Page 18 of Of Storm and Emerald
Shit.
Chapter Seven
Daemon
Checkmate,Princess.
When they got to the center of the dance floor, they did the customary exchange of bows before he pulled her into his frame. After they made a full turn around the floor, other couples seamlessly joined in.
“You look beautiful, Princess.”
“Thank you.” A pink blush crept across her cheeks. “And you don’t have to call me princess. My friends call me Rae.”
“Are we friends?”
Her mouth lifted at the corners. “We could be. Probably should be since we’ll both be rulers of our own courts one day and will have to work together.”
He let her words sink in for a moment, then leaned down just a fraction so that his mouth was closer to her ear, “We can be friends, but I think I’ll stick withmy star, what do you think?”
When her skin pebbled beneath his touch and her blush deepened, he smiled. Reveling in the way she reacted to him. “Did you really think that I wouldn’t figure out that it was your pussy that came all over my tongue last night? Or that I would let you slip away again?”
“I um, I—” she stammered, unable to get her words to form a coherent sentence.
“As I said last night before you so kindly left me standing rock-hard in the rain, I’m not done worshiping you, and I don’t know that I ever will be.”
He allowed Auraelia to lean back far enough to look into his eyes and see the passion that burned there, but also the clear intent of his words. Everything he said to her was true. “I’ve had a taste, and I want more.” He tightened his hold on her waist, pulling her closer to his body, “Say yes.”
“And if I say no?” There was a challenge in her voice, and her brows were raised in defiance. The mask of the meek woman who was in his arms a moment ago cracked, giving him a glimpse of the goddess he’d seen the night before.
There you are.
“Then you say no, and we finish this dance. And if you choose to dance with another partner, then I will bow out gracefully until I can take your hand once again. I want to get to know you, Auraelia. To know your mind. But I would be lying if I told you I didn’t also want to hear you screaming my name in pleasure.” He smirked as the words settled between them and left the decision up to her.
They continued the dance, and he held her as close as their bodies would allow. Auraelia searched his face, as though looking for any sign that he may be joking but knew she would find none. He assumed she would hesitate at his offer since she no longer had the anonymity her mask provided, but he meant what he had said. He wanted her mind just as much as he wanted her body. He’d gotten a taste of both, and it wasn’t enough.
Out of nowhere, a cool breeze drifted through the closed room, causing the hair framing Auraelia’s face to float around her. A question froze on his lips as he noticed the same green streaks of lighting shooting across her irises that he’d seen the night before.
Holy shit.
Before he could say anything, she got that beautifully mischievous look on her face, the same one she had before she abandoned him in the garden. Only, this time she followed it with one word. “Yes.”
Yes.The most beautiful word that he’d ever heard, and it was uttered by the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Not wanting to waste another moment, he attempted to pull her from the dance floor.
When he felt her grip on his hand tighten, he stopped and watched the smirk on her lips grow into a teasing smile.
“What is it?” he asked, furrowing his brow in confusion.
“I can’t exactly leave the ball that is being held in my honor after one dance, now can I?”
He narrowed his eyes, and his grip on her waist tightened. “What are you playing at, Princess?”
“I’m not playing at anything; I just can’t leave yet. It would be rude, and mother would notice my absence this early in the night.”
He studied Auraelia’s face, trying to decipher the look in her eyes but before he could speak, she continued.
“You said you wanted my mind, as well as my body, correct?” she asked, and her eyes shone with passion as well as a challenge, one from which he would not shy away.
“I did.”
