Page 19 of To Charm a Dark Prince

Gwen felt the breath get pushed straight out of her lungs. What little air she had, anyway.

His long hair was in fact the color of iron—gray, but not glossy enough to be silver. His features were strong and sharp, with a jaw that looked like he had been carved out of stone. But it was his eyes that struck her. They were the color of rust—every shade of orange, yellow, and red, mixed with a little brown and bluish gray. Like the trees in the forest. And even as she watched, the markings shifted and changed, as if his eyes were made of molten, rusted metal.

He was gorgeous.

There wasn’t any way she could deny it.

Even if he had just twisted a man’s head around with his bare hands after killing a dude with a giant, floating sword.

She stared at him in awe, forgetting her terror for a moment, as she tried to wrap her head around what was happening.

At least if he’s going to kill me, he’s super hot.

He smirked, as if knowing exactly what was going on in her head. She didn’t know if she could blush while she was on fire, but damn it if she wasn’t trying.

“Lady Gwendolyn, I am going to remove your chains. If you run, I will catch you. Do you understand?” His tone left no room for argument. The man was clearly used to being in charge.

She had no clue where she’d go, even if she tried. And she was kind of a lit torch. She wouldn’t exactly blend into the woods very well.I’d probably burn it all down.“Why did you kill those men?”

“The mayor betrayed a sacred law of Avalon. And the other fool was making an attempt on your life.” The prince arched an eyebrow. “Are you trying to defend their choices?”

“I’m saying that maybe you didn’t have to kill them.” She shouldn’t be talking back to the man. But she was probably dead, anyway—even if he did say he didn’t plan on killing her. She didn’t exactly trust him. “It seems harsh.”

“Luckily, that is for me to decide. Not you.” He reached over her head. Looking up, she watched as he touched the chains that held her to the post. The metal…dissolved. Just turned to liquid goo that began to swirl in the air around his hand.

Rubbing her wrists, she took a second to marvel at the fact that she was literally made of fire. It was so bizarre to see. She kept her back to the iron post, unsure of what to do now that she was free. He had warned her not to run.

She was going to do the smart thing and listen to somebody for once.

The prince began to work the iron that floated in the air around him like a sculpture crafting clay. It wasn’t hard to forget about all the strangeness with how beautiful it was to watch. Little by little, she could see what he was crafting. It was a necklace made of wide panels of metal. It almost looked like a—

A collar.

Complete with a little circle at the front where someone could attach a chain.

She stared at him flatly. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

He huffed a single laugh. “Extinguish yourself, and I will not have to make you wear this.”

“But I don’t knowhow.”

“Therefore, this is required.” He was smiling at her, in that faint way someone smiled at someone being incredibly silly. It wasn’t a cruel expression. It just made her feel stupid. Well, more stupid than she already did. She felt pretty damn dumb at the moment, all things considered.

“Could it be a little less…I don’t know, creepy?” She wrinkled her nose.

“Creepy.”

“Collar-y.” Unless he really was considering her his slave. The image left her weirdly conflicted. It was both horrifying and…uh…well, wow. That was something she didn’t know about herself.

I’m learning all sorts of new things in Avalon.

“Hm. Very well.” He studied his creation. Gesturing, the iron collar shifted and changed until it could be mistaken for a very thick necklace with a hard V in the front. While the pieces were broad, the detail was beautiful and delicate. It was a stunning work of art.

He brought her back to the moment. “Does this better suit your sensibilities?”

She nodded silently. She didn’t know what it was supposed to do, really, but it at least didn’t look like he was about to slap a leash on her. “Thanks.” Didn’t hurt to be polite.

He brushed her hair back away from her shoulders and stepped in closer to her. The touch of his metal claws sent a shiver down her spine. She should be terrified of him. She shouldn’t be reflexively stepping closer as he carefully clasped the iron behind her neck. The points of his fingertips grazed over her shoulders as he let the weight of it settle onto her. It was smooth and cold.

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