Islinda woke up to glowing blue eyes in the dark and let out a startled gasp until she recognized the familiar outline.
"Seriously, Aldric," She groaned out loud, falling right back on her bed and wiping her palm down her face.
Islinda attempted to catch her breath, her heart pounding relentlessly in her chest. These Faeries were going to be the death of her. She would surely die from a heart attack, Islinda was sure of it.
Satisfied with nearly scaring the life out of her, Aldric finally turned on the light and she was able to make out his features. Of course, the dark prince was his usual cheerful self and it crossed her mind that she had never seen him sad aside from the occasional times she saw the pained grief in his eyes but he blinked it away before she could dwell on it.
"You are finally back to the living, sleeping beauty. I heard someone had a dramatic reaction to Maxi’s revelation of being a dark Fae horse shifter," Aldric boldly announced with that usual goofy grin on his face that she had been tempted so many times to slap off.
"Let me be, Aldric," Islinda said to him wearily while stretching out her body. She was really not in the mood to banter with him. She added, "You dark Fae’s are all the same."
Aldric’s expression shifted at that response, his darkened gaze boring into hers, "So you’re trying to say you won’t befriend Maxi because she’s a dark Fae," He sounded a bit disappointed.
Islinda paused in the middle of her stretching and stared at him, "I did not say that. However, it would have been better if she had been honest with me from the start so I know what I was getting into. Although now that I think about it..." She scratched the back of her head, "there had been no time for her to tell me the truth since we had been having fun all night."
"Moreover...." Islinda was a bit shy as she admitted, "I think I like her. She’s straightforward, assertive, protective, and kind."
Aldric’s mouth twitched at the declaration that his horse shifter was kind when she was the opposite of it. Just how had Maxi fooled poor Islinda into thinking that way? Aldric fought hard to keep the laughter in because, by the gods, this was the most hilarious description of Maxi he has ever heard. Even Issac was not fooled by her.
"Also, I don’t think it’s right to judge someone without getting to know them personally all because of the stereotype placed on them or their origin."
Aldric knew she was hinting at his dark Fae heritage and was interested in the conversation.
"Really?" He said intrigued, leaning closer even though he was seated on the edge of her bed.
Islinda noticed his proximity yet didn’t say anything, having gotten used to the dark prince’s flirtatious disposition.
She continued, "I don’t really know what being a dark Fae is all about but the Faeries here make it sound like your kind are malevolent beings. However, evil is not defined by ethnicity, but inherent. Everyone has a tendency to turn from good to bad and vice versa. That is why I won’t give up yet without getting to know her. " Islinda finished her talk expecting a response from Aldric, maybe, a hand of applause while at it, but no. She got nothing in response.
Just awkward silence.
Aldric had a blank expression but the intensity of his stare made Islinda uncomfortable and she began to squirm on the bed wondering if she had said something wrong.
Hence when Aldric reached for her neck, she flinched having assumed he wanted to hurt her until she searched his eyes and realized he had no such intention. So she relaxed her body yet was very much on the alert, swallowing slightly when she felt a surprisingly warm grasp.
The dark prince’s face was unreadable as he traced the column of her neck and while it didn’t feel like a sexual move, the hairs on her body still stood on edge, at the same time a thrill climbed down her back. His blue eyes shone brighter and the air in the room was thin and filled with suspense, with her throat drying out.
Aldric’s gaze was fixed on her neck that he continuously trailed with his fingers even as he said, "Sometimes you’re so cute that I can’t help but want to sink my teeth into your throat."
Perhaps it was his blatant admission or the fact that Islinda mentally envisioned the scene that made her shudder. She cried out, "That sounds like it would hurt."
"Exactly," Aldric agreed, his eyes alive with a fierce glint that stole the breath from her lungs. The menacing aura around him made Islinda gulp and she realized that the side of Aldric that scared her was back - the predator side.
"Aldric...." She said nervously, trying not to be scared, having an inkling this was his usual game. Aldric was not going to hurt her, at least not physically. Although he knew many ways he could break her.
However, her words fell on deaf ears because the dark prince got on the bed and crawled towards her. He hovered over her while Islinda lay in between his propped arms. She wanted to shrink into the bed but there was no way to go and was completely at Aldric’s mercy.
Aldric glanced down at her with his deep eyes that seemed to convey so many conflicting emotions that she couldn’t grasp on, not to think of understanding. He then pulled himself down over her, and tugged her hair away from her face, saying in a low, sensuous voice,
"You said you don’t judge, Islinda, but I find that hard to believe which is why I’m curious. It had me thinking If Valerie was not in the picture ...." His dark searching eyes bored into hers, "If I was the one you had first encountered in the human realm, would you have loved me the same way you loved Valerie?"