Page 129

“So,” Temper says when I reenter my rooms, “I propose we blow some shit up then leave.”

Des doesn’t look completely opposed.

My despair and my pain fill me up, choking the life out of me. Suddenly, I can’t take it.

Lightning heats my veins. Maybe, if I boil away all my suffering, all my petty insecurities, all my frustration and toil, I’ll hit an indestructible core. Something that cannot be broken by greed or lust or violence. Something that isn’t quite magic but is still power.

“No,” I say, facing Temper. “I’mnotrunning from this place.”

The beginnings of a smile tug at my mate’s lips when I meet his eyes.

I say, with steel in my voice, “It’s time the Otherworld understands just how strong a human can be.”

Chapter 40

That evening, I stare at the beautiful gown waiting for me. It’s a deep plum color, so dark that it’s nearly black. The shoes that go with it are nothing more than leather and ribbons—shoes for dancing.

I take a deep breath.

Time to don my battle armor and see those fairies again. I still feel the echo of those lashes against my wings.

Des walks up to the armoire the gown hangs from and closes the doors.

I glance at him in confusion.

“Tonight, we’re not attending,” he says.

“But—”

He cups my cheeks and cuts me off with a kiss. His lips move against mine until I’ve forgotten what exactly I’m objecting to. My hands drop to his forearms, sliding over his exposed skin. Goose bumps rise along his flesh at my touch.

To have such an effect on the King of the Night. Sometimes I forget he’s just as moved by me as I am by him.

His lips break away from mine before dipping just below my ear. “My mate hasn’t been satisfiednearlyenough since we arrived here.”

My core heats at his words. What, exactly, does the Bargainer have planned?

Des’s breath ghosts against my skin, right at the juncture where my neck meets my jaw. He presses a kiss there. “What a poor soul mate I am, to deny her this.”

Des backs me up, up, up until my wings brush against the wall, effectively trapping me.

One of his hands moves from my arms to the low-cut top of the wispy fae dress I wear. It elaborately laces up the front, tying together at the scooped collar.

The Bargainer slides a finger along that collar before grabbing the end of a ribbon. His eyes meet mine as he pulls on it, undoing the bow. The blouse loosens, the binding unraveling inch by inch.

Des pushes the material down my torso and exposes my breasts. He presses a kiss to the valley between them.

“Gods, you are exquisite,” he says, his voice hushed.

The same can easily be said about him.

I remove the leather band that holds his shoulder-length hair back and run my hands through it.

He helps me take off his shirt before tossing the piece of clothing to the ground.

I smooth my hands over his large pecs.

“Do something magical,” I whisper.