Page 43 of The Demon Court

He pointed at her, and the words died on her lips.

“You do not speak for me, sorceress,” he snarled. “You should have been in my room from the very first night here.”

“That would have been barbaric of you.” She tilted her chin up, wanting him to see her defiance. “I deserve my own space. A refuge.”

“From me?” He placed his hand over his heart, fingers spread wide, before a grin spread across his face. A grin she didn’t like at all. “You do not get refuge from the man you claim you wish to marry, sorceress. You will be in my room every night. In my bed. At my side. And you will learn your place in this castle once and for all. Do I make myself clear?”

Fingers twitching at her sides, she gave him a nod.

He imperiously held out his hand and then twitched his fingers for her to follow him. “Then come.”

Lust left the room so confident she would follow him into the candlelight and flickering shadows that he never looked back. If he had, he might have noticed how she stooped one more time beneath the bed to gather up a suddenly exhausted little spirit before venturing into the dark halls.

ChapterFourteen

He’d meant what he said. Lust could not protect Selene if she was hidden away in her own room, where his brother could sneak at any point. Greed could find her anywhere, but his brother was not likely to take a woman out from under his nose.

And damn it, he’d wanted her in his bed since the first moment he’d seen her on that street. Let alone when she’d challenged him in the tavern.

If he wanted to slide his hands over those smooth thighs, or test the weight of her breasts, or lick his way between her thighs to see if she tasted like sweet honey or if she was as icy there as everywhere else, why should he not? He was lust incarnate. He was meant to be desired and for others to desire. But this foolish little mortal had tested everything he believed and he couldn’t get his head wrapped around it.

Running his hands through his hair, he stalked through the halls toward the dining room. He hadn’t returned to his own bed for the better part of three nights while he tried to piece through his thoughts.

He’d stood outside the door a few times, though. Staring at the wood as though he could see through it and peek into the scene beyond. Was she sleeping in his bed? Did her dark hair spread out across his pillow, leaving the sweet scent of peppermint all throughout his sheets?

The thought made him impossibly hard. It made him want to knock down the door and slip underneath the covers with her.

And that was why he hadn’t gone back to his own bedroom. He couldn’t. What would he do if he did?

Lust knew his own limitations. He knew she didn’t want him there, and that by forcing her to move into his room, he’d overstepped the lines of trust they were trying to build.

But he didn’t know why that trust mattered to him!

He could get himself together. He’d be perfectly charming during dinner, proving to her that he was a good man with good intentions, and why should she be afraid of her king? She should fear demons. But he was a spirit of lust, a blessing upon these lands.

Setting his shoulders and a fake smile on his face, he opened the doors and stepped into the candlelight beyond. The servants had removed what was a normally massive table with at least twenty chairs around it. Instead, they’d filled the room with flowers. Bright bouquets with splashes of pinks, reds, and purples had rained petals onto the floor. As he stepped, their scent rose from the delicate petals he crushed beneath his heels.

They had changed the large table out for a smaller round table, still large enough to seat six, but with only two place settings and mounds of food upon it. Candlelight glimmered all around them, hanging from the ceiling on silver threads that were almost invisible to the naked eye. As such, the lights hovered around them, flickering and swaying with the slightest breeze.

And then there was her. His little moon goddess sitting in the chair on the opposite side of the table with a glass of wine in her hands. She eyed him, clearly not sure what to think of the banquet he’d thrown for the two of them.

“Good evening,” he said, his voice catching in his throat.

Embarrassing. He had seduced queens before. Women who were actual goddesses that graced these lands for only a few moments before they returned to their own realms. Lust knew how to make a woman swoon and fall at his feet with desire.

But not this one. He had no idea how to convince this woman to spend time with him. No, that wasn’t right. He didn’t know how to convince her to fall into his bed. That was all. Spending time with her was merely an enjoyable side benefit.

He wanted to hit himself. Enjoyable wasn’t the right word either. They argued, she belittled him. There was no enjoyment in their time together other than the chase.

Yes. That was better.

With these thoughts in mind, it was easier to walk over to the table and drag his chair from the opposite side to sit next to her. He sat down with his legs spread wide and relaxation in every single muscle of his body. She did not wriggle underneath his skin at all. He languidly looked her over, as though she were nothing more than a puzzle for him to figure out. In fact, he was so unaffected that he even crossed his ankles.

She eyed him with the same suspicion as always. “Why am I here?”

“I thought mortals needed to eat.”

“We do. But you and I have never eaten together.” She lifted her glass to her lips, and he watched the graceful movement with rapt attention.

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