Page 10 of Court of Aether and Shadows

I tried to make my way back to the bed, but my legs gave out beneath me.

I braced for impact with the hard floor...or to wake up from this dream that has yet to become a nightmare.

Only to find myself caught in strong arms that radiated an impossible heat.

I looked up instantly, my gaze meeting golden eyes that burned with an intensity that both thrilled and terrified me. Itmakes me still in frozen horror, and yet, as the seconds begin to tick, familiarity washes over me.

Recognition of this being of forbidden beauty.

The Monster Prince.

My radiant nightmare in the flesh.

Up close, he was even more breathtaking –and terrifying– than I remembered. His skin was the color of obsidian, smooth and flawless save for the swirling patterns that seemed to move of their own accord.

These markings pulsed with a soft, reddish light, like veins of lava beneath the earth. They formed intricate designs across his broad chest and powerful arms, telling a story I longed to decipher — had begged to learn in the past and yet never got the answers I craved.

The horns that curved from his temples were works of art, spiraling up and back in elegant curves. They were adorned with delicate chains of gold and precious gems, forming a crown that marked him as royalty in this realm of magic and mystery.

Each gem seemed to hold a spark of life within it, tiny stars captured and set in metal. But it was his face that truly captured me.

Such a handsome creation beyond the world of perfection.

Features that should have been terrifying in their alienness instead stirred something deep within me. His jaw was strong and defined, lips full and sensual. High cheekbones and a straight nose gave him an aristocratic air, while the slight points of his ears hinted at his Fae nature.

It was weird because he carried horns as well, so did it mean those weren’t used for listening? Did it dispel some sort of myth or replace the ideology of him being a monster? Was he a unique blessed mixture of two worlds?

I couldn’t decipher something that was suddenly deemed unimportant because my eyes locked on his.

And those eyes...

They were pools of molten gold, flickering with an inner fire that spoke of power beyond my comprehension.

They roamed over my face with a possessive hunger that sent shivers down my spine, but beneath the predatory gaze, I caught a glimpse of something else. Longing. Tenderness. And a pain so ancient it made my heart ache.

That, and made other places ache in forbidden need.

"My little Songbird,"he purred, his voice a low rumble that I felt in my very bones."Always so eager to fly away. Don't you know that you belong here, with me?"

Goodness, heavens…

This must be a dream or a nightmare waiting to manifest, because how can someone so irresistibly desirable exist? That’s the hidden reality of it all.

He can’t be real. None of this is real.

Yet, his words stirred something within me, a sense of rightness that warred with my confusion and fear. I wanted to protest, to demand answers to the thousand questions swirling in my mind.

But my body had other ideas.

I melted into his embrace, every point of contact between us sending sparks of pleasure coursing through my veins. I could fall into this oasis of safety and layered peace for all eternity, but I know something is wrong.

That something just isn’t right here.

"What's happening to me?" I managed to gasp, even as my hands moved of their own accord, exploring the hard planes of his chest. It’s as though a part of my body is running on autopilot; so used to this sense of intimacy and yet there’s that other part that knows this man —or monster —is a stranger to me.

The heat of his skin seeped into my palms, and I marveled at the way his markings seemed to reach out towards my touch, like iron filings drawn to a magnet. Mesmerizing with a hint of cunning delicacy.

"I don't understand... any of this,” I dare to confess, despite it being the truth. I don’t want to sound so vulnerable, but then I feel like it’s okay.

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