Page 8 of The Demon King's Unruly Mate

I handed her one of the glasses, our fingers brushing briefly. Even that small contact sent a surge of heat through me. Insistent, demanding need licked at my insides. I pulled back sharply, unable to meet her eyes.

Damn it all, I needed to get a grip. Yes, Talia was my mate. And yes, in another time and another life, I’d happily fuck her on every surface in the room. But I couldn’t ignore the fact that she was Javed’s sister. That we’d been thrown together under less-than-ideal circumstances. And that there was every possibility she wanted as little to do with me as I did her.

So why did the thought leave me cold?

I retreated to a safe distance and took a long swallow of my drink, welcoming the burn. “Tell me about Leona.”

Talia’s eyes tracked my movement across the room. The corners of her mouth quirked up, quickly hidden behind the rim of her glass. “Leona Cadum. Daughter of the Malum clan. Twenty-two. Recently graduated from university.”

“Why would someone take her?”

“Why does anyone take a noble daughter?” She shrugged one elegant shoulder. “Ransom. Political leverage. Personal vendetta.”

I moved to the window, using the excuse of studying the gardens below. The weight of her gaze followed me, and I couldn’t tell if she was watching me as a potential threat or something else entirely. Her interest felt dangerous, and not just because of the mate bond humming between us.

“Your father seemed concerned with her return.”

“The Malum clan has been loyal to the throne for generations.” She shifted in her seat, the sound as much anaccusation as if she’d lobbed the words at my head:Unlike the Kadhans.“Leona was to be mated within the year. Formal suitors were being considered. Return her, and you potentially cultivate favor with two families in one go.”

I turned to face her. “Maybe she didn’t want the male chosen for her.”

Talia’s eyebrows rose. “So? If it is good enough for their queen, then they should be happy to fulfill their duties.”

The bitterness in her voice was unmistakable. I studied her more closely, seeing past the mask to the rigid set of her shoulders and the tight line of her jaw. I couldn’t fault her logic. Not really. Most of those in power were happy to let others do as they ordered, and then fuck off to do as they pleased. There was honesty in leading by example.

A small whiff, strongly covered by the bullshit of tradition and propriety, but honesty nonetheless.

“Is that what you believe?” I asked quietly.

Her eyes narrowed. “What I believe is irrelevant. What matters is what I do.”

“And what you do is whatever your father commands.” I shouldn’t antagonize her. None of this was her fault. I did this. I took her brother’s head. And now we were both paying the price.

But something about her cool acceptance of our situation grated on me.

“As you’ve done,” she countered, rising from her chair. “Or was there some other reason you agreed to claim me as your mate today?”

I set my glass down harder than necessary. “You know why I agreed.”

“To protect your sister.” Her lip curled in a sneer. “How noble.”

“Would you rather I’d refused? Left you to whatever fate your father had planned next?” I pushed off from the wall, stalking closer. “Don’t pretend this is what you wanted, princess.”

Her eyes flashed. “What I wanted? What Iwantedwas to be seen as more than a womb to continue the bloodline. What Iwantedwas to be judged on my merits rather than my gender.” Another step closer. “What Iwantedwas the throne that should have been mine after you cleared out the competition.”

This,thisfinally felt like the first time seeing her. No masks, no composure. Just her. Fierce, ambitious, and deeply, murderously, frustrated. Fire crackled in her eyes with every slinking step she took to close the distance. She craned her neck to glare daggers up at me, and that look would forever be seared into my mind.

“Instead,” she continued, “I get to watch a mercenary sit in my rightful place while I play the dutiful mate.” Her voice dropped to a near whisper. “In the other scenarios, I’d at least have been taken away to some lord’s manor and allowed to run it as I saw fit. A queen in my much smaller domain. But now?” She gestured between us. “There is no hiding from my diminished status while tending to the male sitting in my seat.”

I wanted to taste her rage.

Her eyes dropped to my mouth, then back up.

Yeah, I fucking wanted that.

And she wanted it too.

I don’t know which of us moved first, but suddenly we were a tangled mess of limbs and lips and tongues. Fire sizzled along my nerve endings wherever we touched. Every instinct roared at me to strip her bare, bend her over the nearest available surface, and bury myself inside her. Claim her, mark her, make her mine.

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