Chapter 1
The cold water did nothing.
It never did.
Not when the heat came from within. It was a furnace in my bones. A restless, clawing thing that had nothing to do with the summer night and everything to do with the demon coiled in my gut.
I gripped the edge of the porcelain tub, my knuckles turning white, as another wave of searing heat rolled through me.
It was more than heat, It was desire. My skin felt too tight, every nerve screaming for a touch I had spent a lifetime denying myself.
“Con..trol” I chanted silently. The mantra that had been my armor since I was a boy.
“You are the crown prince.”
“You are the seal.”
“Feel nothing.”
I pulled myself out of the water. The air cooled the drops on my skin for one merciful second, but then the heat inside me flared up again, even stronger than before.
My long hair hung loose, sticking to my back and chest like wet silk. I staggered to the nearest wall in my chamber and pressed my forehead against the cool surface. My breath fogged it. I focused my Qi, drawing the energy inward and using my will to trap the restless shadow inside me.
Be still. Be silent.
For a moment, I felt a fragile balance. The heat was still there, a deep, painful ache in my groin, but the demon’s presence faded back. All I had to do was endure it. Just hold on longer. I closed my eyes and breathed slowly, trying to stay in control.
Then the door slid open.
I froze. No one ever entered my private chambers without warning.
I heard a soft gasp. “Your Highness?”
Lí Huā.
Of course it would be her. The only person bold enough to walk in without warning, the one whose presence alone could break down all my defenses. I didn’t turn around. I couldn’t. If I saw her face, her worried eyes, the soft curve of her neck…
"Are you unwell?" Her footsteps were light and hesitant on the polished floor. "I... I was in the corridors. I saw your light."
"Leave." The word came out rough and low, barely sounding like my own voice. Please, by all the gods, leave.
But she didn’t. Her worry and her stubborn compassion pushed her forward. I heard her come closer and caught the faint scent of plum blossom and clean linen that was uniquely hers. It cut through the fog in my mind, sweet and painful at the same time.
I felt a cool, soft touch on my damp shoulder. I jerked as if I was burned. Her fingers were gentle and innocent as they traced down my spine. It was meant to calm me, to check for fever, but it felt like a mark. Everywhere her skin touched mine, heat spread. Something dark inside me stirred and pushed hard against my control.
No.
"Your skin is so hot," she said, her voice was full of worry. She moved in front of me, trying to see my face, but I kept my eyes tightly shut.
"You’re burning with fever. Let me get a physician—"
"Lí Huā, go now." I forced the words out through clenched teeth. My body was shaking, not from cold but something else.
I pressed myself harder against the wall, trying to hide it, but the shape in my damp trousers was obvious.
I heard her pause and felt her eyes on me, taking in my messy hair, my heavy breathing, and the tight strain in my arms as I struggled to stay standing. The rough, almost animal sound of my breathing filled the quiet room.
Then something changed. She went completely silent. Not the silence of obedience, but the kind that comes with sudden understanding.
