Page 36 of Clash of Storms
Sirius didn't give a damn what she thought of him.
Malin curled in his fur cloak, resting in his bedroll in her gown and stockings. The dark prince kicked dirt over the smoldering remains of the fire so they wouldn't be seen from above during the night.
Too many of his brother'sdrekifriends would take this chance to thin the competition, no doubt.
Then he was lifting the edge of the blankets and his fur cloak to ease himself beneath them.
A chill pervaded the cloak, but Malin barely felt it.
She froze as Sirius's enormous body slipped into the bedroll behind her. Despite his promise, she couldn't help the flutter of nervousness within her. She'd never lain with a man. Not even to share a bed like this. Her heart pounded like the beating wings of a flock of birds. Tension etched itself down her spine. They were both fully dressed, but still....
"Relax," Sirius breathed, a mocking, throaty laugh echoing in his chest. "Only if you beg me, Malin. And perhaps not even then...."
An inch remained between them. Maybe more.
They might as well have been naked, for she couldfeelhis presence lying alongside her.
It was one thing to ignore him when she wasn't trapped in bed with him.
Quite another when his body heat embraced her like a caress. The stir of his breath whispered against the back of her neck and goose bumps erupted across her skin.
Malin barely dared breathe.
"Are you going to sleep, or are you planning to throttle me the second I start snoring?" he murmured.
"My small hands wouldn't fit around your throat."
He laughed, the sound slowly fading into a sigh. "Sleep, Malin. I'm not going to touch you. You're safe and warm."
Malin didn't know what to do. Snuggling into his cloak, she closed her eyes and breathed in the rich scent of frostbound moors and heated musky male. Sirius's scent was rich and unique, hinting at a powerfuldreki.
Startlingly intimate. She could almost smell it on her own skin now, as if he were slowly marking her as his territory.
The last two days stretched behind her like some surreal dream.
Helping the princess to escape.
Fleeing the court with the Blackfrost.
And now you're in his bed. What would Tove say?
Malin curled her knees up to her chest.She would ask if you've gone utterly mad.
But Malin didn't know what to think anymore.
Who was this villainous prince with his strangely aloof behavior?
And what the hell were his intentions toward her?
Because true to his word, he did not touch her.
And Malin finally,finallyallowed herself to slip into the dreamless depths of sleep, even though she knew he lay awake behind her.
8
The next morning, Malin blinked awake, her breath fogging in the frigid predawn air.
The furs were empty, and she couldn't feel Sirius's warmth against her dress. He'd clearly slipped out from beneath them some time ago, and she hadn't even noticed. It was somewhat mortifying to realize she'd started to become used to his presence.
