Throne of Secrets (Prince of Sin #2)

Forty-Five Prince Gluttony

T WO HOURS AFTER Adriana’s departure from House Envy, and as soon as I’d gotten word that she’d arrived back at my castle safe and sound, I stood on the roof of my House of Sin.

Envy accompanied me to brief Lust, Greed, and Sloth on the details of our meeting with Adriana. With the new information we received, we had to re-strategize.

Pride was busy with his own issues once again, and Wrath was patrolling the northern territory. I’d fill him in tomorrow.

“You think she figured out the ice dragon connection, too?” Lust asked, leaning against the balcony’s railing. To the casual observer he looked at ease, but the tension in his gaze said otherwise.

I dropped onto one of the chairs in the rooftop garden of House Gluttony. “Most certainly.”

Greed exhaled. “Did you offer to pay her for her silence?”

“Of course not.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. Leave it to Greed to think everyone suffered from his same sins. “She’s got morals.”

Sloth gave him a look that called him incompetent and slunk to the opposite side of the balcony, as if idiocy could be catching.

One thing I had no doubt about: Adriana Saint Lucent was brilliant, and it wouldn’t have taken long for her to piece together the part about the magic seeking out the next-strongest being.

She knew the dragons were restless. She knew a prince had been attacked.

Now she had a reason to hunt down the story.

For all I knew, she could be sitting in her chamber now, drafting up my demise.

Envy poured each of us a generous serving of the blackberry bourbon he’d brought, then set his attention on the horizon. Another storm was approaching, the visibility swiftly dwindling.

Soon we wouldn’t see the mountain range where the dragons dwelled.

We’d come up here to discuss our next steps while my scholars pulled old guest books. I wanted to watch for signs of any dragons roaming too far from their territory.

Knowing what we did now, an attack seemed not only certain but inevitable.

“Not wiping her memory is going to be a problem, Gabriellis.” Envy shifted his attention to me. “She’ll write an article eventually, even knowing magic is at play.”

“You’re the one who decided to share more information with her.” I downed half my drink. The burn felt good. “I’m not sure what you were thinking.”

“She already unearthed more than we had. Do you think it mattered if I confirmed her theories? Better to give her some answers rather than have her asking around where we can’t monitor her.”

It was a good point. I was simply too on edge to appreciate it and wanted to fight.

It wasn’t the fact that Adriana had figured out the answer to the problem that we’d been hunting for. In fact, that made me appreciate her even more. It was the fact that my recurring dreams… they’d been real. And I hadn’t known magic was at play.

Envy watched me over the rim of his cup.

“Did you tell her you loved her at the All-Sinners Ball?” he asked, startling me. I thought he was attempting to joke. None of our brothers laughed. To have magic used on us was a serious threat. That I hadn’t detected it made them all consider their own vulnerability.

“I have no recollection. Why?”

I waited for him to elaborate. Apparently, he felt no need to.

“Get to the damned point, Levi. Why does that matter?”

Envy scowled at the nickname. “The point is the magic didn’t make you hate her. Which makes me wonder how intact her memories are. From what I gathered from her tonight, she remembers sleeping with you. It’s a wound that’s festered each time you tried to get her attention over the last decade with your abysmal courting antics.”

“It’s not as if I set out to hurt her.” I sighed. “If I knew she was mine, I would have acted differently. I’m not a complete fucking monster.”

Greed’s mouth lifted in amusement. “No, you’re just a prick.”

Lust snorted. “Watching her chew your ass out after each failed attempt to impress her has been entertaining, though.”

I opened my mouth to snap that I hadn’t been trying to impress her, then shut it.

They began to mock my many denials over the years, suddenly claiming they knew—dark magic or not—that we secretly loved each other, and I tuned them out until Sloth taunted me. “Anyone with a modicum of common sense could see you wanted her.”

“Did you just call me an idiot while boasting of your intelligence in that high-handed, bookworm way of yours?” I asked, feigning being wounded. “You truly are a well-read prick.”

The levity between us was short-lived. I really considered what they were saying.

Putting myself in Adriana’s position, knowing what I knew now, entertaining would be the last thing I’d feel. She’d watched me indulge my sin with countless lovers.

My reputation for being a rake was well earned—at least as far as I’d led everyone to believe. She didn’t know it had all been an act, a way to fuel my sin without actually indulging in carnal desires. Each time it must have twisted the knife, reminding her of that first night.

She’d accused me of discarding her. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

“I have no recollection of taking Adriana to my gardens,” I admitted once they’d finished rehashing their favorite blunders of mine. “Only my attempts to engage in conversation.”

And they hadn’t gone well. A lie, apparently.

My jaw strained as I considered how far the deception went. Not only had the perpetrator put my court in danger; they’d ruined my life. Had that been the goal, or was it simply a casualty of their secret war?

“Another indication the quill was used,” Envy said. “It seems like your relationship might have been the target.”

“ If that’s the reason, then someone worked hard to ensure she didn’t remember you in a fond light,” Lust added. “Who’d you piss off?”

“Did you flirt with anyone else?” Sloth asked.

“Who’s asking dumb questions now?” Lust quipped.

I raked my hands through my hair, my attention shifting back to the sky. “Maybe they hoped to weaken my court.”

Val’s worries didn’t seem so far-fetched now.

Adriana’s scathing articles could have turned the tides of my sinners. If they aligned with different sins, my court would eventually collapse.

Whoever used the quill made sure Adriana hated me and that I wouldn’t remember making her mine at all. There was an answer in that little detail, one that would solve it all.

My attention turned inward. I tried to focus on any particulars of that night and drew a blank. “I’m not sure we can trust my memories even if I did remember anything.”

It felt like the worst sort of violation, to have my mind tampered with. My life. When I discovered who dared to thwart my happiness—and Adriana’s—I’d feed them to the dragons.

I finished my drink and motioned for my brother to refill my glass, my mind turning over all the information I’d learned.

Envy gritted his teeth at the order but obliged, pouring another knuckle of liquor.

I trusted my brothers enough to know that if they believed Adriana was correct and the Hexed Quill had been used against us, it was true.

Logically it made sense. But it was still hard to reconcile.

I tossed back the second bourbon, the burn grounding me in the here and now.

“Even if my memory comes back, the damage is done.”

“How very defeatist of you.” Envy sipped his bourbon, eyes glinting. “With your thirst for adventure, I would have thought you’d fight for her.”

I had a damn House of Sin filled with potential brides and a hexed object still at large. If the realm discovered the truth about me and Adriana… scandal was too mild a term.

I couldn’t risk discovery yet.

But maybe I could begin to rebuild what we’d lost. An idea slowly formed…

A ball might be the perfect way for me to not only continue to distract the realm but to sneak a dance with her too. Make up for some mistakes.

My attention shifted to the sky. No dragons to be seen. “I assume I don’t have to tell any of you to keep this information between us. The last thing I need is for the scandal sheets to find out.” I glanced at my brothers. “Did you give Wolf my message?”

“Of course.” Envy moved to the railing, staring out at the darkening clouds. “If anyone can track down a hexed object, an Unseelie hunter can. He’s scouring his network.”

An unsettling suspicion crossed my mind, too preposterous to be true. Still, I couldn’t immediately dismiss it. “You don’t think Adriana wielded the quill, do you?”

Envy straightened from where he’d been leaning against the railing, brows raised as he looked at me, then Sloth. “She is a writer.”

Sloth was silent for a few moments, his gaze turning inward. That he didn’t immediately call us both idiots set me further on edge.

Eventually, he lifted a shoulder. “It’s possible. Maybe you did something that made her want to forget. If she did use the quill, she might not be aware.”

“Wouldn’t she know if she had the quill?” Greed asked. “Or the journal or parchment?”

“Not necessarily.” Envy’s expression turned dark. “She might have hidden them and forgotten or tossed them out after she’d left the ball. Anything’s possible.”

“Maybe someone coerced her into writing it and she had no idea what it was,” Sloth added. “It stands to reason it had nothing to do with you, and maybe it was about someone wanting her. Perhaps she ignored someone’s pursuit who didn’t take kindly to that.”

We were all quiet for a while, lost to our own thoughts and suspicions.

I’d been arrogant enough to believe I’d been the target and prize. And the magic that bound us… it didn’t like the idea of someone taking Adriana from me.

Shoving that territorial aspect aside, she had been attracting attention from many suitors that night. Perhaps someone was jealous and wanted to ruin what we had so they might steal her one day. That theory invited in a whole new slew of suspects.

And that made me want to hunt them down and do unspeakably dark things. If another sinner from a different court thought to undermine me in my own circle, I would go to war.

I ran a hand through my hair and heaved a sigh.

“Return to your circles and see what you can find out about the attendees of the All-Sinners Ball. I’ll try to unearth more clues about the quill—there’s got to be some trail of owners to follow. Tomorrow I’ll try to flush out the culprit.”

“How do you plan on doing that?” Sloth asked.

I strode toward the door. “I’m going to throw another ball.”

After spending the rest of the night planning the ball and sending out invitations, I was eager to meet my nemesis at the stables the next afternoon. Adriana’s expression shuttered the moment she saw the hell horse. As in singular.

We were about to get very comfortable. In light of her discovery of the Hexed Quill, and also what happened when we were in the library, it had been a battle to get her to come for the ride today. She claimed we needed distance while we sorted this out, especially when I’d asked her to dance with me at the ball tonight. I politely disagreed.

The competition might still be on, my suitors and court wildly excited by the announcement of the sudden ball, but solving this mystery took precedence over all.

One way or another, I would find out if Adriana had wielded that quill. My gut told me she hadn’t. And there was another, more personal reason for our little early afternoon excursion.

I adjusted my leather gloves.

“Is there a problem, Miss Saint Lucent?”

I stroked Magnus’s neck, the giant black stallion impatiently toeing the dirt. It had been nearly a week since I’d taken him out. He was ready to run.

Thankfully my dragon wounds from the incident days before had finally healed. The ride wouldn’t be too bad. For me.

Adriana looked like she was stepping into a new nightmare.

“Where is my horse?” she asked.

“Do you know how to ride?”

Her attention drifted between me and the horse. “No.”

“Well, then. Let’s get you up.”

A stable hand took the reins while I lifted Adriana onto the horse, her breath catching as she settled at the front of the saddle. I launched myself up, settling comfortably behind her.

She stiffened, doing her best to lean forward, avoiding any unnecessary touching.

As if we hadn’t been ready to tear each other’s clothes off a couple of nights before and I hadn’t brought her release in the hidden corridor.

I grinned at her back, then spurred Magnus into a canter, guiding him out of the stable and into the softly falling snow.

Adriana tugged the hood of her navy cloak up, a shiver rolling down her spine as we began a slightly faster pace. Her grip on the pommel tightened as we began to bounce, her bottom lifting off the saddle with each of our steps.

“Stop squeezing with your thighs; you want your calves close to the horse. Angle your heels down and roll into the movement,” I said. “You’ll keep your seat better.”

I pulled back on the reins, slowing Magnus as a protective surge rose in me. It wouldn’t do to have Adriana flying off the horse.

“Here.” I handed her the reins. “Rest these against the pommel. Lean into me.”

I placed my hands on either side of her body, pulling her hips into mine. Tension radiated through her, and Magnus whinnied, his head tossing from side to side.

“You need to relax, or Magnus will buck. A horse senses when a rider is anxious.”

“I’m not sure how relaxing is possible at the moment.”

“Close your eyes. Don’t think about how good I feel. Think about the horse. Let your thighs clasp its sides lightly but hold on a bit more with your calves. With your heels angled toward the ground, it helps maintain your balance.”

She took a deep breath, then slowly adjusted her body, her legs now curving around the horse’s middle.

“Good. When we start moving again, roll your hips in time with the horse’s gait. The motion won’t be as jarring, and you won’t lose your seat. It’s all about finding the rhythm.”

I took the reins back, holding them lightly in one hand and clamping my other around her hip to ensure she stayed in the saddle. It might have been a touch unnecessary to hold her so closely, but I was a rake. At least where she was concerned.

“We’ll start slower. Ready?”

She exhaled, the plume of breath coming out in a cloud. “I think so.”

“If you start to tense, lean into me, move with my body. I won’t let you fall.”

I clucked at Magnus and urged him into a canter once again, ensuring we stuck to a well-trodden path that curved around the perimeter of House Gluttony.

Adriana’s body was still too stiff, but she’d started to find her rhythm with the horse. Eventually, she relaxed against me, her back molding to my chest as we entered a full trot.

Magnus neighed, chomping at the bit; he wanted to unleash himself. Galloping through storms was his favorite pastime. And I could deny my horse nothing.

Once I was certain Adriana wouldn’t go tumbling off, I kicked my heels into his flank, giving him the signal to fly. He needed no further encouragement.

Magnus raced along the path, the trees on either side of us blurring into an indistinguishable mass of dark green.

Adriana shrieked and my arm immediately circled her waist, banding her tightly against me as we tore down the path, then darted into the woods, her body moving with mine.

She felt good in my arms. Right.

I tried to focus on my mission, thinking of how to interrogate her about the quill without causing a bigger rift between us, but the more she bounced against me, the harder that became.

Almost quite literally.

I gritted my teeth. Perhaps this wasn’t the best plan.

The old gods had an abysmal sense of justice—I was the one fully being tortured now.

And I’d swear the hellcat in front of me sensed it. Adriana suddenly moved a little too enthusiastically, her bottom all but gyrating against me while her breasts bounced on my arm.

By the time Magnus drew to a halt near the falls, I was downright ornery.

I dismounted and helped Adriana down, noting the gleam in her eyes as she swept her attention over me, found proof of my reaction to her taunts, then flicked it away.

She’d known precisely what she’d been doing.

If I wasn’t so bothered, I’d be impressed with her victory. She’d certainly turned the situation in her favor. She didn’t spare me a second glance as she strode forward, following several hundred candles that illuminated the path that wound behind the waterfall.

I followed on her heels, noting with pleasure that all had been done to my specifications.

A small table and chairs were tucked behind the raging waterfall, the sound a dull roar as water rushed into an icy blue pool, the surface a frothy white.

I’d sent my staff ahead earlier to set up a romantic picnic at one of my favorite locations on the property’s grounds. Behind the flowing curtain of water was a natural cavern made of thick slabs of ice, the walls taking on a beautiful pale-blue tint from the frozen water.

In the next cavern over was a hot springs lagoon that I opened up to the public, making it a popular location for my court and circle who wished to indulge in nature.

It was a winter dreamscape. Even a cynic like Adriana felt the awe. She turned in place, taking in every inch of our surroundings, an expression of wonder on her face.

I’d never seen such a look on her before and caught myself before I did something foolish like trace the curve of her cheek, memorizing the shape of her joy.

I cleared my throat and pulled out her chair. “Please. Have a seat.”

She settled onto the chair and flipped the hood of her cloak back, her attention still riveted to the scenery. She didn’t trust my motives.

I pulled one of the baskets of supplies out from where the staff had left it, then popped the cork on the sparkling wine. I filled our glasses to the top, then set the platters of cheese and fruits and cured meats on the small table, arranging everything just right.

Adriana watched me the way someone might stare at a dog that suddenly began speaking to its owner in their native language.

I quirked a brow. “It’s hard to tell if you’re impressed or horrified.”

“I didn’t expect you to serve yourself.”

“Actually, I’m serving you first. To save you from swooning too hard, I also muddled the lavender and lemon and bottled the wine.”

She gave me a flat look and sipped her drink, her gaze flicking back to mine. “You’re serious.”

“You seem to have forgotten I can’t outright lie.”

“You and your brothers are well versed in lies of omission and wordplay.”

I smiled politely. “True. But you are free to lie whenever you please.”

“And you would sense when I did, so I don’t see any point in holding my tongue.”

It was the perfect segue into what I’d brought her here for. Well, one of the reasons.

I fiddled with the stem of my flute, watching her carefully. “Who do you think used the Hexed Quill?”

She looked me over carefully.

“I’m not sure. I’ve been trying to think of anyone who had the means to pull it off. Or the motive. Why target your court?”

If she was trying to get me to admit to the ice dragons, I would disappoint her there.

“I’m curious why your memory wasn’t impacted the same way as mine.”

She searched my face. “Is there something you’re getting at, Axton?”

“You write.”

There was one tense moment of silence before she reacted.

“Unbelievable.” Her mouth pressed into a hard line. “You believe I used the quill. To ruin my own life?”

“It’s possible you don’t remember using it.” I thought of her friend, the other writer. “Or maybe it’s someone you know. The columnist who wrote about us. There were rumors she was interested in taking your position as top reporter, were there not?”

If looks could kill, I’d be in the Great Beyond.

“I wasn’t top anything at that time, especially after our scandal hit the press. And Ryleigh is like family. She would never betray me.”

Annoyance prickled at her fierce defense of her friend. Mostly due to the look of pure loathing she tossed my way. “Just like how she didn’t allude to you to sell more scandal sheets.”

“How can you be certain you didn’t regret your choice and decide to rewrite your story? Maybe that’s why your memory of us sleeping together is gone and mine is not.”

“I do not regret it.”

“Of course you don’t.” She gave me a flat look. “You don’t even remember it.”

The air in the cavern suddenly felt too warm, my heartbeat too fast. Tension crackled between us as I finally unleashed my greatest secret.

“I have hungered for you in ways you cannot comprehend. I’ve craved you. More than my sin. You haunt me, Adriana.” I nearly shook from the confession. “My dreams are the only time I get to worship you. Do you have any idea how many careful lies of omission I’ve told over the years? The role I’ve played this last decade. All to hide the truth of how deeply, wholly lost I am to you?”

She tossed back her sparkling wine in an impressive gulp, then stood.

“If this meeting is done, I’d like to go home. I still have a column to write and turn in.”

I rose, noting with satisfaction that it wasn’t fear I sensed coming from her as I leaned across the table, dominance rolling off me in waves. “No.”

Her pretty eyes flashed like daggers. “It’s not up for debate, you oaf.”

“You’re right, it’s not. Now sit.”

I hid my grin as her arousal nearly knocked me backward.

She wanted to hate my arrogant command, but her body felt otherwise.

I knew if I dropped my attention, I’d see the hard buds of her nipples outlined through her silk bodice, begging for my wicked mouth.

Adriana liked when I dominated her in this manner only.

It was one battle we could happily agree on.

We stared at each other, our faces mere inches apart, until she finally dropped back into her seat, her expression thunderous.

“Well?” she asked, voice clipped. “What falsehood do you wish to confess to now?”

“The truth is, sweet nemesis”—I lowered my mouth to her ear—“I have not fucked a soul since the All-Sinners Ball. But I have made love to you a thousand times in my dreams. And I have never once yearned for anyone else to visit my bed.”

I stepped back enough to watch the truth of my confession settle in. She searched my face, her eyes glimmering with unshed tears.

“What do you want from me now?”

To do all the unspeakably depraved, wicked things you and I both desire.

“The same thing I’ve wanted for longer than I’d care to admit.”

I might not remember sleeping with Adriana, but the dark magic hadn’t been the only thing keeping us apart this past decade. My actions were equally to blame.

After her first scathing article had been printed, I’d gone on a public rampage to indulge my sin; the more Adriana skewered me in the scandal sheets, the more I tried to prove her wrong.

It turned into a vicious cycle, and I’d ultimately only succeeded in proving her right.

The more we fought our private war, the less chance there was of winning.

I tried to recall the All-Sinners Ball in detail. It was fuzzy at best. But one image I’d held on to with stark clarity had always been the first moment I’d seen her enter the ballroom.

I might not remember much from that night, but I would catalogue every detail from this point forward. My sin ignited, my hunger for her all-consuming.

I dragged my gaze from her frosty eyes down to her toes, then slid it back up, leaving no question about what I starved for. This was House Gluttony, and I was more than ready to indulge. Her bodice strained against her quick breaths.

My sweet enemy was about to surrender to her future; she just didn’t realize it yet.

Someone stole her from me once. And, unless she told me otherwise, she would be mine.

Tonight.

I leaned closer, brushing my lips against the shell of her ear, satisfied by the shiver of pleasure that rocked through her at the small contact.

Her slight gasp would be the first of many.

Beginning now.

“I want to give you my royal mark. Then spread your thighs and feast.”