Page 50 of Hearts on Fire
I swallowed the bile rising in my throat and managed a smile, frantically searching for a topic of conversation to strike with him.
Only what could one talk to King Edkhar about?
“How is the war going?”
“What do you do for fun, other than stuffing your face with food and burning women?”
“So,” I tossed a look around the room. “This is where the mighty King of Dakath spends his nights?”
“Mm,” the king hummed, caressing my left breast through my shirt. “If you manage to please me, I may let you enjoy yourself, too.”
“Tempting,” I said tersely, unable to keep the sarcasm out of my voice.
His eyes flashed with warning, and I bit my tongue, stopping the words “but I’ll pass” from leaving my mouth. That would be too close to a “no”—the word he’d threatened to cut my tongue out for.
He clicked the closure of my dress open. “Do you know what they say about your kind, human?”
I said nothing, trying not to cringe as he let his hands roam all over my body.
He didn’t need an answer, anyway, as he kept talking. “They say humans can bond with fae, any kind of fae. Do you know what a fae bond is?”
I knew of it. Elex had mentioned a bond before. But the king clearly didn’t need an answer to that question either, not giving me a chance to reply.
“It gives men power,” he said with a greedy glint in his eyes. “It makes them stronger. But the bond is rare, and it doesn’t happen between the different kinds of fae. A siren can’t bond with a gargoyle. A gorgonian can never form a bond with a werewolf. But humans… Humans are a blank slate, ready to bond with any of us.”
He dragged his hand up my front, getting a feel of my breast on the way.
“Do you realize what you can give me, little human?” he murmured. “None of the current monarchs in Nerifir are bonded. Not a single one of them. I could be the only one. All I have to do is make you fall in love with me.”
“What?” I nearly choked on the word. Everything I’d tried to suppress inside me came out with it—sarcasm, resentment, the shock at his audacity to believe that I could ever, ever love him.
He gripped my throat, not too hard as to hurt but firm enough to make it clear who was in charge here.
“Apparently, human love transcends magic. That’s the one worthy quality you have. So, make yourself useful. Love me. Make me strong, and I’ll make sure you’ll never go hungry again.”
He offered to trade food for love. Did he realize how ridiculous he sounded? I’d laugh in his face if I wasn’t so terrified of this man and what he was capable of.
Incredibly, he seemed absolutely serious about what he’d said.
“No one can love on command,” I croaked against his hand on my throat.
“I know thatfeelingstake time.” He grimaced at the word “feelings” like it was a bad joke. “But I’ll give you all the time you need. From now on, you’re staying in my room, day and night.”
The king let go of me and walked to one of the wall pillars with a massive metal ring mounted on it. With his hands off my body, I could finally draw in a full breath, crossing my arms over my chest.
He lifted a thick chain attached to the ring.
“Do you see this, my pet? This is for you.” His voice filled with pride, as if he presented me with a precious gift. “Isn’t it pretty? Look.” He worked his hands to the end of the chain where a golden, bejeweled collar dangled. “It’s the exact copy of my crown. See?”
He lifted the collar higher for me to see the rubies and the sharp peaks that were just like those on the upper edge of his crown. On the collar, the peaks would cut under the chin of the person wearing it.
According to the king, that person would be me.
I moved my throat in an attempt to swallow, but the inside of my mouth was so dry, it didn’t work. I stiffened like a wild animal about to be chained.
“You’re not putting me on a leash.”
“But of course I am. You don’t think I’ll let you roam here freely while I’m in my stone form at night, do you?” The king glanced over his shoulder at the shuttered window. “The sunset is close enough. We may as well put this on you now.”