Page 77 of To Hunt a Demon King

“Oh,” he agreed huskily, sweeping a thumb over my cheek. “Gods I was so wrong when I called you ‘fine-looking.’ You are positively radiant, Elara.”

I blushed a little at the compliment, giving him a shy smile. “Thank you,” I said. “Your room?”

Carnon cleared his throat a third time and took my hand, leading me to the end of the hallway. There were no paintings on the wall without windows, and it looked a little bare, like there used to be something there. Other than the tapestry, which was an image of a midnight sky with tiny silver stars, the hallway was empty save for a set of double doors at the end.

“You have your own hallway?” I asked, turning to Carnon with raised brows, suspicions further solidifying. He shrugged like it was nothing.

“I told you, I’m fabulously wealthy and important,” he said, grinning as he stopped before the doors. They also appeared to be carved from moonstone, with images of animals and plants engraved on their surface. Before I could get a proper look, Carnon pushed the doors open, propelling me inside.

“If this is your room,” I said, taking a step inside and feeling my stomach drop in a mixture of awe and panic, “then I wonder what the Demon King’s rooms must be like.”

The room was huge, the white moonstone gleaming a little more dimly than it had in the hallway. The furniture was elegant and plush, tones of navy blue and onyx, and everything appeared to be carved from obsidian or black wood. One wall was open, shaded with sheer curtains that billowed in the cool evening breeze, and led to an open balcony that overlooked the opposite side of the city and the sparkling river below. Another door led to what I presumed was a bathing chamber, and plush couches and pillows made up a little lounge area by a fireplace, which was burning gently to ward off the cool of the evening.

Carnon chuckled, moving to the couches and dropping our bags unceremoniously on one of them. He didn’t comment on what I had said, which made my stomach drop further.

“Is it normal for a human to be so favored by the Demon King?” I asked, hoping to press him into revealing something while also hoping my suspicions might be wrong. He didn’t take the bait.

“The bathing room is there,” he said, pointing to the doors. “And in the winter, the palace is spelled against the cold from the open windows. It should be pleasant enough this time of year.”

“Carnon,” I said, turning to him. “Who are you?” I prayed that he would tell me the truth, but again, I was disappointed. He strode toward me, pulling me to him in a desperate kiss.

“I promise, Elara, I’ll tell you,” he rumbled, pulling back after a moment. “But let me have one more night.”

“I’m not an idiot, Carnon,” I said, feeling anger rising inside me. “I know that you can’t be some normal human lord the Demon King has favored.”

“I’m not,” he agreed, gazing at me seriously and brushing a whisper of a kiss over my lips. “One more night, Red. The night we would have had if we had stayed at Herne’s.”

I pursed my lips, trying to decide if I should agree.

“Give me one more night,” he pleaded, dropping his forehead to mine, “Where I am just Carnon, and you are just Elara, and we can just be whatever this is.” He sounded so desperate and hopeful that I found myself nodding to this request.

“I’m hungry,” I said quietly, breaking the tense silence that had fallen between us.

“I’ll go get us something,” he said, brushing a kiss to my temple. “Feel free to bathe or change or whatever you want. I’ll be back shortly.”

I watched him walk out the doors, feeling my stomach knot with anxiety. I had promised him one more night, but I had lied. Before guilt could take root, I reminded myself that he had been lying for days. For our entire time together, really. I had given him all of myself, and he had given me scraps surrounded by lies. Sighing, I bit down on my lip and fought back the tears as I gathered my chalk and herbs, and got to work.

???

When Carnon returned with food, I was in the tub. I had laid my plan, I just had to decide if I was ready to pay the cost of the magic I would have to use. Truth magic demanded a truth in return, and the one I knew the magic would require to keep the balance was one I had only just started to recognize myself. I couldn’t decide if knowing Carnon’s truth a day early was worth telling him mine.

But would it be a day? Or would it be weeks of Carnon refusing to answer my questions and skirting around the truth? I sighed, tipping my head back on the lip of the huge, onyx tub. I had filled it with hot water and something that made bubbles and smelled like lavender, in an attempt to prepare and calm myself for what I was about to do.

“This is a sight I don’t mind at all,” Carnon said, leaning on the doorframe of the bathing chamber. He couldn’t really see anything through the bubbles, but I allowed myself a blush anyway. “Do you need any help?”

I laughed. “I’m sure you’re offering to help me out of the kindness of your heart,” I teased, tilting my head back farther to look at him. “And not out of any kind of personal motive.”

“Of course,” he replied, smiling smugly. “I’m all about charity.”

He rolled up his sleeves and selected a little bottle from a small shelf, moving to kneel by the tub.

“May I?” he asked, pouring some of the liquid from the bottle into his hand and gesturing to my hair. I nodded, leaning forward as he wove his strong fingers between the strands, massaging my scalp in a way that had me sighing very suggestively. He chuckled, tilting my head back to rinse my hair.

The shampoo he had used smelled like jasmine, and I smiled a little as my heart simultaneously cracked. He told me I had smelled like jasmine to him. How much of this had been true, and how much had been lies? I hated that I had to question every damn word out of his mouth, and it steeled my resolve to get answers tonight.

“Gods, Elara,” he said a little huskily, letting a hand trail over my shoulder in the soapy water. “Seeing you like this in my tub is giving me all kinds of inappropriate ideas.” He bent forward, kissing the other shoulder that was visible just above the water.

“What kinds of inappropriate ideas?” I teased, giving him the most sultry look I could muster. I have no idea if I did it right, because he laughed.

---