Page 67 of Shadows and Roses

He rose to his feet and kissed her again, cupping the back of her head. There was somethingdesperate in the way he held her, his fingers a little harder than comfortable. She pressed herself against him, their lips and tongues tangling until he relaxed.

"Stay tonight?" she breathed when their lips parted.

His mouth curved. "Perhaps tomorrow. You have an early morning, and what I want to do to you will take all night."

Her toes curled. "You’d have me wanting you all day long?"

His grin widened. "A pleasant thought to follow you through court, no?"

"Castien." She was not begging. Not quite.

"Does anyone else dare deny you?" His eyes laughed at her.

"My Escorts do it plenty," she countered, though she knew that's not what he meant.

"In here? In your bed?" he purred, sending a warm flutter between her thighs.

She bit her lip. "No."

"Then trust a courtesan to know his trade."

She growled, then sighed. "Go then. Before I rip your clothes off anyway."

He straightened, stepped back, and bowed with anelegant yet irreverent flourish. Pausing as he reached the stairs, he said, "Refrain from satisfying yourself. That’d ruin the fun." With one last grin, he fled her room.

That man was going to be the death of her. A delicious, slow, indulgent death as she begged him to—

She leaped to her feet and left those very unhelpful thoughts behind.

Part 2

Chapter 17

Castien

The moment he left her chambers, he wanted to turn around and tell her he’d changed his mind. Give her everything she wanted until she lay limp and begged him to stop. The taste of her lingered on his tongue.

He licked his lips and continued walking. Not yet. Too soon. A taste would have to satisfy him for tonight. He should give her time to consider her words, not pounce on her like a starved beast.

Stay with me.

His joy skipped a beat. He wanted to believe her. She had sounded sincere and heartfelt.

No one loves a whore.

His Master’s favorite saying. Anais had said nothing about love. This had nothing to do with his heart. This was… a physical attraction. His body needed a release, as did hers. It was simple. He was doing what he had been trained to do, what he knew so very well. Seduce, sex, leave.

Leave. But she wanted him to stay.

Never let the client seduce you. Never forget what you are.

All their clients were wealthy and powerful, his especially. The Queen most of all. Perhaps his love of wealth and luxury was getting the better of him.

It didn't matter. He would take anything she gave him. That she wanted his particular talents was already more than he’d imagined possible. He could make her beg for him. He couldmake her need him, so that she’d never—

His fists clenched. No. She’d resent that eventually.

His thoughts chased him in circles as he wandered the halls past the midnight bell, too restless to sleep and too tired to do anything useful. Aimless steps took him to the menagerie, a natural and peaceful place when it was empty. Castien visited sometimes on lovely nights like this one. No one dared bother him anymore.

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