Page 218 of A Queen This Fierce and Deadly

Her grin turned into a smirk. “So scowly,” she murmured.

I turned, stalking from the bathing room. Spotting a gauzy robe lying on the bed, I delivered it to her, keeping my eyes averted as if I were a boy of sixteen winters.

Prisca’s low laugh followed me out the door.

Stepping into the hall, I found a maid who broughtwhat I needed. Busying myself with lighting candles and warming the fragrant oil with my power, I carefully ignored the sounds of water splashing from the bathing room.

And then Prisca opened the door.

She wore the robe. It clung to her curves, displaying more than it hid, and my mouth watered as my gaze dropped to her hard nipples.

“Yesterday, when you took a nap, I missed you,” I admitted. “We were separated for an hour at most, and I found myself glancing around the room as if looking for you.”

Her mouth curved, her eyes shone gold, and I crossed the room, pressing my lips gently to her forehead.

“It seems as if we might have a problem,” she said. “Because when I woke up, I was instantly irritated that you weren’t there.”

I leaned back far enough to meet her gaze. “This is embarrassing.”

“Humiliating,” she agreed. “Let’s never tell anyone.”

“Deal.”

She gave a low laugh, and I took her mouth, swallowing her moan. She splayed her hand against my chest then curled it into my shirt, pulling me closer.

My hands had already found the tie to her robe, and it fluttered to the floor, displaying Prisca’s warm, smooth skin. I teased her bottom lip with my teeth, gently nibbling, then backed her toward the bed.

My blood was hot, pounding through my ears. But I had plans. And she wouldn’t wrest control from me yet.

She was pushing my shirt up in an attempt to stripme out of it, and I yanked it over my head, enjoying her low sound of contentment. She reached for my pants, and I spun her until she faced the bed.

“What are you doing?”

“Lie on your stomach, wildcat.”

She glanced over her shoulder at me. When I raised one eyebrow, she bent over, keeping her movements achingly slow as she crawled onto the bed.

I snarled. “Little tease.”

She let out a low, taunting laugh, and I took a moment to soak in the sight of her. A moment to memorize the curve of her ass, the sharp blades of her shoulders, the smooth line of her back.

A moment to revel in the fact that she was mine.

“Are you going to stare at me all night?” Her tone turned sulky. But she wiggled on the bed, clearly wanting to feel my hands on her.

I poured warm oil into my palm, stroking it along Prisca’s shoulders. She let out a gasp that turned into a strangled moan as I found a particularly tight spot between her left shoulder and her neck.

“Gods…”

I smiled, digging my thumb a little deeper, watching her response carefully to gauge the right pressure. I’d craved this for some time—the chance to tease out some of the tension that she carried each day. The opportunity to stroke her soft skin, to turn her limp and relaxed.

When I’d cajoled the knots from her shoulders and neck, I moved down, using long, sweeping strokes along her spine, feeling the muscles twinge and jump when I found the places that caused her pain. I frowned.

“You should have told me you were sore.”

“Mmmmfff.”

I smiled, moving to her lower back, the base of her spine, the top of her ass. She shivered, and I teased her, my hands running lightly over her delicate skin, until she shifted impatiently.

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