A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Blood and Ash, #2)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

“Which part confuses you?” he asked, amber eyes unblinking. “It’s the part where you think I would actually marry you.”

“What matters is that I choose her,” Casteel spoke, and my stupid, stupid heart skipped a beat, even though I did not choose him. “And that is all that matters.”

“I just want you to know that I’m not even particularly upset about you questioning what I intend to do. How you’ve spoken to me doesn’t bother me. I’m not insecure enough to care about the opinions of little men.” Casteel’s face was inches from the wide-eyed wolven. “If that had been all, I would’ve overlooked it. If you had stopped after the first time you referenced her, I would’ve let you walk out of here with just your overinflated sense of self-worth. But then you insulted her. You made her flinch, and then you threatened her. I will not forget that.”

Cas. Gods, that sounded like such a harmless nickname for such a dangerous man.

“Almost means nothing, Princess. You should know that.”

“And the truth is, you like my brand of insanity.”

“Make me feel incompetent and kill more than me, Princess.”

“Curiosity is a sign of intelligence.”

“You can’t spell dysfunctional without fun, now can you?”

“You’re annoying,” I muttered. “The truth often is. But you want to know an even more annoying truth?”