Page 49 of Tricky Princess
“He should have protected you!”
“Don’t fucking interrupt me.” Her voice rang through the room with so much power that she paused and looked up at Azzy. He gave her a nod.
“You have no idea what I’ve been through and we don’t know what you’ve been through,” she said, a little calmer. “I’ve had enough male ego and drama to last a lifetime. So I’m going to let you go and we are going to talk like adults.”
Ros pursed his lips but nodded. Ellea looked at Azzy one more time, expecting his jovial wink, but she couldn’t read his features. Was he horrified? Proud?
Reluctantly, she let Ros go; she wouldn’t admit to him how much she liked man-handling him. Maybe she would when he got his head out of his ass. He stood quickly and stepped away from both of them.
“Glad to see you’ve been training between tea time and reading,” he said, rubbing his shoulder.
“Son,” Azzy said once again, “I’m glad you’re home, and I’m sorry about your friends. I had no idea what was happening. I’m going to look into it right away. But please know that I wasn’t the one keeping you out. I thought at first you needed time, but then I knew that was stupid of me to think. I’ve been searching for reasons why—”
“You should have brought her back,” Ros interrupted.
“Now that would have ruined my plan to get you home, wouldn’t it? How about you clean up, and we will have dinner and discuss what has been going on?”
Ros huffed an exasperated breath, looking between the both of them. He stormed out of the room.
Sam almost died.
It was like her parents all over again. Ellea released a sob she didn’t realize she was holding, and Azzy quickly gathered her in his arms.
19
Ellea
Ellea wrung her hands once before remembering she needed to hide her anxiety. Even though Azzy’s personal dining room was quiet and empty, she didn’t trust this place. Secrets could be carried on any beast, unseen and tiny. Putting up a wall of shadows around them after Ros stormed off, he’d held her while she let out the past eleven days of anxiety, fear for her friends, and the uncertainty about her parents and her future. Once she’d stood tall, he’d called Florence to fix her up and lead her to the dining room. Her breath shook as she tried to settle her racing heart. Ros was here and he was furious—some of that was at her.
The sound of his long strides coming down the hallway had her anxiety battling with fervent desire. She knew those angry steps, but they were different—louder and clipped. It wasn’t the booted sound she was used to or his bare feet padding along cabin floors.
His shadows came first. She found them darker than the black stone walls of the castle and more solid than any shadows she’d encountered here in Hel. They swept across the floor, slinking around the ornate furniture and darkening every corner of the room. They reached for her, swirling around her bare leg under the billowy skirt she still wore. Pressure built as they coiled around her waist, her neck, and twisted through her hair. She couldn’t help the whimper that escaped or how her mouth seemed to go dry as their wielder stepped out of the darkness.
Ellea’s powers crackled with lust as she feasted on the sight before her. Ros was clad in all black, except for the gold ring that glinted from his pointer finger as he clenched and unclenched his hand. His face wore a snarl until he took in Ellea. She couldn’t believe it. He’d cleaned the blood from his hair and pulled his curls back in a bun. Some strands escaped and dangled across his forehead while others were tucked behind his ears. Her eyes traveled down his body to his feet. The leather of his black dress shoes shone in the low candle light. His slacks were snug and clung to his strong legs, showing off way more than his jeans usually did. Then his shirt—Gods, his shirt. It was a black button-down he let hang mostly open, exposing his bare chest. It was tucked in, which was so out of character, but then she noticed his rolled-up sleeves. There, that was Ros.
The way his eyes warmed to her almost made her forget how much of an ass he was earlier. Almost. Her lady bits didn’t care, they actually reveled in the way he’d treated her, but they weren’t in the bedroom.
“I’m sorry,” she said first, hating the short distance between them.
“No, princess,” he said, shaking his head. He rushed to her, gathering her in his arms. “I’m sorry.”
“I’ll never do it again,” she said, closing her eyes as he caressed her jaw with his warm, rough fingers.
“What if I want you to?” he whispered above her lips.
Her eyes snapped open, and his were wholly dark. He smiled at her as she stared back in amazement, a smile that showed both fangs and dimples. It instantly sent a pool of heat low in her belly. Grasping him by the back of the neck, she pulled him and pressed her lips roughly to his. The kiss was quick as Ros’ father loudly shut the doors behind him.
“Glad to see you two made up,” Azzy said sweetly, heading to the table that was already set with food and wine.
Ros let out a loud sigh and untangled himself from Ellea. He held her hand and guided her to the table. She may have squeezed a bit tightly; the feel of any inch of his skin was like coming home.
“Ellea looks good in Hel,” Azzy said. “Wouldn’t you agree?”
She groaned inwardly.
Let the fun begin.
“No, she looks good anywhere,” Ros growled. “But you don’t have to worry about her looking good here, since she isn’t staying.”
