Page 132 of Prize for the King
He meets my gaze head on, his lips flattening in a tight line.
“Fuck it.”
XL Milk
Water splashes as Arvi moves over to my end of the tub, straddling my legs. He frames my face in both hands and tilts it up until I have no choice but to look into his amber eyes. He frowns as if surprised by what he sees.
“Why do you look like you’re about to cry?”
I huff with a small smile, swallowing against the tightness in my throat. “Since when are you so perceptive?”
His lips twist in disapproval. “I asked first.”
“Well, it’s stupid, since I’ve done the same thing to Magnar and I shouldn’t…”
“Yeah, no. Get to the point, or I’ll put you over my knee.”
I snap my mouth shut and glare at him. He tongues the hoop in his lip, waiting, and I’m overwhelmed by how handsome and lovely he is, unhinged and wild, yes, but so dear.
“I guess I felt rejected when you didn’t say it back,” I mumble.
“Huh.” We blink at each other. Arvi’s face twists in a feral grin, baring all those sharp teeth I don’t fear anymore since they are there to protectme, and he laughs.
“Didn’t say it back. Tell me, sweet, don’t you know anything about poetry?”
“Of course I know a lot about poetry,” I scoff, annoyed that hedoesn’t treat my feelings seriously.
The least he could do is say sorry. Or better, nothing at all. This is humiliating.
“Yes, I imagine you do. I like poetry. It has this uncanny ability to convey things in beautiful, non-obvious ways.”
He watches me expectantly, and when I raise my eyebrows in question, he snorts.
“Wow, Caliane. You’re an uneducated heathen.”
“Uneducated…” My jaw drops with outrage, and I raise my arm with the intention to swing, but he catches my wrist.
Oh, the annoying Agnidari, so preternaturally fast.
“You’re positively feral, like a child raised by wolves.” He laughs, catching my other wrist, and I fume at him.
“I won’t let you speak to me like… Mmm!”
He kisses me, still laughing, and my objections are swallowed by his eager tongue. It’s no use. Arvi tastes like, well, Arvi, and I’ve only just discovered how good kissing him feels, so I give in and open to him. His lips are warm this time, eager and soft, but when his erection brushes my stomach underwater, he pulls back. His eyes glint with wild mirth.
I am breathless, mind pleasantly blank. He speaks first, wearing an infinitely annoying—arousing—self-satisfied smirk.
“What do I call you, sweet?”
“Laruna,” I whisper.
“Mhm. And what did I say aboutlarunastoday?”
I frown. He said many things. “That they are your peace.”
He nods with a snicker, his thumb caressing my lower lip. “Yes. I also said they are the only thing I’ve ever loved.”
He watches me expectantly, and I frown. Does he mean…? But surely not. I blink, and Arvi curls his body forward, his forehead falling against mine. He laughs quietly.
