Page 38 of A Cage of Magic and Darkness

My body craves him. Maybe he’s right, and no one else would know. I entertain the thought of lying back and allowing him to do whatever he wants to me. I have no doubt he’s good at what he does.

I strengthen my resolve.

“Prince Ruarok, it is the middle of the night, and you shouldn’t be in my chambers. I’m asking you to leave now. Please don’t make me ask you again.”

With a sigh, his shoulders drop, and he rises from the bed. My gaze locks on the huge erection tenting his pants. He makes no attempt to hide it, and it occurs to me that my stepbrother has zero shame when it comes to sex. In that way, he is the complete opposite of me.

We would be a terrible match.

20

RUAROK

It is morning again,and I am appreciating waking up and not being in that damned cage.

After ten years of only having the cold, hard floor of the cage to lie upon, sleeping in a real bed is the kind of luxury too many take for granted. As was standing beneath a hot shower for as long as I wanted.

Princess Taelyn is on my mind. She is a fucking prick tease, but I know I can wear her down.

She might believe it’s my magic that’s making her want me, but it isn’t. I haven’t had the need to use it on her, and, even if I had, it’s still too weak. Being with her, if only for those few minutes during the night, has helped to sustain me, but not with the sort of strength I was used to before I was imprisoned.

I tell myself that my magic being weakened is also the reason I don’t see any kind of sexual aura around her when we’re together. But then I remember I never saw it at the dance, either. Is there something different about Princess Taelyn? I’d always believed she was full Fae, butmaybe there is something else in her bloodline, from generations before, that makes her immune to my magic.

Taelyn wasn’t the only person to have to deal with nightmares last night. The reason I’d been awake to hear her scream was because I’d had some of my own. I’d dreamed my father had come back to life, and he’d sent his guards for me once more. I’d been too weak to fight them, and they’d dragged me, kicking and screaming, back to the cage. Except the cage wasn’t located in the dungeons this time. Instead, it was in the city, and the guards had hauled me, naked, through the streets, while all the inhabitants of the city lined the sides, jeering and throwing things at me. This time, the cage had been suspended above one of the huge holes created by the rot, and I would be visible for everyone to witness my torture.

Going to Taelyn, like I did, hadn’t only been about making her feel better—it had been for my own comfort, too. Touching her, kissing her, had reminded me that I was no longer in that fucking cage.

I am free now.

It isn’t until sometime after breakfast that I see her again. It surprises me that all my thoughts have been solely around her. Of course, she is important, in that she’s the person who is in the way of my rightful place on the throne, but it hasn’t been my plot of rid myself of her that’s been on my mind. Instead, it’s been how soft her mouth is, how firm and high her breasts, how, I wish, I could have pushed my fingers inside her.

“Princess,” I greet her.

She looks tired, dark smudges beneath her eyes. Of course, I already know her sleep was disturbed.

“Good morning, Prince Ruarok.”

Her cheeks flush pink at the sight of me. Dear gods, she’s so incredibly sweet, it almost feels wrong of me to want to destroy her. But this is my kingdom. It’s my birthright, and she is the one standing in my way.

“I wondered how I could be of service today.”

I don’t give a fuck about being of service. I just want to be around her, to make her squirm. People are bound to start talking soon; rumors will fly. I will destroy her reputation just by being associated with her. It’s a cruel world where women are judged so much harsher than men, but that works in my favor.

“We need to arrange a memorial service for the king and queen. I know we can’t have a burial since?—”

She cuts herself off, but I know what she’d been about to say. We can’t have a burial because both their bodies have been swallowed into the ground.

She must see something in my face as she pauses and narrows her eyes. “Is that going to be difficult for you? I mean, because of your father…”

She means because I hated the man.

I swallow my feelings and force a soothing smile.

“I can put my feelings about my father aside for something so important. I won’t let you down, Princess.”

“Thank you, Ruarok.” She lets out a sigh. “I admit it feels good to have someone I can trust with these things. We are family, after all. It didn’t feel right to just hand it over to one of the staff, and I have so much to think about with the city in such a mess. I need to figure out how to stop this rot from spreading.”

I stare at her. “You think it can be stopped?”

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