Page 63 of A Court of Ash and Midnight
Daemon’s footsteps announce him a moment before I feel his arms wrap around me from behind. He doesn’t say anything, he just holds me, and he waits.
It’s a few minutes before I’m able to speak. When I do, my words come out wet and raw, my voice half-strangled by tears. “I…I’ve done terrible things. And every time I try to summon my magic, that’s all I can think about.”
Daemon’s voice vibrates in my ear, his face pressed into my hair. “We’ve all done terrible things, Embyr. But your past doesn’t define who you are. Only you, right now, get to decide that.”
I turn around slowly and look up at him. “But I don’t know who I am. I’ve been trying to figure it out for almost a decade, and I’m more confused now than ever.”
He reaches up and wipes the tears away from one cheek, and then the other. “Do you know what I see? I see someone who is the bravest person I’ve ever met. Resilient. A fighter. A survivor. Someone who never gives up. And I know you’re not going to give up now. Not after you’ve come all this way.”
There’s a rumble in the sky above us as dark, roiling clouds move in off the ocean. The wind picks up, blowing strands of my hair, and rustling through Daemon’s like a jealous lover.
“Why do you even care?” I ask, my voice cracking. “I don’t get it. I’m a human. I am nothing compared to the fae. My life will be over in the blink of an eye, and you will live a hundred times over.”
“Does it matter why?” He reaches up and tucks my hair behind one ear. “What matters is that Idocare. You are not just a human, Embyr. Your life means a great deal to me, and if you give it up so easily, I will never forgive you.”
His words end with a growl that rumbles against my chest, and I feel a spark of heat through my veins. There’s another roll of thunder overhead, and off in the distance, out over the ocean, a flash of lightning illuminates the whole sky.
“And here I thought we were enemies,” I respond breathily, my heart doing that beating wings thing again in my chest.
There’s another rumble, and this time it’s Daemon and the sky both. He snakes one arm around the small of my back, and runs the other up into my hair, cupping my cheek for a moment while his eyes burn into mine. And then his lips are on mine with all the power of the storm brewing in the clouds above us. He is not gentle. He devours me like I am some precious treasure he’s been searching for his whole life. His lips taste like salt and like fire and like night sky.
Our mouths crush together and his tongue tangles against mine, probing and claiming me in a way that instantly awakens a throb of electricity between my legs. A moan escapes me and Daemon growls against my lips, his grip tightening and pulling me even closer against him. I wrap my arms around his back, feeling the strain of his hard muscles like there’s some sort of beast inside him about to claw its way out. I dig my nails into his flesh, pressing him harder and harder against me, needing more and more andmore.
I’d been fighting this connection since I first saw Daemon at Shadow’s Keep. Fighting it so, so hard. And now that I’d finally unleashed my feelings, I feel like I’m drowning in them, like they’re going to swallow me whole. When Daemon’s lips travel from my mouth down the side of my neck, his teeth grazing the soft skin there, I let out another gasp, pleasure sparking through me…
And then, I realize it’s not just my pleasure that’s sparking.
Daemon’s tunic is ablaze.
Chapter Thirty
Istep back, eyeswide in shock and horror, as flames curl along the edges of Daemon’s tunic. Looking down, I see that my fingertips are glowing with golden light, a small orb of fire in each palm.
Daemon’s eyes widen in surprise, but he simply raises a hand, and a wall of midnight encircles him, dampening the flames quicker than I can blink my eyes.
“Are you okay?” I ask, a fine tremble moving along my limbs.
“I’m fine,” he says, reaching out and pulling me back against him gently. “I told you, you can’t hurt me.”
I nod, but I can’t stop shaking. Daemon runs a finger along the edge of my jaw and lifts my gaze to his. Then, softly this time, he presses his lips to mine. After a moment, I relax against him. My heart is still hammering in my chest and my blood is pulsing like shooting stars. The kiss deepens, slow and hypnotic. Had I really just done that? Magic.Mymagic. I can taste it on my tongue like stars.
After a moment, I realize that Daemon’s tunic is still smoldering. A small giggle escapes my lips. I can’t help myself.
Daemon pulls back, a puzzled expression on his face. I reach up and run my fingers down the tattered and burned edges of his shirt, and then I pull it off over his head. He grins, understanding the humor now, and pulls me against him again. I run my hands back up his back, and this time it feels exactly right. His skin, bare to me, belonging to me…
It’s at that moment the sky opens up, and cold rain begins to fall.
Neither of us move, not willing to let go yet. Daemon’s tongue against mine is wicked, softer now, but no less intoxicating. If anything, it’s like he’s teasing me, drawing each movement out, slowly tracing his fingers up my back until I think I might lose my mind…
But when lightning strikes close enough to feel the crackle of electricity in the air, he pulls back. “Let’s get you inside,” he says, his voice deep and velvety. “It’s not safe out here.”
Of course, he means not safe forme. The human. But I don’t argue.
We are drenched down to our very souls by the time we reach the tent. It’s raining so hard that I doubt the guards would have noticed us even if Daemon hadn’t pulled night around us to transport us back. Inside the tent I shiver, the sound of rain a steady roar that reverberates in my ears.
“You’re soaked,” Daemon says, looking down at my wet nightgown and cloak, which are plastered to my body.
He helps me untie my cloak, but when I start to shimmy out of my nightgown, he reaches up and covers my hands before I can get the straps over my shoulders. “You need to get some rest. We made a breakthrough tonight with your magic, but there’s only another day and a half before you fight Toryn, and you have to be able to summon it consistently.”
