“No!” The denial burst from him. He clasped her arm and maneuvered her on top of him, flat on her stomach. Not missing a beat, he flipped their positions, pinning her down. Looming over her, he stated softly but firmly, “You will be with me and no one else. I will kill anyone who touches you, then kill their families and wipe their names from history!”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond. He rose, the entire mattress shaking, and padded to the bathroom. The door remained open, the sound of running water drifting to the bed.

Alone, she hugged a pillow and smiled, his jealousy like a soothing balm. He might dump her, might even give her the “it’s not you, it’s me” speech, but he’d unwittingly shown his cards. He was as confused as Nola, just as hopelessly attracted to her, maybe even falling for the future queen.

Future queen. Queen Nola. Queen Nola Lee. Once, the title had struck her as wrong. After all, she’d never felt as if she had a genuine purpose or great passion. She should have known “feeling” wasn’t the be all and end all. Feelings changed. They were often unreliable, and sometimes lied. Everyone had a purpose, what they were created to do. A reason they were born—a reason greater than themselves.

Nola was born to rule beasts with kindness, understanding and love.

Instinct shouted, Yes!

So far, she’d failed to aid her people in any way. She hadn’t even given them another thought. Hadn’t fought for the privilege to rule, secretly afraid she’d fail. But she should try. As many times as necessary. Through her failures, she would gain the strength she needed to succeed.

Only a split second later, her excitement popped like a balloon. Until Bane performed the Blood Rite, she couldn’t rule. Should she force the issue, or wait for him to decide it was the right time?

Bane shut off the water and returned to the bed, pausing at her side. In the darkness, she had trouble making out the minutia of his features, but she felt...something. Terror? No, that couldn’t be right.

A flash of lightning highlighted him for a moment, revealing haunted eyes glazed with—yep, terror. But what did he fear?

“May I?” he asked, lifting a wet rag.

He wanted to clean up the deposit he’d made in the Bank of Nola. An extremely intimate act. She licked her lips and said, “I...guess?”

He peeled off the covers and sat next to her, gently stroking the cloth between her legs. Tone soft, he asked, “Did I hurt you?”

Her cheeks heated. “During sex? Only for a moment. Afterward? A bit longer. I know you want to talk about ending us before we’ve really had a chance to start.”