Garden of Serpents (The Demon Queen Trials #3)(63)

“Rowan!” A drunken, familiar voice rose above the music, and I turned to see Legion and Kas staggering toward me, shirts opened at the collar, buttons undone.

Kas lifted his beer. “Queen! Queen Rowan. Teamwork!” He held out a hand for a high-five, and I slapped his palm.

I smiled at them, but my throat tightened at the painful absence of the fourth member of our team. No wonder they were already trashed to forget that missing piece of the puzzle. And I had to wonder if they were a little disappointed that Orion was still on the throne, since they’d worked so hard to get rid of him.

Kas’s beer sloshed out of his glass as he leaned over in a deep bow. “Your Majesty,” he slurred. “My queen. May I have this dance?”

Already, I could hear the low, possessive growl emanating from Orion’s chest. I was perfectly fine ignoring that, but another demon male was approaching, smiling at me like he knew me.

“Rowan!” The beautiful stranger beamed at me, opening his arms. He was nearly as tall as Orion, but with bright red hair that hung around his chin, his eyes deep brown. Abstract, curling tattoos curved over his thickly corded forearms. He was Lilu, his dark wings stretched proudly behind him.

I stared at his grinning face, unwilling to go in for a hug. “Have we met?”

His smile fell. “Of course. Yes.” He looked down at himself and straightened his deep green shirt. “But I didn’t look like this when you knew me.” He met my gaze, waiting for me to catch on. “Your mother did fine without magic, but my body didn’t do as well. It withered and aged outside of the city walls.”

Understanding started to dawn. “Hang on…”

“I was the weak and doddering old man you played chess with every week.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I brought you the book, and then I ran. Or at least tottered away as fast as my walker could take me. The fucking hunters found me.”

I could hardly contain my shock. “Mr. Esposito?”

“That was not my real name.” His wings spread out behind him, resplendent in the moonlight. “Your first cousin, Sabazios, on your father’s side. I was at your house all the time when you were a baby, helping your mom.”

“Sabazios!” I beamed at him. “You wrote the inscription in the demon trials book.”

“I did!” He looked around at the dancers. “God, it feels good to be back. When are we bringing out the bull? I’ve been desperate to scent bull blood. One of the things you really miss, you know?”

I laughed at the absurdity of it all, then threw myself against Orion’s muscled chest, wrapping my arms around his waist.

He looked down at me with a wicked glint in his eye, a sensual curl of his lips. “We have another ceremony to enact now, but that one will be out of view.”

Heat slid through me, and everyone around me seemed to fall away, so it was just Orion and me. “Come with me, now.”

We were heading for the place that demons belonged—the wilderness.





35





ORION





I could walk by Rowan’s side into the Elysian Wilderness, but I preferred to watch her walk. I was entranced by the sway of her hips through the forest before me. The material of her dress was so thin, I could see her legs from the thigh down. It would be hard not to rip through that beautiful dress and take her like an animal.

For the first time since I’d thrown Rowan out of the kingdom, my body actually started to relax. I was comfortable in my own skin again, apart from the increasing tightness in my trousers as I watched Rowan walk.

I’d been holding back for so long now, driven out of my mind by temptation. Tonight, our lust magic would entwine, and I felt like the power of it would shake the earth and harrow the hells.

Rowan turned to face me, a curl of red hair falling before her face. A sly smile crossed her lips. “We’re alone, finally.”

My gaze slid down her body, and I breathed in her scent. I pulled her close to me, purring, “Rowan, you perfect creature. You brought the Lilu back.”

She looked up into my eyes and responded with her own dazzling smile. “We both did.”

I locked eyes with her and let the back of my hand slide down her cheek. Energy crackled where I touched her. “You’re not going to bite me again, are you?”

“I might.” Her voice held a seductive promise, and I can’t say I hated the idea of it.

This cocky, succubus version of Rowan was nothing like the Rowan I’d first met—and I loved them both.

“I swore I wouldn’t kiss you until you trusted me,” I said. Our mouths were inches apart.

“And you understand that I trust you now?” Rowan’s lips looked plump and red, ready for mine.

“You gave me the book,” I said, my index finger on her chin, tilting her face to meet my kiss.

Instead of her sweet mouth, however, my lips found the first two fingers of her left hand, raised to block me.

My brow furrowed with an unspoken question. Who refused a kiss to an incubus?

I wanted her. She wanted me. But she intended to toy with me tonight—and I can’t say I minded that, either.

With unexpected force, she shoved me flat on my back and leapt onto me like a wild creature—which she was. In the moonlight, I could see the flush of her cheeks, the untamed light in her eyes.