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he was looking at her like he wanted to devour her, like she was the single most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
“Fuck me, Caspen,” she breathed. “Not tonight, Tem,” he said against her lips.
“Please,” she said as she tilted her hips, pulling his fingers deeper. “Do not ask me again.” His voice was strained—he was begging her. “But I want you,” she whispered. Pain flitted across his face. She knew she hadn’t imagined it. “You will have me,” he said. “Just not tonight.”
They stared at each other for a long moment. His next words were barely a whisper. “You are not meant to be tamed, Tem.”
“I hate that you have this much power over me.” To her surprise, he laughed. “What’s so funny?” His grin only widened. “Of the two of us, I am not the one with the power, Tem.”
Caspen brought her straight to the mat, undressing her as he kissed her, pressing his mouth against hers as if he could claim it as his own.
“I’d prefer we didn’t kiss at all.”
“And I’d prefer you didn’t lie. But you knew that already.”
“So,” Tem whispered, her lips still an inch from his. “Will you keep me around?” Leo smiled, his gold teeth flashing in the dim light. “For as long as you’ll let me.”
Caspen’s temple tensed. “You are not to be played with.”
“Am I not allowed to protect you?” he murmured. “You are,” she murmured back. “I just didn’t realize you wanted to.” Caspen held her gaze. “Protecting you is only the beginning of what I want to do.”
Caspen traced his thumb under her chin, pulling her gaze up to his. “I find you extraordinary, Tem.”
“Look at you,” he whispered. “Perfection.”
Relax, little viper.
Untamable, as always.
Caspen wanted—needed—her.
Nobody could control you, Tem. But even if I could, I would not.
His voice surged into her mind. Mine. Only mine. Tem nodded eagerly. Yours. Only yours.
His tongue had split.
Tem. Tem. Tem.
Caspen. Caspen. Caspen.
“I’m so angry at you,” Tem said finally. To her surprise, the corner of Caspen’s mouth twitched. “Yes. I can tell.”
“If you wanted me, you would let me in. But you don’t. You never have. You keep secrets from me. You never give me a straight answer. You silence me.”
!!!! That part
“Are they? You are his future wife, are you not? Such an esteemed position is hardly a burden.”
“But I don’t,” she cried. “You never confide in me. You never tell me how you feel. You expect me to read your mind, then you get angry when I can’t do it. You’re the one who won’t let me in. Not the other way around.”
“You are my future. It is as simple as that.”
“This is not just a necklace,” he said softly. “Then what is it?” Caspen paused, his fingers stroking the charm. “It is…a gesture of intent.” Tem frowned. “Intent to what?” His eyes found hers. “To marry you.”
“It is too easy for me to lose control around you.” Tem remembered how he’d bitten her last time. How he drew blood. “You love me,” she said. “I do.” She leaned into his touch. His eyes were turning black. “So control it.”
“Tem,” he said firmly. “I do not trust myself.” “I trust you.” Caspen only shook his head. “I have done nothing to earn it.”
“Temptation, salvation, heaven, hell—you are everything, Tem. You are my undoing. You are beyond comprehension. There are no sufficient words to describe you, either in my language or yours.” His hands moved to her face, cupping her jaw. “My compass points to you. I could not change direction even if I wanted to.”
Caspen didn’t hesitate. “I am undone by you,” he said. “I crave your scent, your skin, your voice. I think about you all the time, to the point of destruction. You are unbearably overwhelming. I cannot resist you no matter how hard I try.”
“You.” Thrust. “Are.” Thrust. “Perfect.”
“You may think he is right for you,” Leo whispered. “But perhaps I am right too. And should you choose to kiss me tonight, he never has to know.”
Eventually, she opened her mind. Neither of them said anything at first. Instead, Caspen’s presence curled around hers, holding her the same way his hands did: tenderly, as if she were something exceedingly precious to him. It was only when Tem let the last of her guard down that he whispered, I love you, Tem.
He pressed a single finger to her lips. “Tem,” he murmured. “It was worth it. For you, I would give anything.” His hands moved to either side of her face. “I love you.”
So beautiful, Tem. You always say that. Because it is true.
“Mother,” Tem said quietly. “How do you know if someone loves you?” Her mother met her eye. “When they would sacrifice their happiness for yours.”
how he concentrated on a single thought every time he came close to losing control: Keep her safe.
Keep her safe. Keep her safe. Keep her safe.
“Say it,” Caspen ordered. “Say her name.” Rowe blinked, his eyes focusing on Tem. “Temperance.”
“You made him angry,” she whispered. “He made me angry.”
Caspen pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I fell in love with you when I thought you were human. Please do not insult me by assuming I would not love you otherwise.”
His next words confirmed it. “I will always love you, Tem,” he whispered. “In any form.”
Next time, I get to torture you.
“He may have made you wet, but I will make you come.”
“Love is complicated. It never goes away, only changes.”
The prince was silent for a long moment. He looked down at Tem’s hands, his brow furrowed. Then he spoke. “If you are asking me to choose between you and my father, I choose you, Tem.” He said the words so calmly that she briefly wondered if she had hallucinated them. But then Caspen said, “I would choose the same.” This couldn’t be real. “Are you two serious?” Tem whispered.
