A Kingdom of Venom and Vows (Stars and Shadows #3)(14)

His words didn’t matter. I could still feel the throbbing pain in my thigh where he had taken from me hours before.

He sat down next to me and scooted himself so close that the scent of him overwhelmed me. His scent was a fog, a dense cloud around me, his musky smell filled the space, and I struggled to breathe.

He moved languidly, like a serpent, each movement slow and calculated.

His face was just a few inches from my own, and his eyes were a startling shade of cerulean. They did little to hide his anger. He looked at me, his face softening as he took me in.

“I would like to go back to my room.”

Gavril stared at me for a long moment without saying a word. His gaze trailed down my body, achingly slow and torturous, and I squirmed in my seat when his eyes fell to my thighs.

My white dress was covering me, not a trace of skin visible, but he could see the blood that now caked against the fabric.

The blood was a dark ruby that had ruined the fine fabric just as easily as Gavril had ruined me.

“We need to get you cleaned up.” His hand reached out toward my thigh, and I jolted away from him.

The sound of his voice filled me with dread, his words crashed between my ears, and my heart began to beat faster. I did not want him to feed from me again. I didn’t want him to touch me. We both knew that I no longer held the power he craved.

I was useless to the prince in front of me.

He reached out with a gentle touch before his hand gripped around my calf, squeezing, sending a sharp pain throughout my body.

“Let me care for you, Adara.”

A sick laugh bubbled out of my throat as I tried to pull my leg away from him, but his hold on me was firm.

“You care for nothing other than yourself, Gavril.”

His face tightened and his hand reached for my thigh. My skin screamed at the thought of his touch. Sweat beads coated my brow and chills streaked down my spine. My eyes shut for a moment, and I tried to remind myself of my strength.

I imagined Evren’s face in my mind. I focused on his dark hair, the smirk on his face that I loved to hate. My stomach warmed, and I tried to cling to that feeling.

“Look at me.” Gavril’s voice was rough and demanding, and I blinked my eyes open to look back at him. “You don’t know me, Starblessed. Maybe we should get to know each other.” He moved his hold to my knee, and I clamped my legs together to stop him from moving any further.

“I know everything I need to know about you.”

“From my brother?” He laughed and his fingers tensed against my thigh. “Did it ever occur to you that the Blood prince would say anything he wanted you to hear to keep you at his side?”

I blocked out his words as I stared at him with every bit of hatred I felt for him. “From Thalia.”

“Ah, Thalia.” A small smile formed on his lips, and my hands ached to smack it from him. “I hadn’t realized until I came to save you that the other star girl was in my brother’s kingdom. Another thing my brother had stolen from me.”

“She’s not a star girl,” I practically growled at him. “She has a name.”

His smile only widened. “She wasn’t as particular about names during her time here as you are.”

“I’m sure all of the scars on her body had something to do with that.”

His jaw tightened as he studied my face. “You are desperate to make me your villain, aren’t you?”

“I think you’ve handled that perfectly on your own.”

His hand slipped from my knee, and he ran it along his jaw as he studied me. “I’ll be whatever you need me to be, Adara, but you are mine.”

I shook my head, and his hand shot out and gripped my chin roughly.

His eyes narrowed further, his lips set into a grim line. His gaze fell to my lips, and he watched as I pressed them together and tried not to cry out from the pain of his grip.

I didn’t know how long we sat there like that, but his touch was bruising, punishing. It only seemed to intensify as he moved closer to me and his breath rushed out near my ear.

Chill bumps raked against my skin, and I held my breath.

“You are mine.” Each word felt like a physical blow that slashed against my body. “You can deny this and try to act brave. But the truth is written across your cheeks. I can see it, Adara. You are so frightened of me.”

Neither of us moved, but the world was spinning around me. He was breathing in my scent, and I was simply trying to catch my breath. His scent was so dense, so overpowering, and I swallowed hard against it.

“You are to be my wife, Adara. You will learn to obey me.” His words were sharp and damning.

“He’ll come for me.” I spoke through a painful, tense jaw, and I tried desperately not to look at him. Gavril pressed his mouth against my lips, and I wanted to pull back, but his hand was demanding my obedience.

He pressed his tongue against the seam of my lips, and I opened just enough to let him inside. The deep groan that left his lips had my stomach churning.

He slid his tongue against mine, and I tried to keep my body calm as he took what he wanted from me. I pressed my lips against his, sucking his bottom lip into my mouth, and when the next groan of pleasure fell from his lips, I bit down until I tasted his blood on my tongue.

He shot back from me, but he didn’t lessen his grip on my chin. He held me firmly in place as he stared at me with venom in his eyes and his red smoky power dripping from his hands.