Total pages in book: 163
Estimated words: 152616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 610(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152616 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 610(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
“I’m exactly where I intend to be.”
I could practically hear the smile in his voice, and it made me bristle. “Then what are you doing here?” And how long had he been sitting there? My gaze swung back to the glass he’d taken a drink from, then lowered to the arm of the settee, then narrowed. “Did you help yourself to my whiskey?”
“I’m sightseeing,” he answered. “And I needed refreshment while doing so.”
The pounding of my heart slowed. “There is nothing of interest to see in my private quarters, Your Grace.”
“Thorne,” he corrected, and though his eyes were hidden to me, I felt his heated stare move over the curve of my hip . . . to the length of my leg, and a whole lot of my legs was exposed to him. “And I disagree. There is an . . . abundance of interest to look upon.”
Whatever modesty I previously lacked decided to rear its head. I sat up, pressing my legs together. My wrist ached as I tugged on the chemise, which did very little to cover me. Even in the low light of my bedchamber, the material was basically transparent. Something I had a feeling he was well aware of as I glared at him.
A deep chuckle radiated from the sun-streaked shadows, sending an odd mixture of sensations rippling throughout me. Wariness. An acidic burn of unease. Worse yet, a sweet trill of anticipation, which I would blame on being half asleep. There was a hefty dose of curiosity, though. I couldn’t fathom why Prince Thorne would attempt to seek me out in private like this unless . . . unless he was in need of being serviced?
Logically, that made no sense. He didn’t believe that I was a courtesan. Still, my body had no plans to listen to common sense. A pulse of desire lit up my veins, causing several parts of my body to throb to life—
Good gods, what in the whole realm was wrong with me? Actually, I knew the answer. It was what he was that was wrong with me. A Hyhborn’s presence and their sensual effect on lowborn. It made sense that a prince’s presence would be even more . . . hard to ignore and stronger.
In reality, if he had sought me out to service him, it was likely only because, as he had said, he was always hungry. So, there was no reason to allow myself to be controlled by my apparently easily influenced hormones. I lifted my chin. “I’m not . . . working right now.”
His head tilted to one side. “It pleases me greatly to hear that.”
My mouth puckered. “And why would it please you?”
“Because I’d rather our interactions going forward be between you and me,” he said. “And not dictated by a third party.”
“There will be no interactions between us going forward,” I said, which was a lie since there would be, but his uninvited presence irked me . . . and thrilled me, which also served to really irritate me.
“I wouldn’t count on that.”
My chest rose with a deep, short breath. There was something different about him. I didn’t know if it was his unexpected visit or the fact that I couldn’t see his face, or if it was his words. It could’ve been all those things, but a different kind of instinct came alive then, one that had nothing to do with my abilities and was purely mortal. Primal. It urged that I rise slowly and leave this space— that I didn’t run, because if so, he would give chase like any predator would.
In the shadows, the starbursts in his eyes brightened. Prince Thorne’s entire body appeared to tense, as if he sensed I was about to take flight. His chin dipped into the stroke of sunlight. The curve of his lips was full of predatory intent.
A skipping motion went through my chest as I quickly looked away, feeling a little breathless.
“You didn’t answer,” Prince Thorne said, drawing my attention back to him. He took another sip of my whiskey. “Did you have a restful nap?”
“It was quite restful until I was woken up to find someone uninvited in my chambers,” I pointed out. “Why are you here? Honestly?”
Those long . . . devilish fingers of his tapped along the arm of the settee. “Would you believe me if I said I missed you and wanted to see you?”
I snorted. “No.”
“Your lack of faith in my intentions wounds me, na’laa.”
“I don’t know you well enough to have any knowledge of your intentions or faith in them.”
“Really?” Prince Thorne drawled, then leaned more fully into the sunlight. My chest felt too tight as he tilted his head to the side. His hair was pulled back from his face and only a wavy strand glanced off his cheek. Multicolored eyes locked on to mine. “You feel you don’t know me well enough after I had my fingers inside you and your hand on my cock?”