Page 57 of The Rat King
This had been the craziest year of my life, but with each step forward, the more confident I became in my decision. He was the right man for me. He held out his hand, and I took it. He turned to the priest.
I tried to follow along as best I could, but the vows differed from my world, and even the ones I’d spoken to Xavier. When the small ceremony was over, Nighval dismissed the priest.
I craned my head up to him. “So that was it? What do we do now?” I asked.
His grin was positively wicked. “I thought we could have some fun.”
He knelt down wordlessly and took off my shoes, then he stood and spun me back toward the path. The white rose petals had disappeared and an iridescent glow that seemed to shine like moonlight beckoned me toward the forest.
Not fully understanding what he expected, I turned around, but he was gone. Only my white satin heels remained in the gazebo with me. My breathing hitched as I stepped down the three steps to ground level and followed the path. With each couple of steps forward, the glowing light seemed to retreat deeper into the forest, drawing me away from the palace. I looked up to where they led, recalling the decision I had made on the last full moon.
My heart hammered as I realized the game my husband had set up for our wedding night. This was another hunt and, like our chase up the stairs into the palace, I knew what he wanted. Tonight, I would let him hunt me. I would let him take me on the forest floor. Tonight, we would break the curse.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and took a step forward. I had not chosen the right outfit for this type of adventure. As if he realized it, the fitted fabric eased, and I looked down to see my dress was gone, replaced with a simple white nightie that came to mid-thigh and nothing else.
My nipples hardened as the breeze lifted the corners of the nightie and the anticipation curled low in my belly. I got to the edge of the garden, and I turned back to the gazebo. Nighval was back, standing in what looked like black leather pants, boots, and a fitted black jacket with countless buckles and straps similar to what he wore when he traveled, but more battle ready. He had his arms crossed over his chest and when my eyes found his face I saw him mouth the word,Run.
Thank goodness I was in decent shape. I took off sprinting. If he wanted a chase, I would give it to him. But as I looked to the ground, at the surprisingly soft moss which made up the trail, I realized he was leading me in a certain direction. By the looks of the rest of the forest, my feet would be torn to shreds if I veered off the path.
I sprinted around a corner. In the distance at another bend, I caught the sight of a black-clad man leaning up against a tree and my heart jolted into my throat. I started to pause, but realized it was him. He was leaning against one shoulder and his feet were crossed at the ankle. He had a smug look on his face as I approached, and I flipped him off as I sprinted past. I wondered how long he would make me run when I heard footsteps behind me.
I glanced over my shoulder, and he was only casually stalking forward, which irritated me to no end. I hadn’t even kicked it into high gear yet. I took in a long breath, and increased my pace. When I looked back, he again was out of sight which made my nerves jump and my awareness of my surroundings heightened. The trail ahead seemed to curve in a circle. I slowed as I followed it and when I made it around the thick tree, I saw where it led.
The moss rejoined the original trail crossing right in front of him. Cocky bastard. And his point wasn’t lost on me. Somehow, everything led back to him and always would. Especially after this curse was broken, and he got his power back.
The thought of being married to such a powerful man sent chills down my spine. I wasn’t going to let him taunt me, though, and I knew he wouldn’t let me get hurt. As I slipped back around the tree, I caught one of his eyebrows raised. I took a tentative step off of the moss and before my foot touched the ground, new moss appeared beneath it.
Smiling, I darted forward into the uncharted forest.
Chapter 41
Nighval
“Gotyou,”Isaid,as I overtook my wife.Wife. I never savored a word like I did that one. She spun in my arms and her thumbs ran across the edge of my jaw as I lifted, then wrapped her legs around my waist. Her slip was in tatters, and her feet were bare and covered in dirt, but I knew not a scratch marred them. I used my power to make sure that her flight across the forest floor would cause her no harm.
I had her pinned to a tree, like I’d done what seemed like a lifetime ago, and she was writhing beneath me. Our hearts pounded in unison from the chase, and she lowered her eyes to mine. The sparkle in them told me she was close, possibly standing on the edge of that precipice, ready to topple over and fall in. The glimmer of it I saw the first night we were intimate had turned into something stronger, but I didn’t want her to drift into love. I wanted her to plummet into the depths of it in such a way that would scar her heart. Bind her to me so thoroughly we might make it through what I knew would happen once she did. Because knowing her, she was going to be furious.
She leaned forward to give me one of the kisses she gave me so often now that made me want to tear the remaining scraps of her slip away and bury myself inside her to quench the thirst they afflicted me with.
She would let me, but I needed to slow down and focus on her needs. I needed to push her over the edge. It would happen tonight, and the thought made a volcano of anxiety erupt in my chest. I didn’t want to gain her love then immediately lose it. My chest felt like it was on the verge of collapse. When she pulled away, her eyes searched my face.
I shouldn’t go there, I shouldn’t ask, but the way she was looking at me, the way she looked at me during the ceremony, I had to know. Was it him, this Chase person, me? Someone else entirely. A man who was a total fiction?
I took a deep breath and asked, “What do you see when you look at me?”
She released a delicate chuckle. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, what do you see?” I pressed, knowing the moonlight illuminated my features like they did hers.
Her smile was warm as she said, “Well, I see your lips that I like to kiss, full when you’re smiling, but thin and hard when you scowl.”
I grinned at her. “What else?”
“I see your hard jaw and proud nose.” She ran her finger across the bridge of my nose as her other hand played with the hair at the nape of my neck. “And this scar,” she said. My heart stuttered, then exploded in a thundering chorus I battled for control over.
Still, my eyelids slid closed as she dragged her finger across the scar from my nose, down across my cheek. Her lips lightly followed it, then grazed my eyelids in soft, barely there kisses. “I can’t see your brooding dark eyes now, but I see the hard line of your brow and this scar,” she kissed it, “that runs from your hairline to here.”
I released her waist, letting her slide to the ground. Grabbing her hand as she started to trace her finger down my scar, I fell to my knees. I forced my eyes open and stared up at the woman who’d unknowingly captured my soul with a touch. Mercy, I wanted to cry. What wicked magic—the witch sawme. Avery was looking at and falling in love withmy face. I’d been told the pill would change how she saw things and it had. Just not in the way I expected. She shouldn’t have remembered the scars, but somehow she did. The best I could have hoped for was her falling for the softened version of me, but this was better and worse all at the same time.
