Page 27 of His Darkest Desire
“I have. The human’s behavior will determine whether those potions are necessary. Now…” He turned to face the little wisp, folding his arms across his chest. “I trust you’ve good reason to abandon your watch?”
Ghostfire flaring, the wisp raised their head. “She refuses to leave the bedchamber.”
“Which should make your task quite easy to fulfill. And yet here you are.”
“She has not eaten, magus,” Flare replied. “Not in two days.”
Vex drummed his fingers on his biceps. “And?”
“Mortals require food.” Flare’s flames grew as the wisp drew closer to Vex. “Without it, they weaken and die.”
“She is mortal no longer.”
“Yet immortal is not undying.”
Vex could not deny the truth of those words. He’d learned that lesson much too harshly, at much too young an age.
A scowl pulled down his lips. Most fae creatures could survive without food, though they would be diminished and gravely weakened. Would his lifeforce be enough to sustain Kinsley through starvation, or would her human blood make her susceptible to it?
He knew only one thing—everything hinged upon her, no matter how much he wished otherwise. He could not afford to risk her safety. He could not afford to ignore any threats to her wellbeing, no matter how inconsequential they seemed.
And part of him insisted he protect her regardless of their pact, regardless of the curse. It insisted he protect her because she was his mate. It was his duty to safeguard her, to provide for her, and should she starve or come to harm because of his indifference, because of his carelessness…
“Unacceptable,” he snarled, crossing the workshop. He ascended the steps, strode around the tree in the central chamber, and threw open the bedchamber door with his magic.
Vex stalked inside, fists clenched. The female leapt up from his desk, her eyes wide and her long, wavy, honey brown hair tumbling around her bare shoulders as she faced him.
“Human, I’ve not saved your life only to have you sta—”
Kinsley glared at him, her periwinkle eyes flashing. “Go away!”
He halted, spreading his arms to the sides. “This is my bedchamber. I’ll not be cast out of it.”
“Since I’m being forced to stay here, it’s my room now. And I said to go away.”
Vex growled, stepping toward her. “Do not presume to command me in my own home. I am master here.”
Kinsley slapped a hand onto the books stacked atop the desk, snatched one up, and drew her arm back. “Don’t come any closer.”
He paused, brows falling. “Put that down.”
Kinsley cocked her head and wiggled the book. “This? Would be a shame for it to be damaged.”
A different approach. Why had he taken the counsel of wisps into consideration?
Clenching his teeth, Vex leveled a finger at her. “Return it to its place, human. I shan’t tell you again.”
Pressing her lips together, she hurled the book at him.
It sailed across the room, pages flapping. A book that had survived untold years was now threatened by a mortal who’d lived for the span of a single breath. He shifted aside, head narrowly avoiding the tome, and his hand darted up to catch it.
Vex glared back at the human and snapped the book shut. The sound was thunderous in the otherwise silent room. “You threw a book at me.”
“Oh, so you are the master of something. The obvious.”
“I care not for your tone.”
“And I don’t care for your face!” The female grabbed another book and threw it at him, followed by another, and another.