Claimed by the Elven King: Part Three Read Online Free PDF

the remaining sleep from my eyes
and shook my head. “Sorry. I guess I was just really deep asleep. Lariel was
supposed to wake me for lunch, but…” Like my room, Sethian’s bedroom did not
have any windows, so I had no idea how long I had been out.
    Sethian’s frown deepened. “It’s well into
the night.”
    My eyes widened. I must have looked worse
than Lariel had let on for her to have allowed me to sleep through two meals. My friends were always going on and on about how I never seemed to eat
properly, so there was no way they would have let me sleep the day away unless
they thought I needed the rest even more.
    I anxiously looked more closely at
Sethian’s expression, wondering if they had been worried enough about my ragged
appearance this morning to mention it to him. It was all well and good to blame
my insomnia and sickly appearance on my insecurities to my friends, but I couldn’t
use that excuse here without opening a whole new can of worms that I never
intended to open. However, I really didn’t know my own husband well enough yet
to read anything beyond his obvious concern.
    Speaking of concern, I finally realized
that I was shockingly nausea-free at the moment. I could only think that this
glorious fact was his doing before he had awakened me and wished I could show
him how extremely grateful I was for his foresight.
    Instead, I nervously smoothed down my hair
and said, “I wonder why she didn’t wake me up.”
    “You did not sleep last night after I left,
did you?” he asked as if I hadn’t spoken.
    I stiffened and tried to look away, but he immediately
grasped my chin and turned my face back towards him. I reluctantly met his eyes
again, afraid that I had made him angry, but they still reflected the same
concern. I relaxed minutely.
    “Emily?” he said, his tone commanding.
    “I—” I took a deep breath and forced myself
to continue, “I was worried that something bad had happened. I couldn’t get the
thought out of my head, and before I knew it, Lariel was knocking at the door
with my breakfast.” So won’t you tell me what you were doing? I could
only wish to be so straightforward.
    I was actually surprised at how smoothly
the lie had flowed from my tongue, but to my relief, Sethian merely hummed in
acceptance and his grip on my chin turned into a soft caress against my cheek.
I closed my eyes and turned my face into his palm.
    “If I had known you were going to worry to
the point of losing sleep, I would have sent word that all was well sooner,” he
said quietly.
    I opened my eyes and offered him a tiny
smile. “I would’ve still been worried. Sometimes I can’t help it. It’s in my
nature.”
    He leaned forward and brushed his lips briefly
against mine before I could react, as soft and fleeting as rose petals
fluttering across my sensitive flesh on their way to the ground, before pulling
back slightly until only a millimeter separated our mouths. “Then let me make
it up to you.” His warm breath ghosted over my lips with every word, making me
shiver.
    I completely expected to feel his mouth
crash against mine with the wild passion of all our previous kisses, so it was almost
a shock when those silky lips pressed against mine in what almost felt like a
hesitant caress, as though he wasn’t sure his attentions would be welcome. I
closed my eyes and leaned into the kiss, clutching the front of his tunic
tightly with both hands as I opened my mouth to him in encouragement.
    His tongue slowly slid against my own in a
single, teasing stroke before he pulled back completely from my mouth. I let
out a soft sound of protest before I could stop myself and instinctively tried
to recapture his retreating lips, but he ducked his head down to my neck and
planted a soft kiss along the side before pulling away from me completely.
    “Take off your gown for me,” he commanded
in a voice deeper than normal that seemed to reverberate throughout my entire
body, the heated look in his eyes