The bastard’s many centuries in Dìyù had rendered him less than human. His glowing inferno eyes and black, black heart were part yāoguài—demon—now. She paused a foot from the projection.
What do you seek, vile spawn?
You, wench. He tugged on the thread of her fox spirit, yanking her forward. Because of you, I’ve spent three thousand years being tortured. He scoffed. The ones who oppressed me are now my slaves.
It was as bad as she’d feared. He’d grown strong. So strong. The man she recalled was old, pudgy, and lazy. Not this male. Though his nose was crooked, his eyes beady, and his bearded jaw rounded, his form bore the vitality of fortitude and youth. Shoulders wide, chest thick, and mangy, hairy hands ready to grip her throat and force her into submission.
You’re going to join me, to claim your rightful place at my side. Your empire and mine, together we’ll conquer the world. He snorted. What will remain of it.
The air burned in her lungs. She was desperate to exhale, his words spiking fear into her blood. He’d hoped she’d be the Queen legend claimed she was. His brutal, savage wife.
Now, he’d come for her.
See you soon, love. Snickering, his image faded.
Price seized her arm and lugged her to the surface. Her body limp, she debated never drawing in another breath. Of ending the wait and greeting her bastard ex-husband right now.
“Daji, breathe, dammit.” Price slapped her cheek. “I know you can hear me.”
He slapped her cheek again, then parted her lips, blew air into her mouth, and braced his hands to pump her heart into existence.
To force her to live.
Live.
Sputtering, she spat the air from her lungs, rolling onto her side and heaving in fresh oxygen.
“Thank the gods.” Price rubbed her back, gathering her hair while her choked wheezes evened. “What the hell happened?”
What the hell, indeed. Daji shook her head. She wouldn’t share this with Price. Or anyone. Her ex-husband’s power over her was shockingly potent. He’d made his point clear, and the notion of him being behind stealing her subjects’ fox spirits had risen from an inkling to a very tangible terror.
She’d sensed but a minute amount of weakness in him. Doubtless, her freedom had dwindled to days. Little time remained to determine a course to outwit him.
Dì Xīn’s visitation was a warning, a threat, and a promise.
She would see him soon.
In Dìyù.
Price inhaled and exhaled through his nose, calming the wave of unease crashing into him. What the fuck had happened to Daji? If he’d been able to see better through the silty water, he would’ve sworn she’d dove deeper, instead of toward the surface.
He waited, but she didn’t offer any answers. Something about this whole situation was off. Horse stomped its hooves, also sensing the weird funk of secrecy.
He couldn’t shake this unease, no more than she was able to mask it. Daji was hiding a secret from him, and it might be a matter of life and death.
Hers.
Puffing, he sank back onto his heels. He wouldn’t be able to pry her secrets from her if she refused to disclose them. Though he’d tried to earn her trust, it wasn’t enough.
She coughed into her fist, and he softened, stroking her back. “You sure you’re okay? Thought you were a goner for a moment.”
“Yes, I’m fine.” Her weak smile did nothing to convince him. Lines of strain formed on her forehead, a weariness taking root in the grim set of her mouth. She appeared so bloody vulnerable. His strong, fierce Queen. Something ate at her. Even if she wouldn’t tell him, he’d discover what.
“Daji.” He brushed the backs of his fingers along her cheek. She nuzzled her face into his palm. The second he leaned in, she hopped to her feet, gliding from him.
He frowned, scowling deeper while she slipped on a filmy, lacy, white robe. Although… He tilted his head, admiring how the fabric clung to her damp skin, transparent in places.
“Come with me.” She offered her hand, extending another white robe. He launched to his feet, shrugged on the robe, and seized her slender hand in his. She led him through the mist and up a winding stone staircase.
The clouds condensed but lightened as they climbed, until they broke free. He stopped and gaped. They were on the edge of a cliff, the setting sun painting the forest below in a wash of gold and pink.
“Lovely, isn’t it.” Daji sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder. “This is our realm. Everything below belongs to the húli jīng. Sometimes, I climb up here to remember what it used to be like, when we didn’t hide or fear extinction. Other times, simply to embrace the light.”
Her three millennia weighed on his shoulders again. “It can be that way again.” He squeezed her hand. “Together, Daji, we can make your race thrive.”
She pressed her lips together. Tears formed in her eyes before she blinked them away. “Naya will make a fearsome Queen.”
“Hey,” he gripped her chin, “don’t be throwing in the towel yet, not so long as I’m by your side.”
Her eyes crinkled and her lashes fluttered. Holding back those tears. He wouldn’t press, not yet, but he would get the truth out of her eventually.
“Do you promise?” The glint of copper flashed in those depths.
He nodded, his throat tightening, as though sensing the enormity of what he was agreeing to.
More than a mission, somehow, saving Daji had become his purpose.
“Will you permit me a moment with Horse?”
Horse? He blinked. What a bizarre request. “Uh, sure.” He tossed his head, cloaking the spirit animal. Did Daji realize that even though Horse was visible, Price was in control?
Whatever happened while Horse cloaked hi—
Blackness condensed around him, blocking sight, sound, and feeling from him. What the fuck? He spun and whipped around, but it was like he was an ant and someone had slapped a pot on top of him.
Panic swept through his chest, but the blackness dissipated, his senses buzzing.
“Thank you, Horse.” Daji’s soft murmur crept past his ears.
He gave his head a wild shake. “What was that?”
“Nothing. It’s fine.” Daji’s lips pressed into a thin line. “Will you make me one more promise?”
Something was off, but damned if he could put his finger on it. He’d never blacked out with Horse in control before, and he didn’t like being the odd one out. Not one bit. Still, how could he refuse her? “Anything.”
She stared intently into his eyes. “Remember this moment. Never forget it, never let it go.” Her claws clutched at his forearm.
“I promise.”
Her lips pressed against his, warm and electrifying. His whole body jolted to life, blazing. Though her kiss was gentle, the sparks between them were nothing less than raging, violent flares.
He jerked back, his body stinging, and hunched, planting his hands on his thighs. Horse did a little prance around too.
Weird.
And Daji? She sent him that little smug smile of hers before facing the sunset once more. “It’s time to return.”
He opened his mouth to protest, but snapped it shut. Though he’d craved more time with her, here, where she’d been so uninhibited, she was clearly eager to return.
Man, he longed to step back into that moment.
Not to the palace, where she’d ice into the Queen again.
Shoulders deflated, he stomped down the stairs after her.
***
A soft knock rapped at her door. Daji rose from her bed, her body firing in awareness, as she detected who stood on the opposite side of the door.
Price.
She licked her lips and twisted the knob, cracking open the heavy door.
“Good evening.” Price flashed her a devastating grin, a silver platter balanced in his hands.
Frowning, she eased open the door, allowing him entry despite the fluttering in her stomach warning against the idea
.
“Care for a midnight snack?” He offered the tray, marching into her chamber as though it were his own.
Hmm. Apparently, he’d concluded their mutual attraction equaled the freedom to take liberties within her palace.
And with her body.
“I was trying to sleep, actually.” She kept her tone dry, her eyes narrowed.
“Yeah, I had no luck with that either.”
Ha, the nerve. “I was sleeping, until you awoke me.”
“No, you weren’t.” His shrewd perusal passed to her bed, across the neatly folded sheets, and rested on her face. “But I bet I can think of ways to remedy your insomnia.”
She perched her hands on her hips. “I didn’t summon you to my chamber.”
“Nope, you didn’t. But hey, I did knock.” He shrugged roguishly, set the platter on her bed, and plopped onto the mattress, patting the spot beside him. “I can’t sleep because every time I close my eyes, all I can picture is your sweet lips wrapped around my cock, and well…” He jerked his chin downward, indicating the thickness bulging across the front of his pants. “Figured if I was hungry, you might be too.”
Moisture pooled in the back of her mouth. Damn him for being so intuitive, for guessing her needs long before she’d ever admit them. “I’m not hungry.”
Though dozens of servants occupied her palace, none ever presumed to mark such intimate notes about their Queen’s requirements. She’d handled those matters, privately. Chenda supplied the list of humans donating their shén and the rest was simple. The Queen fed whenever she deemed it necessary.
Not when a decadently tempting male sauntered into her chamber and taunted her with his luscious jīng. Cocksure of himself, unabashed about disclosing his state of arousal.
She tore her ogling from off his lap. “What’s under the cloche?”
“That is for me.” A sparkle flickered across his eyes and he lifted the lid, revealing a glass of bubbling liquid, a bright yellow honey pot, and a bowl of ripe strawberries.
“An odd snack.” The berries caught her focus. Eager for a bite, she swept her tongue inside her mouth. “Fox spirits do occasionally consume food.”
“Oh, I know.” His grin flashed to her. “Doesn’t mean I’m sharing.”
His words irked her, his tone seductive and commanding. Making up the rules, was he?
Plopping onto the mattress beside him, she eyed the platter. “What am I supposed to eat?” She bit her tongue the second the question popped out, and his darkly raised brow suggested he’d let that one slide.
“Lie back.” He didn’t wait for her to comply, his large hands nudging her, expert fingers manipulating the ties of her robe, easing them open. His rushed inhale had her nipples pebbling, her scrutiny darting to lock onto his, but he was staring at her nude body. He trailed one fingertip along her breasts, down between her thighs.
Daji parted them for him, curiosity winning out over supremacy. She’d battle him for dominance…later.
He slipped those rough, warm hands under her bottom, spreading her thighs. “Rest your head. Close your eyes.”
She obeyed his murmured commands, fighting to keep her lids shut. The one thing better than Price touching her was the intensity in his tightly clenched jaw when he admired her.
“Mmm. So thirsty.”
The clink of glass tingled in her ears and fruit-scented fluid popped across her stomach. Champagne? She gasped and craned her neck, but his fingers fanned across her throat, and he pressed her head to the pillow.
“No peeking. Just feel, Daji.”
The bubbling liquid floated down her stomach, and a silky heat laved it from her skin.
His tongue.
She writhed, her hips undulating as though to force his tongue lower…there.
Too soon, his sultry mouth deserted her skin, but more of the fizzing sprinkled onto her flesh, dripping downward, popping across her bud in a burst of hot and cold.
She moaned; her legs wrapped around his shoulders and tugged his head forward. He complied, flicking his warm tongue across her nub, lapping the champagne from her flesh.
“Mmm,” he growled, the vibrations rippling off her skin. “Don’t know about you, but I’m feeling…famished.”
***
Price had brought the midnight snack with the intention of prying secrets from Daji’s lips, but the second she’d fluttered that haughty pout at him, he hadn’t been able to resist teaching her a lesson.
In passion.
Who was he kidding? The real person learning something here was him. He drizzled honey across her abdomen, leisurely licking it from her skin, but she tasted far sweeter than the honey. Her natural perfume was more tempting than these ripe strawberries.
And her touch? Way more intoxicating than any champagne.
She’d gotten under his skin and crawled inside his chest, those sharp claws spiking into his heart. Whether she’d intended to seize it or not, he couldn’t deny that he was falling for her.
Hell, nose-diving.
Regardless of anything she claimed, it was reciprocal. Whether they were speeding head on toward a clash of mutual destruction, well, that was the big IF.
If he fell for her, would she tear out his heart?
If she fell for him, would Horse stomp across hers?
The future loomed before him, one he hadn’t ever sought out or even wanted. Had that changed?
Had he changed?
Price sank back on his elbows, regarding Daji’s spread legs. No denying he’d never lusted after any woman like he did her. The way she defied him one minute, and then leaned on him the next, did all kinds of mushy things to his insides.
He cleared his throat, scrambling to rein in these disturbing emotions. “So, Ryden and Naya are missing.”
Shit. He grimaced. Thanks, brain.
“What?” Daji bolted upright. “Missing?”
“Uh, yeah, but don’t worry.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. Well, at least he’d successfully ruined the mood. “Ryden will take good care of her.”
Daji snorted. “I was just about to assure you Naya will protect your brother.”
He chuckled. “Damn, you’re probably right.” With their sensual, feminine natures, it was easy to forget húli jīng were, in fact, lethal predators. After Daji had fed Naya, the female could probably kick Ryden’s ass.
With both hands tied behind her back.
Daji made a humming noise in the back of her throat, slid her legs shut, and tied her robe. He’d laved pretty much all of his “snack” off her skin, but doubtless she was sticky.
“Should we go rinse you off?” He jerked his head toward the adjoining bathroom. Images of a wet, soapy Daji were enough to drive his body to that continuous state of arousal he didn’t seem to be able to stop around her. He was worse than a horny teenager.
And that was saying something, because horny teenager was the default state for him.
Daji had managed to up his libido to heights even he hadn't fantasized about.
“Um, sure.” She scooted off the bed, her hesitant footsteps heading toward the shower.
Price stripped off his clothes, no such inhibitions, and determined to get naked—and wet—with her, before she changed her mind.
She stepped beneath the misting spray, beautiful and nude, and every inch a treasure he longed to possess. In profile to him, she clutched her arms to her breasts, her face angled toward him. Her long, plastered locks swept the base of her waist, and her toes curled against the tiles, betraying her apprehension.
Vulnerable yet fierce. Fragile but determined.
She was dazzling.
He stalked forward, his blood spiking hot through his veins. His muscles were stiff and tensed with repressed vigor. He was on edge, fighting to maintain any glimmer of sanity.
She did this to him. Didn’t just drive him to the brink, she pushed him over the cliff.
If he was going to plummet, she would crash and burn with him.
He halte
d behind her, sweeping aside her hair and pressing his lips to the crook of her neck. Her breath caught and she staggered, but he planted his hands on her hips and continued to sample the delicate skin between her neck and shoulder.
A mewl vibrated in her chest while he nipped, nibbled, and traced his lips across that sensitive spot.
He didn’t touch her anywhere else, but he scented the dampness between her thighs, the full, heavy weight of her breasts.
His fingers curled into the soft flesh of her round hips, bracing them both. She tasted so damn good, he could feast off her for days. By the eager rocking of her hips, she would let him. He dug his fingers deeper to hold her still, subject to his open-mouthed kisses as he laved his tongue in a long stroke along her slender neck.
Being with her was an obsession, an addiction he wasn’t sure he wanted to quit. He could though, if he chose to.
Right?
Horse stomped its hooves, not ready to surrender its freedom.
Daji whimpered, arching against his jutting erection.
So close. He could take her; he could have her. In this moment, he’d bet she would let him do anything to her. Grimacing, he squeezed his face, shutting out his senses. This was the fork in his path. One last chance to veer away and salvage his independence.
Horse reared, jerking his mouth off Daji.
Decision made.
“All clean,” he grunted, slapped her ass, and sped from the shower before he’d crossed that line.
And there wouldn’t be any more turning back.
Daji rifled through the black book two days later, her eyes glazing over the words. No matter how hard she squinted, she wasn’t able to make sense of them. Last night, Naya had returned, with a most disturbing burden—three fox spirits, their tormented bodies no comparison to the haunting emptiness inside them where their souls had once thrived.
As for the others who’d sought shelter in her palace, Daji would determine how to reunite these three with their fox spirits. This connection between the death of Price’s mother and the black book would lead her to the answers.
Naya was asleep, but Daji expected her at any moment. At least she counted on the girl’s timing. The Matchmaker was altogether another thing.
Reining Him In (Chinese Zodiac Romance Series Book 5) Page 14
