mine and I gripped her tight, pulling her to me so that I was kissing her and she was kissing me. A rush of emotions crashed over me, like a massive ocean wave crashing to the shore. This was the woman my soul had waited for all my life. And now, I was finally here, together, with her.
My fingers dug into her skin and her arms wrapped around my neck. We were pressed together so tight that there was no space for breathing, no time for hesitation, no room for doubt. We belonged together. Fated by the motherfucking stars.
All I wanted in this whole world was to be with her in the moment. To feel and smell and breathe her.
The smell of sulfur filled my nose and suddenly Blayde was ripped out of my arms.
I growled out, ready to attack the demon responsible when I saw Rhys on the other side of the couch, glowering at me and Blayde. He’d smoked into her apartment, on to her couch then, when he saw us kissing, yanked her off of me.
She was sitting in between us, his hands still on her waist, with a surprised look on her face. He, though, was staring at us with a mixture of rage and tightly controlled desire, all rolled in to one look. He looked so damn sexy, as anger and need and thirst played out in the firm lines on his jaw, the emotions shining through in his gaze.
Having him here, close enough to touch but with space and Blayde and his stubbornness between us, it made my chest ache. Desire clogged my throat, making it difficult to swallow and the heat in the room rose unbearably. I swallowed hard, shoving down my own pain and hunger.
“Do you ever knock?” She twisted out of his hold, squirming back towards me.
I could only stare at him, wishing he would just give in to his feelings, give in to the need that I knew was pulling at him, the desire to be with her, to claim her as his mate. But Rhys was stubborn. He was going to fight this every step of the way. I gave him a cocky grin that I knew he hated. “What’s got your panties in a twist?”
His scowl only grew deeper. “Did you talk to her about it?”
She leaned back into me, squirming her sexy, lithe body to get herself nice and comfortable against my chest. “Hello. You’ve met me before but since you’re talking about me like I’m not in the room, I’ll re-introduce myself. My name is Blayde. I’m the lowest scum on the earth because my dad was a demon and my mom was a fae.” At this, Rhys’ scowl grew deeper but she continued on. “But I can’t really do anything about that. They didn’t give me much of a choice in the matter.” She suddenly leaned forward, her hands pressing into my thighs and I saw Rhys’ eyes dip to glimpse at her breasts. Then he squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again, they were on her face.
She paused, as if she knew exactly what had just happened. When she spoke again, she sounded amused. “I’ve been enjoying my time with Stellan here this morning.”
“I noticed.” He spoke in a flat tone.
“He’s a good kisser, you know.”
His hand fisted at his side. “So I’ve heard.”
Her head tilted to the side. “You’ve never kissed him?”
At this, he hesitated, his eyes meeting mine. I felt his stare burn into me. His voice was low and rough. “Once.”
Blayde didn’t speak and Rhys looked away, releasing his hold over me. He looked down at her, his angry face gone, replaced by a look of agony. I interrupted whatever he was about to say. “Her dad is King Raziiel.”
Rhys’ eyes widened and he stared at her with shock on his face, absolutely still.
I’d never seen Rhys so…motionless in my life.
Her grip tightened on me, for only a brief moment. Then she released it, leaning back into me again, looking for comfort. She was even more afraid now of what he’d think. He hadn’t denied that she was scum because she was a demonfae, even though I knew he didn’t believe that. I wrapped my arm around her waist, rubbing my lips across her hair in a soothing motion.
He suddenly leapt off the couch, his arms stiff at his side. He paced up and down in front of the couch, not speaking, though a million expressions crossed his face.