The Frozen Prince (The Beast Charmer #2) - Maxym M. Martineau Page 0,32

a bookshelf, an amused smile toying at his lips. Shadows clung to his ankles, reminding me that he could have been observing me for gods only knew how long. His gaze lazily trailed to my backside. “Not that I’m complaining about the view.”

I wiggled my hips for effect. “Glad to be of service.” I descended the rungs and he reached out his hand, helping me down the last few steps before pulling me into a hug. His honey-tinged scent teased my senses, and I buried my face in the collar of his shirt.

“How goes the research?” His voice was steady. Low. Warm. My heart squirmed, and I leaned back to take stock of his expression. He’d been on the verge of exploding so many times lately, thanks to the oath—had seemed both so dangerous and so fragile—that I’d almost forgotten about the slight curve of his lips when he relaxed into a smile.

I hooked my hands behind his neck. “Not good. Someone is distracting me.”

His grin deepened. “Breaks are allowed.”

“Good, because my brain can’t handle much more of this.” I gestured to the rows of books cocooning us in silence.

“Oh?” His fingers teased the hem of my cashmere sweater, finding bare skin along my midriff. “I suppose I can provide you with a more physical activity. That is, if you’re willing to spend some time with your pair bond.”

Pair bond. The Wilheimian term for anam-cara, and the very thing I should have called him in front of Dez. Pulling out of Noc’s embrace, I wrapped my arms around my stomach. “Noc, I’m sorry.”

He dropped his hands to his sides. “For?”

“You’re not my partner. You’re my anam-cara. My pair bond. I wasn’t prepared for today, and I didn’t react well.” Thickness swelled in my throat, and I swallowed. Raising my eyes to meet his, I prayed he could read every ounce of love I had for him in my gaze. “I love you. I’m not afraid to say it or ashamed to be with you. No one understands me like you do. No one can look at all my broken pieces and see how they’re supposed to fit back together. No one would even dare to try. But you do. Every day. And I—”

Noc closed the distance between us and cupped his hands on either side of my face. He slanted his lips across mine and captured my words, pouring nothing but love and devotion back into me.

“Enough.” He spoke softly against my lips. “I should be apologizing, not you. This oath… The way I have been behaving…”

I gripped his waist and held him close. “What’s it like?”

“Bad. Lately, I’ve been having—” His words died on a strangled grunt. After a moment, he cleared his throat. “Sorry.”

“That’s all right. You were saying?”

“I’ve been having—”

Again, he abruptly cut off, words stifled by a garbled noise at the back of his throat. He swallowed thickly. Tried again to speak, but was met with the same strange reaction. The veins along his neck bulged beneath reddening skin.

“Noc? What’s going on?” I moved toward him and placed my hands on his chest.

For a moment, all he did was stare right through me, as if I weren’t even there. Eyes tight. Lips parting for a fraction of a moment only to seal again. He shook his head once, then let out a long, shuddering breath.

“It’s the oath.”

A dull ringing sounded in my ears. We were running out of time. “What’s happening?”

He hesitated, as if weighing every word before deciding to speak it. “The words won’t come. It’s as if I can’t…” His voice trailed off, going raspy, and then he rubbed his throat. “I don’t feel like I’m in control. Not always.”

“How can I help?” With the removal of his decades-old curse, cast on him by a priestess from his old life, he was able to let loose. Feel freely. Love wholly. But he would never forget what it was like to hold himself in check. Control was a skill he’d perfected over decades. If he was losing it now…

“I can handle it.” He tilted my chin up and sighed. Light fingers danced across my collarbone, and he offered me a soft smile.

“You don’t have to face this alone.” His touch was soothing, but not enough to chase away the uncertainty brewing in my gut.

He placed a kiss on my cheek. “I’m not alone. I have Cruor. I have my family. And most importantly, I have you.” His hands trailed along my back and teased the