“Ah, necklaces.” I nodded and glanced at her long, slender neck. Her tanned skin was smooth and soft. If she weren’t a thief—and my prisoner—I might be inclined to caress it until she whimpered beneath my touch. Despite the black spots on her soul, I hadn’t failed to notice how her dress hugged her perfectly-formed curves. The material dipped enticingly between small, perky breasts. Every so often, a slight breeze would whisper past, and her nipples would harden.
I didn’t think she noticed. But I did.
But no matter. She was a thief, and I was a dragonlord who needed to get home.
Her big blue eyes blinked back at me. “You say that like you’re disappointed. Would you rather I have stolen something that holds more importance? Something bigger? Like a throne?”
I smiled, draped my arm across my knee, and leaned forward. “Do you believe you could have stolen your prince’s throne?”
“Sure I could have.” Lifting her chin, she shimmied a little on the ground, knocking the soft material of her dress away from her legs. Tanned skin gleamed beneath the moonlight.
My smile widened. She didn’t believe she could have stolen the damn throne, regardless of what she said. The two dots of pink on her cheeks gave her game away. Which meant she was trying to impress me, even if she didn’t realize she was. That was certainly interesting.
“Is that so? And how would you have done it?” I prodded. “Tell me your grand plan. Aradia Galatas, Queen of Eretia.”
Aradia blew out a breath that ruffled the soft, dark hair that framed her face. She blinked up at me, intelligence shining in the depths of her eyes. Tension pounded in the night air as the silence stretched out into moments. She flushed and glanced away.
“You think I would tell you my plan?” She laughed nervously. “You plan to deliver me to Prince Cyril. If I tell you, then I’m basically telling him.”
I chuckled and leaned back. Firelight danced between us, crackling deep into the night. “Alright then. Keep your brilliant plan for Queendom to yourself for now. It’s getting late. We should wash you, and then settle in for the night. Cleatus will keep watch while we get some sleep.”
Aradia’s entire body tensed. Her spine was as stiff as my spear. “Excuse me? Did you say you want to wash me?”
I smiled. “Yes, of course.”
“That has to be some sort of joke,” she said stiffly.
“Unfortunately, not.” I gestured at the gurgling stream behind us. “Your scent is very mortal and very potent. We need to disguise it as best we can in order to avoid attracting too much attention.”
She pressed her lips together. “Did you say my scent?”
“Your sense of smell is not as strong as mine, so you don’t understand what I mean. Yes, you have a scent. Every beast within a mile will know you’re here.”
Aradia’s nose scrunched up. “I don’t like this.”
“Too bad. Get in the stream, Aradia.”
“All my clothes will get soaking wet.”
“So take them off.”
Her cheeks flushed. “So, that’s what this is all about then. You want me to undress in front of you.”
Chuckling, I turned my back toward her, still keeping a tight hold on the rope. “There’s nothing I wish to see less.” Lies. “Undress, Aradia, and get in the stream. It’s for your own damn safety. If you don’t undress and get in willingly, I’ll just throw you in.”
She let out a little huff.
I smiled to myself. Truth was, I wouldn’t object to a woman like Aradia undressing before me. It had been a very, very long time since I’d seen a naked woman, and a part of me very much wanted to turn back around. I could imagine how her nipples would harden against the gentle breeze. The soft curve of her hips. The tops of her thighs brushing together, skin against skin.
A thrill went through me at the thought, hardening me.
Dammit. I’d let my imagination get the better of me, and an intense need churned through me that I had not felt in hundreds of years.
I couldn’t let myself get carried away. Aradia might be a breathtaking beauty, but she was still a mortal thief.
The material rustled as she dropped her dress to the ground. “I can only take off my dress because of the shoulder buttons. Not my chemise. Because of the whole you-tying-me-up thing. I can’t get my arms out of it.”
“You could just rip it off,” I murmured with a smile.
She huffed in response. “Honestly, I can’t tell if you actually want me to do this or if you’re just messing with me.”
A bit of both, I thought.
“I’m willing to remove your bonds long enough for you to take off your undergarments, but I’ll have to turn around to do it.”
Silence answered, and then a little cough. “Fine. But don’t look too closely.”
I held back a smile and turned. Aradia stood in nothing but her cotton chemise, her smooth, tanned legs drawing my gaze. Instead, I focused on her eyes as I wound my gloved hands around her bonds, slowly loosening the rope. They were such a deep blue. They reminded me of the great sky above. Even the golden flecks matched the boiling sun.
“Stop staring at me,” she whispered.
“You told me not to look. I assumed you meant your legs.”
The redness in her cheeks deepened another shade. “You’re enjoying this far too much.”
“No, if I were enjoying myself, Aradia, I’d be climbing into the stream along with you.”
Aradia blinked. Then, her neck bobbed, as she swallowed hard. “Stop that.”
“Stop what? Untying you?” I pulled the rope away from her wrists and dangled it before her eyes. “You’re all done.”
“I meant stop trying to seduce me.” She took a step back and glanced over her shoulder at the path. I knew what was going through her mind now. Plans and plots, ways to escape. She was calculating how many moments she might have to get away from me.
The answer to that question was zero.
“I’m not trying to seduce you, Aradia,” I said, closing the distance between us. Smiling, I lifted her chemise over her head and dropped it to the ground. Gently, I touched her bare shoulder, letting my eyes drop south. She still wore a garment over her breasts, but it was mostly see-through. Her hardened nipples poked through the thin material, enticing me to see more. When her lips parted and she did not step back, my self-control almost snapped.
“Liar,” she whispered, wetting her lips with her tongue.
Leaning down, I dragged my face across her lilac-scented hair. “I’m trying to wash the mortal smell off you.”
And with that, I pushed her into the stream. She fell back with a half-hearted scream, the waters splashing all around her. I stood watching, willing my beating heart to slow. I didn’t quite understand what had happened there. For a moment, it had felt like she’d wanted me to drag my hands all over her body.
Even if she hated me. And even if I hated her right back.
Her head crested the water. She glared at me, her eyes full of daggers. “What the hell, Yuto! I would have gone in myself. You didn’t have to shove me!”
“No, I didn’t have to, but it was far more fun this way.” I grinned.
“You are honestly the most horrible man I’ve ever met in my entire life.”