I was supposed to learn that love could cloud even a great king’s mind.
She sneers at me, breaking me out of my own head. “Well, that must have been a long time ago, judging by how uptight and insufferable you are.”
The corners of my mouth twitch with amusement. “That might be so. But you didn’t answer my question.” My voice takes on an edge. My throat works. Why am I so curious?
“And I won’t.” She glares at me, and in her eyes, I see that spark I’ve come to memorize, that challenge.
Stubborn indeed.
Without breaking my gaze, she unbuttons her cape, and my smile falters. It falls soundlessly to the floor. Without even a moment’s hesitation, she slips off her shirt, revealing the curve of her breasts above her slender waist—
And this is like my dream. Her, undressing before me. Eyes never leaving mine. My throat feels tight. My every nerve is on fire.
Her pants go next, and then she’s standing before me in small, close-fitting shorts and an undershirt that might as well be wet for how closely it hews to her. I’m not breathing.
Fuck.
She shrugs, completely unaware of the fact that I am just a moment away from losing my mind. “It’s just skin,” she says, her breath shallow.
I want to make her breathless in other ways. I want to feel that skin against mine, now, on this floor. Against that wall.
I swallow down my thoughts. “Just skin,” I repeat.
She walks past me, down the steps. I slip the rest of my clothes off, then follow, grateful for the stinging cold of the water.
It is an effort not to look at her, to focus instead on the task at hand. “These waters house ancient, vicious creatures. Be on guard.” I dive into the water and hope it will calm this blazing heat in me.
That body. She has to know what she’s doing to me. Is that it? Is she trying to torture me? If so, it’s working.
I’m so dazed, I barely catch the flash of movement—curls of black, silklike fins. My fist heats, my flames warming even underwater, warning them away.Focus, I think, but I can’t focus at all. My mind keeps bringing me back to Isla, standing there, stripping off her clothing.
I know what my dreams will be filled with tonight, and I feel a flash of guilt.
I am king of Lightlark. I control this island and its people. But I can’t even control my own thoughts.
The heart isn’t here.
I reach the stairs and squint, searching the water for her form. She isn’t back yet. She must still be looking.
Then, I see it. A cloud of crimson. The flash of a tail, racing away.
My chest tenses, my body lurches forward, ready to jump back into the water. But she’s already clawed her way up the steps. She is injured, and bleeding, and I’m seeing red. I kneel beside her, taking in the gash along her side.
Her wound begins to bleed in earnest, and she starts to scream.
I murmur soothing words, my voice softer than I’ve ever heard it, trying anything to calm her down.I know it hurts, love, I think.
She lies back on the cold stone, shivering.
She’scold. I could make it so she’s never cold again.
I place my hand against her stomach, pouring my heat into her. Then, I use the water and begin to close the wound. It’s a slow, painful process. She winces, and I make another sound, hoping it helps, at least a little.
My fingers trace the injury, her blood hot beneath my hand.
Our gazes lock—
And she doesn’t drop her eyes. We’re just inches apart, and for once ... it feels like she’sreally looking at me, perhaps a fraction of the way I’ve looked at her for months.
