Page 87 of Tiger's Curse
“It’s okay. Just do a small scratch. It’s no big deal.”
He growled again softly, lifted his paw, and set it gently on my arm. I’d seen him hunt from a distance and had also seen his claws during his fight with Kishan. As the flashlight shined on his extended claws, I couldn’t help but feel a little scared. I closed my eyes and heard a soft grunt as he moved, but I didn’t feel anything.
I shone the flashlight all over my legs and didn’t see any blood. I knew he’d done something, though, because I’d heard his claws tear through flesh. Immediately, I had a suspicion and aimed the flashlight on his white body, searching for where he’d hurt himself.
“Ren! Let me see. How bad is it?”
He lifted his leg, and I saw vicious rips where his claws had raked through his fur to the flesh. Blood was freely dripping on the ground.
I was angry. “I know you can heal fast, but really, Ren. Did you have to wound yourself so deeply? You know it might not work anyway if I don’t bleed. I appreciate your sacrifice, but I still want you to slash me. I’m the one representing the demon king, so cut me . . . preferably not as deep as that.”
He wouldn’t lift his paw. I had to bend over and actually lift his heavy paw myself. When I finally positioned it over my arm, he retracted his claws.
I begged, “Ren. Please,pleasecooperate. This is hard enough as it is.”
He allowed his claws to peek out halfway, and he lightly scratched my arm, barely leaving a mark at all.
“Ren! Do it, please. Now would be good.”
He growled softly in disapproval and scratched me harder. The scratch marks left angry red welts down the length of my forearm. Two of the scratches bled lightly.
“Thanks.” I flinched. I adjusted my flashlight to see his scratches again, which were almost healed already. Satisfied, I moved on to the last item.
“Now, the last one was that the demon king can’t stand either in heaven or on the earth. Ugra set the demon on his lap, which means I guess I’ll have to . . . sit on your back.”
Awkward.Even though Ren was a big tiger and it would be like riding a small pony, I was still conscious that he was a man, and I didn’t feel right about turning him into a pack animal. I took off my backpack and set it down wondering what I could do to make this a bit less embarrassing. Mustering the courage to sit on his back, I’d just decided that it wouldn’t be too bad if I sat sidesaddle, when my feet flew out from under me.
Ren had changed into a man and swept me up in his arms. I wiggled for a minute, protesting, but he just gave me a look—the don’t-even-bother-coming-up-with-an-argument look. I shut my mouth. He leaned over to pick up the backpack, let it dangle from his fingers, and then said, “What’s next?”
“I don’t know. That’s all that Mr. Kadam told me.”
He shifted me in his arms, walked over to stand in the doorway again, then peered up at the statue. He murmured, “I don’t see any changes.”
He held me securely while looking at the statue and, I have to admit, I totally stopped caring about what we were doing. The scratches on my arm that had been throbbing a moment ago didn’t bother me at all. I let myself enjoy the feeling of being cuddled up close to his muscular chest.What girl didn’t want to be swept up in the arms of a drop-dead gorgeous man?I allowed my gaze to drift up to his beautiful face. The thought occurred to me that if I were to carve a stone god, I’d pick Ren as my subject. This Ugra half-lion and half-man guy had nothing on Ren.
Eventually, he realized I was watching him, and said, “Hello? Kells? Breaking a curse here, remember?”
I just smiled back stupidly. He quirked an eyebrow at me.
“What were you thinking about just now?”
“Nothing important.”
He grinned. “May I remind you that you are in prime tickling position, and there’s no escape. Tell me.”
Gads. His smile was brilliant, even in the fog.I laughed nervously.
“If you tickle me, I’ll protest and struggle violently, which will cause you to drop me and ruin everything that we are trying to accomplish.”
He grunted, leaned close to my ear, and then whispered, “That sounds like an interesting challenge,rajkumari. Perhaps we shall experiment with it later. And just for the record, Kelsey, I wouldn’t drop you.”
The way he said my name made goose bumps rise all over my arms. When I looked down to quickly rub them, I noticed the flashlight had been turned off. I switched it on, but the statue remained the same. Giving up, I suggested, “Nothing’s happening. Maybe we need to wait till dawn.”
He laughed throatily while nuzzling my ear and declared softly, “I’d say that somethingishappening, but not the something that will open the doorway.”
He trailed soft, slow kisses from my ear down my neck. I sighed faintly and arched my neck to give him better access. With a last kiss, he groaned and reluctantly raised his head.
Disappointed that he’d stopped, I asked, “What doesrajkumarimean?”
