beside me. “Nowhere.” Tender lips touched the corner of my mouth where his breath had been. “Tonight, you’re mine.”
18
Ashor’s tattoos seemed to absorb the moonlight, making the dark ink glitter. Did my own look the same? I couldn’t stop staring at the marks on his neck, the same ones that I bore on mine. “I don't know how much training you expect to get done if you are going to insist on being shirtless,” I said, frowning. All that glorious toned skin gleaming was fucking with my concentration.
His expression was wicked and playful, just how I liked my prince. “It will help you work through distractions.”
“If you say so,” I mumbled, unconvinced. We were going to end up spending more time exploring each other than exploring my new ability and releasing my demon. Not that I was looking forward to either of those things.
Tucked deep into the Gardeness woods, Ashor and I trekked down a steep slope into a rocky valley, at least a half a dozen of those little fairy demons fluttering in the trees around us—our prison guards. The moment we left the castle the following day, they appeared.
The ground was soft from the recent rains, and climbing the rising foothills could be slippery and challenging, but I wouldn’t have passed up the opportunity to get out of the sex castle. My ears couldn’t handle any more of the little moans that escaped from behind closed doors, or the slapping of whips on flesh.
We were miles from the city hub, yet being so remote also had its pitfalls. The wildlife in the underworld could be detrimental. There were things living in these woods, things I never wanted to meet face-to-face. Without Ashor, I wouldn’t have dared entered the forest alone.
Tying back my hair, I brushed at the beads of sweat already gathering on my neck. The formfitting tank and shorts only offered some much relief from the heat. I didn’t know how Ashor withstood the sun’s warmth in all that black attire. I perspired more just looking at him. How attractive was that?
We found a clearing suitable for our needs. I angled my head to the side, ogling the prince, and asked, “Are you going to show me your wings now?” I desperately wanted to see his demon form in all its glory. There was something so primal and dangerously sexy about that side of him. It appealed to my own dark side.
“Only when you show me your demon.” His voice had a challenging bite to it, baiting me.
“Why don’t you show me how,” I rebutted, placing my hands at my hips, a gesture I hoped conveyed my stubbornness.
“With pleasure.” He stepped forward, and that was all it took. One step for his eyes to melt gold and his canines to drop down.
But no wings.
He noticed the disappointed pout on my lips. “It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. The choice is always yours. Just shift.”
The pout grew on my lips. “It’s not that easy for me.”
Above our heads, one of the demon fairies chirped, as if to mock me.
“I don’t want excuses. I want you to shift,” he replied.
I bit my lower lip, trying to keep my eyes and hands off his abs, but the swirls of ink were summoning my fingers. “I know what you’re doing, and it’s not going to work,” I said, shoving my hands into my back pockets. God, he was too close. Would I always have this absurd need to jump him and attack him with my lips?
Shaking his head, Ashor placed his hands on my hips. “Not with that shitty attitude.”
A gold haze blanketed my eyes as I bristled at his tone. “You suck.”
His chest vibrated with a cold chuckle. “Pretend no one is here but you and me. What are you afraid of?”
He wanted me to pretend the forest wasn’t full of unimaginable creatures that wanted to consume my soul for lunch and little fluttering demon faeries in the trees whose colorless eyes gave me the creeps. “Who said I was afraid?” I replied sharply.
His smile turned lethal, flashing his canines at me. “Stop procrastinating and shift.”
“You might actually be the worst teacher I’ve ever had. Not even my high school math teacher was this bad at—”
He shot forward, sweeping me off my feet, and shoved me off the ground just as a pair of sleek wings burst from his broad back. There wasn’t time to catch my breath. He moved so damn fast, I barely registered that we