Page 2 of Courting the King of Cliffs

Shutting the doors behind me with my magic, I crossed the large hallway that made up the entrance, and then walked into the living room.

I found him sprawled out across a luxurious black couch with a book in his hands, but he didn’t look up when I entered. He was beautiful, though, with olive-colored skin, and thick dark hair cropped close to his head on the sides but left longer on top. And those muscles…

Hot damn.

A man’s size was usually determined by the strength of his magic, and Granite’s hadn’t let him down. Or any women down.

I cleared my throat, and he finally dragged his gaze from the pages. His expression was neutral, not giving away any of his emotions.

I wished I had that much control over my own.

“I need a place to live,” I said simply.

“Well, you can’t stay here,” he replied, his words low and gravelly.

His voice gave me goosebumps, but I ignored them, and the panic swelling in my chest, too.

If I had a panic attack, he would probably kick me out. We both had to keep our magic under control, so we didn’t hurt each other. Both of us had enough pain already.

“I can help with your kingdom, somehow,” I said, fighting the panic. “I’m good with planning cities. I know yours is getting overcrowded—you need to expand again. Or I can fill cracks for you, if you want. I just need a place to stay. A place here.” The words rushed out.

He stared at me.

When he didn’t respond immediately, the verbal spillage continued. “Not with you—I’m not asking to stay with you,” I hurried to add. “I know we can’t be around each other, but Harper’s baby is fussy. He’s perfect, but I’m not. I can’t handle the crying. I haven’t been able to function since he was born. If I live in your city, I can tell them I just want to see how other earth fae live, so I won’t hurt them. Please. They’re so happy, and I can’t ruin that. I just need a quiet place to stay. It can be tiny—it can be a closet, for all I care. Please.”

I couldn’t deal with the overwhelm anymore.

I couldn’t deal with myself anymore.

It was a miracle the ground wasn’t trembling with the whirlwind of my emotions, honestly. It was hard to keep a leash on my magic, but I clung to it anyway, so my magic wouldn’t collide with the king’s.

“Breathe, Dissiri,” Granite said.

Something about the way he said my name made me shiver. The feeling in my veins was something like… desire.

I took a deep, shaky breath in. “I’m sorry. I know we’re not friends, and it’s not safe for us to be around each other. But this is the only option.”

“Flame will have a place for you.”

“No. The fire has this…” I gestured with my hands. “Aura. It’s a pressure, in my head. I can feel it every time anyone near me uses their flames. It’s the lingering power, from the explosion. I can’t.” I closed my eyes to fight the emotion building.

Now, the ground was trembling below me.

Dammit.

At least Granite was good at keeping his magic strapped down. “The water fae?”

A hopeless laugh escaped me. “Yeah, right. Is my power invisible to you? I could legitimately destroy their Aboa by accident, or at least make a dent in it.”

He sighed.

“Please. I told you, I’ll do anything.”

His voice was gruff when he said, “You don’t need to do anything. Sit down. I’ll find you something.”

“Thank you. Thank you so much.” A relieved breath escaped me, and I looked at him again.

He was really gorgeous.

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