Page 114 of The Demon Crown

She’d given in to him, and that was the sweetest success he’d ever accomplished in his life.

“You’re staring at me,” she muttered.

“It’s hard not to.” He pressed a kiss to her warm skin, watching as the leaf shadows fluttered over her pulse. Or was that her? Was she excited to wake next to him as well?

“It’s creepy.”

“I’m not creepy.” He rolled over her, his own shadow now encompassing her as he braced himself above her head.

Whatever else he’d wanted to say fluttered out of his mind as she stretched underneath him. All that lithe muscle working, her body waking up and meeting his with that innate grace that he wasn’t all that certain she knew she had. And gods... She was so stunning.

“Stop looking at me like that,” she whispered, looping an arm around his neck and drawing him down closer. Her lips played with his, barely a kiss and more of an exploration. “I can’t be responsible when you look at me like that.”

“And are those emotions you or the spirit inside you?”

“Both.” She nipped at his lip, the little sting making a zing of lightning dance down his spine. “But we really need to get going. You promised.”

“Ah.”

He had promised. He would find the Horde and he would destroy them for her. Because if his queen asked him to do anything at all, then he would do it. Especially if that request came with the promise of blood.

He’d rend this entire kingdom to dust if that’s what she wanted. Greed had no question that he would become the destroyer of all kingdoms if she gave him the order, and that should have terrified him. Instead, it made him want her to ask him to do it. It made him want to beg her to tell him to bring all her enemies’ heads on a platter, so he had an excuse to be so truly feral.

Growling low underneath his breath, he reached between them and traced a finger through her pretty folds. Wet. Always so wet for him, and he loved that about her.

He sucked on the finger as he rolled out of bed and gave her a wink as she moaned in response. “You said I needed to get ready, didn’t you?”

His queen was anything but lady-like. She was sprawled out on his bed, the sheets tangled around her naked hips, and she never once tried to hide herself from him. Instead, she wantonly stared, licked her lips, and then shook her head. “We need to go. You’re distracting me.”

“We?” He arched a brow and started toward his wardrobe behind the walls of monstera. “I thought I made it very clear last night, treasure. You’re not going anywhere. You want them dead? I’ll gladly bathe the desert in their blood for you, but I will not have you in the midst of the battle.”

But he wouldn’t let her leave this castle. He couldn’t see her in danger again. The fear that already lanced through his chest was a horrible feeling. It zinged through his entire body, arced across his chest, pushed through his very heart as though reminding him that he was weak and she was weaker, and that was terrifying.

What would he do if she died on that battlefield? No, she couldn’t. The spirit. He’d put that in her so he wouldn’t have to fear that he’d lose her at every corner, but... he was consumed by the what ifs.

He heard her padding feet approach, but he could only see the image of her pale body flung across the sand, blood splattering across every surface that he’d so thoroughly loved.

Varya spread her hands across his chest, her hands anchoring him in place. Her fingers dug into the muscles of his chest and he had nowhere to look but her. But those big blue eyes, staring up at him with so much worry that it made his heart ache.

“I’m a fighter,” she said. “I’ve been a fighter my entire life. You cannot cast me aside and put me in a box to keep me safe, Greed. These are my people just as much as they are yours.”

“I don’t care that they’re your people,” he growled. And because he needed to, he pulled her against him, wrapping both his arms around her waist and holding her just a little more securely. “You are going nowhere, treasure. You will be safe, because I command it.”

“When have I ever followed commands?” Her words were garbled against his pecs, though, and he pretended he didn’t understand her.

He set her back on her feet and clapped his hands to her shoulders, squeezing perhaps a little too tight. “Let me do this for you. Stay safe, where you will not distract me with worrying about where you are or how I need to protect you. Yes?”

She frowned. “They still have that cursed object that makes you fall asleep, Greed. Who will protect you if I’m not there?”

“Ivo.”

He hated even saying that, though. Really, he’d feel better with Gluttony watching over her, but his brother had absolutely no interest in helping. He wanted to hunt and Greed couldn’t think of a reason why he shouldn’t.

Though his brother’s heart wasn’t in the right place, at the very least, it gave Gluttony the right time to use that need of his to their advantage. He could already see the Horde running as they realized his brother had a taste for human flesh.

Shuddering, he flashed a grin at Varya and then kissed her forehead. “We’re hunting today. I’ll probably be gone for at least a week before we return to get what all the other groups have found.”

“You’re leaving?” she asked, appearing a little dumbfounded. “Right now?”

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