Page 85 of The Nymph Prince

And so, I sat still while Troy braided my shaggy hair. Eva giggled as a flower’s stem was entwined in my brown strands. Lorcan grinned, too, but there was a soft gleam in his eyes as he watched.

“Now for the color,” Troy said, bringing forth a small container from his bag. The same one he used to paint his own face.

“Must we?”

“Yes,” Troy answered.

A sigh left my lips. He was turning me into his personal doll.

He dotted at my eyes for a bit before moving to my cheeks, then to my mouth. His happy expression as he painted my face forced me to bite back my complaints. Once he was finished, he leaned back to admire his work.

“Ah. Beautiful.” Troy withdrew a small looking glass from his satchel and handed it to me. “Have a look.”

I gaped at my reflection. Credit was owed to him. I hadn’t the faintest idea of what he’d been doing to my face—well, I’d assumed he’d been using vibrant colors on my eyes or something else that’d look silly on me.

I was pleasantly surprised.

Black lined my eyes on top and bottom, and the corners fanned outward like a bird’s wings. Only a hint of red marked my cheeks, and my lips shimmered with a light pink. Sections of my hair were braided in the Avalontis fashion with purple and yellow flowers interwoven within them.

“I feel like a jester,” I muttered.

“Then why do you smile, mage?” Lorcan asked, leaning in to brush his lips across my jaw. “You look absolutely ravishing. I’d very much like to ravish you right now.”

My cock swelled. I loved the way his silky voice spoke words of lust. It never failed to send my heart racing and my cock aching. It was not the time to take pleasure in him, though, no matter how badly I wished to push him back on the grass and devour him.

Therewastime for a kiss, however, and I placed one on his lips.

Lorcan sighed as his mouth joined mine and he gripped my nape, holding me as close as he could. His other hand trailed from my face, down the side of my neck, and down my chest before resting at my hip.

“Are you nervous?” I asked after pulling from his lips. My forehead pressed to his, as I was not yet ready to put distance between us.

“Yes.” He nuzzled my cheek before resting his head on my shoulder. “I’m no fool. I know the risk we take. The danger we face.” There was a pause, and he gripped me tighter. “If anything happens to you because of me… I will not be able to bear it, Alek.”

I kissed the top of his head. He smelled of roses and earth. My arms tightened around him.

“We’re too stubborn for death, remember?”

He smiled at that. “I feel as though even if death claimed me, it still couldn’t take me from you.”

“Let’s not test that theory,” I said, wishing I could pull him into my own body to keep him safe.

I’d kill an entire army of men if it meant saving Lorcan. He was all that mattered to me; his sometimes shy smile, the tenderness in his expression when I made love to him, the warmth of having him in my arms, and the sense of home he gave me, no matter where we were. If I felt so strongly now—only half-bonded to him—I couldn’t imagine how I’d feel once the bonding was complete.

“Time to leave, young prince,” Reif said, respectfully bowing his head.

Lorcan’s expression changed then, going from the loving man I knew to one that radiated dominance. After unwinding from my arms, he stood and straightened his clothing. “The king awaits.”

And may the gods have no mercy on that king if he thought to harm what was mine.

***

Talena was everything I’d expected it’d be. The streets were crowded with merchants and their carts, as well as pedestrians going from one end to the next, admiring the trinkets and wares along the way. Smells, not all of them pleasant, came from all directions; meat cooking, bread being baked, and horse shit from where the soldiers on horseback rode through the market.

Lorcan wore a hooded cloak, covering the ears I loved so much. They’d be a clear indication as to what he was. That he wasn’t human. Humans didn’t likedifferent. If they couldn’t understand it, they feared it.

Malik and Reif’s size alone caused heads to turn. People moved out of their way as we walked the street. I was certain the guards’ armor and weapons didn’t ease any minds, either.

Troy’s bow was strapped to his back, but his fearful expression as we wandered through the crowd took away any intimidation it might’ve caused.