King of the Unsightly (Tempting Trickery #1)

GreedSorrow

K aschel was an enigma I couldn’t quite figure out. One minute he was cold and distant, and the next, he said all the right things to make my heart pound just as furiously as when we were in danger.

It was unsettling.

I wanted to pressure him for more information about his life—and his past—but I also knew we were at a dead end.

Nothing could go any further between us. We kissed by mistake. The heat of the moment and nothing more.

So why was it seared into my memory and playing on repeat at a time like this?

I couldn’t afford to go soft, not now. I still had so much to finish—like saving Lucien.

We were no more than a few lustful glances and rising heat. And the heat between us would simmer down eventually, and I wouldn’t think twice about him after that.

Not his amethyst eyes seizing my world with just a glance. Not his charismatic smile sending shivers down my body when he revealed a hint of amusement. Not his alabaster hair that had grown on me; I wasn’t sure when it happened or if I had always found it captivating.

Now I longed to trace his scar with my fingertips from his bottom lip to his chest without scaring him away. What were the stories behind each one marking his immaculate body? When did he get them? And why did he have fresh lacerations?

Why didn’t I notice them before?

I knew how I should and shouldn’t feel.

So why was he dangerously close to my lips, and why did I have the urge to taste them again?

With everything I knew, why couldn’t I resist his lowered gaze roaming all over my body?

His bare chest was exposed and in front of me. I craved to feel his warmth pressed against me. To consume me.

I wanted to be consumed.

To have the chance to forget all my sorrows and worries as we explored every inch of each other, indulging in our carnal appetites. But the nagging in my mind wouldn’t allow me to fully give in to him.

So what if he had shown me a fraction of who he was? It didn’t mean I knew him or should trust him.

But if we kissed again, would I hate myself more for the inevitable? Would we be a passing flame burning brightly but fading out just as quickly?

Was I only lonely and desperate for company? Was he as damaged as me but ... better at hiding it? They do say birds of a feather flock together.

Kaschel brushed my hair behind my ear and cupped my cheek.

I drew in a breath and melted into his hand.

He stroked his thumb under my jaw as his restless stare set me ablaze.

Kaschel’s rough voice caressed every part of my body as he whispered, “Are you okay now?”

I let out a dry laugh. “How many times are you going to ask me?”

“Until you mean it.”

“Okay, okay. I’m fine. I’m good.” God, he was being too gentle . Too caring .

Kaschel had to stop, or I would start to believe the sincerity in his tone and the hunger in his eyes.

He was tempting me to shatter all the walls I built around myself just so I could get one more kiss.

Kaschel was an error in my system I couldn’t clear out. No matter how many times I told myself his affection wasn’t real, my body still reacted to his touch, his voice , and the vast emotions churning in his vibrant eyes as he waited with bated breath to taste me.

I lifted my chin as Kaschel grazed his thumb over my bottom lip.

We looked at each other, both of us too stubborn to make a move.

Kaschel relinquished his pride and pressed his lips to mine. His gentle touch turned desperate.

Desperate to be closer, craving more and more.

My icy heart thawed from each stroke of his hands against my skin as they explored my body and skimmed past my hips, resting below the sides of my ribcage.

We greedily consumed one another as each touch and gasp for air exhilarated us.

He nibbled on my bottom lip and ecstasy shot through me as I brushed my fingertips across his shoulders and moved them slowly down his firm back, tracing over every muscle and raised scar along the way.

I pulled away from him, but not because I wanted to.

I wanted him so badly, but what I wanted and needed were two separate matters.

We didn’t have time to drown our sorrows. We had to worry about making it out of here alive.

Kaschel didn’t say anything as we let the silence eat away at us.

It’s like Kaschel already knew what crossed my mind, and his mask concealed his emotions again.

Any tenderness I saw, or believed I saw, vanished.

The magenta night embellished the sky with flecks of gold as the vine walls closed in on us—until we walked a path leading in only one direction.

We didn’t talk about what had happened, and I was fine with that. Relieved even. It would only unnecessarily complicate things, and my life was already complicated enough.

So we concentrated on what was ahead since with one wrong step the possibility of getting impaled by arrows or falling to our deaths was extremely high.

The soil beneath us shifted and contorted to the will of its creator. I almost fell multiple times, but Kaschel snatched my waist before I plummeted to the bottom.

My adrenaline wore off, and the agonizing pain returned tenfold.

My legs screamed as my back stung with each gust of wind. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could last in this state.

“Did you feel that?” Kaschel scanned the area.

“Feel what?” I scrunched my face, unsure of what he heard or saw.

“The trembling of the ground? It’s getting closer.”

I sure as hell didn’t feel the ground moving beneath us, no more than usual.

“I think you might be—” I glanced behind us and gasped in horror. “Holy fuck.”