Chapter 80: Marinah

"A little gentleness goes a long way," I grind out between very human teeth. I shifted from my Warrior form as soon as we entered the citadel. I hate the tile floor when I walk across it with three-inch nails jutting from my feet. King laughs at me whenever I grumble about it. Of course he's had more time to grow accustomed to a Beast form that's more than two feet taller than our human one. Also the whole jaw thing which reminds me of an alligator. Add in the stiff bristles of inch-long hair covering my body, and I'm not exactly pretty in Beast form.

King wraps the cloth around another time and tapes it securely. His head is tilted down, but he glances up when he's finished, and my breath catches. His incredible crystal-blue eyes heat me from the inside out, and I forget that my fingers are attached more by sutures than flesh.

"You never complained while I worked on my needlepoint," he teases softly.

I put my forehead against his, breathing the air he expels, absorbing the incred