a cracked mirror hanging above a dingy sink. The large circular bathtub in the center of the room was rusted beyond all belief, but I didn’t care. It could have been a worm-infested hole in the floor, and I still would’ve seriously considered using it to wash the grime from my skin.

To my immense relief, the water ran clear and hot when I turned on the rusted faucet. I stepped back, waiting for the tub to fill, then flushed when I felt the eyes of both princes on me.

It seemed foolish to request they turn around while I undressed, but equally embarrassing to simply strip my clothes off while they watched. A blush immediately heated my cheeks at the unbidden thought of having them both watching me, perhaps joining me in the water at the same time…

“Everything alright?” Bael asked, a hint of humor in his tone.

I nodded, but couldn’t answer as my mouth had gone impossibly dry. I forced a deep breath and clenched my jaw to keep from trembling as I turned away. My hands shook as I hastily stripped off my grime-covered clothes.

I avoided meeting anyone’s gaze, but could sense the weight of their stares on my back. My breathing turned uneven and my heart raced with a mix of nervousness and excitement as I swiftly slid into the bathtub.

The tense atmosphere and lack of conversation made it clear that they were silently communicating once again, then slow footsteps echoed through the room. Bael walked around to stand in front of me beside the tub. He looked down pointedly, possessive hunger in his gaze. I resisted the urge to cover myself, and was reminded strongly of the first time he’d stood beside my bathtub, and how pointedly different this felt—still torturous, but now in an entirely different way.

Bracing his hands on the sides of the tub, he leaned down until our faces were level and mere inches apart. His yellow eyes locked onto mine, and he raised one hand to run his thumb across my bottom lip. “What are you thinking about, little monster?”

My eyes widened with mortification, as I recalled that they could likely smell even the barest hint of my arousal. I shook my head, wishing I could simply say “nothing” and instead finding no words to describe my thoughts. “Nothing important.”

“Liar.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but he pressed his thumb between my lips and instead I let out a deep moan. I swirled my tongue around it, sucking the salt from his skin. He groaned in response.

Our mouths were so close, I could almost taste his lips without even moving. A current pulsed through every inch of my skin as he grasped my chin in his strong hand, and leaned further over the water to drag his tongue over my bottom lip.

I opened to the kiss, hungry and desperate, and wound my fingers into his curls. His lips moved against mine with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine, igniting a heat within me that only grew with each passing moment.

“Are you going to join me?” I asked, my mouth dry.

His eyes rolled upwards to gaze at the ceiling, as if he was desperately searching for the willpower to resist. He shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, little monster.”

“Why?” I asked, knowing I sounded needy. Desperate.

His expression was slightly pained, and he pulled back from me. “I’m already far too happy with you,” he confessed. “And if you keep looking at me like that, I don’t care if it destroys me, I won’t be able to resist the urge to claim you as mine.”

My eyes went wide, even as I heard the creak of the door. I whipped my head around, to see Scion halfway out into the hall.Fuck.

I hadn’t meant to ignore him, in fact, even now it was impossible to decide whom I would prefer more.

“Wait,” I called sharply. I looked between them, helpless, my heart pounding as if I were on the brink of leaping from a cliff.

“No,” Scion’s shoulders sagged and his head hung low, his usually confident posture now hunched and defeated. “I’m not your mate. I shouldn’t be here.”

Bael scoffed in disbelief. His expression had changed from one of arousal to annoyance in an instant, his brows furrowing and his lips thinning into a tight line. “And what’s made you so sure of that?”

“How can you ask me that?” Scion’s eyes widened, as if it were already obvious. “Look at her.”

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