A Throne of Ruin (Deliciously Dark Fairytales #2)(118)

He was silent for a moment. “Well, in that case, dance and then read?”



In the late afternoon, Nyfain and I lay on the lounger in the library. I was between his legs and curled up on his chest with a book, and he had his arms wrapped around me, reading with his cheek pressed to my head. It had actually been an incredibly lovely, restful day. For the first time since I’d come to the castle, we didn’t need to worry about doing nothing at all. We’d danced, I’d listened to him play the piano and sing, and for the last couple hours we’d cuddled and read.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t totally relax. His dragon was apparently going absolutely crazy. The threat to his territory, and to me, had riled him up something awful. The only thing that seemed to soothe him was my presence and touch. I was happy to provide it.

“What do you think, should we go find something to eat?” Nyfain asked, dropping his book to his chest while he wrapped his other hand around me.

I held up a finger. I was almost done with the chapter.

He waited patiently and softly kissed my head.

When I finished, I looked up at him and smiled. “Go and get it, or have Leala or Urien bring it to us?”

Urien was his valet. He was mostly a ghost until he was needed. I literally never saw him until the second Nyfain had a need. It was eerie. He was hiding from the demons, of course, trying to stay alive. It must’ve been a long sixteen years for him, more so than anyone else.

“I’ll need to show my face around the castle, but I can do that tomorrow. We can have it brought to the tower.”

“Who do you need to show your face to, your people or the demons?”

“The demons. They get haughty and destructive if I don’t put them in their place. It helps my people.” He murmured, “What’s left of them.”

I tilted my face up so he could kiss my lips.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” we heard. The voice was flat and bland, even in its attempt to be musical.

Nyfain tensed, and power created a vicious cloud of intent around us. His fingers dug into me for a second, but then he rose beneath me, getting me to sit up.

“You stay here,” he whispered, standing and pulling his leg from the other side of the lounger. “Don’t speak.”

He kept his book in hand and exited from around the tapestry. I scooted up so I could see, looking between the tapestry and the plant, all but a bit of me hidden.

A…man-thing waited just inside the double doors of the library. Two horns lightly curved into the sky from his forehead, about one foot tall. Their color gradually changed from sky-blue to an indigo that matched his skin. His ears stuck out a bit to the sides, changing from the blue of his face to a chartreuse at the painted tips. His thin face ended in a pointy chin, and his nose took up a bit too much real estate. His long hair draped down his shoulders, over the high-collared black duster he wore. He had on a black button-up underneath, tucked into pleated pants, just like the guy acting as fertilizer in the woods.

“Ah. There you are,” he said, turning toward an approaching Nyfain.

Nyfain cut through the library like a predator sizing up his prey. His sleek, graceful movements screamed his fighting prowess, and his height and broad shoulders absolutely dwarfed the much smaller demon. Despite wearing a worn-in white T-shirt and old jeans, he radiated power, prestige, and authority. It was clear who owned this library and the soil beneath it, regardless of who currently managed it.

“Nyfain.” The creature clasped his fingers in front of his body. “I’ve missed you today. I haven’t seen you skulking around, trying to intimidate my people with your presence.”

“There’ll be plenty of time tomorrow,” Nyfain said, his deep, rough voice crackling with menace.

“So there will.” The man-thing leaned forward just a bit, but I could tell it was for show. It was all too evident that he didn’t want to close the distance separating them. “What is that horrible smell draping you, Nyfain?”

Fear and frustration rolled through the bond. Followed by rage. That smell was obviously me. What a dick.

“And…look at this…” The man-thing must’ve forgotten himself, because he reached forward to pluck something off Nyfain’s chest. Possibly one of my hairs.

Nyfain snatched the man-thing’s wrist out of the air and wrenched it wide, bending him to the side as if he were nothing. The man-thing tensed, and the air crackled with electricity and magic, sputtering and spitting between them. Pain rolled through the bond, and my animal roiled within me, desperate to help Nyfain. She shoved power to his dragon, drawing and readying more, and the pain lessened.

The two men held each other’s gazes.

“If you kill me, the deal is forfeit and your kingdom will die with me,” the man-thing gritted out, clearly under pressure.

I pushed a little closer to the plant. This was the demon king!

Nyfain just stared for one more beat before releasing the demon king’s wrist. The last of the pain cut off.

“You know better than to touch me, Dolion,” Nyfain said, and the violence in his tone made my small hairs stand on end. He was a scary fucking bastard when he wanted to be. I doubted Dolion had known what he was getting himself into, tying a chain around that big dragon’s ankle.

“Where is she?” Dolion asked, adjusting his duster. Although he was trying to pretend otherwise, their little standoff had rattled him.