Smoldering Hunger

by Donna Grant

  Darius scooted farther down on the bench and extended his legs. “It doesna matter what I tell you, you willna believe me.”

  “I’d believe you if you told me you were with her.”

  “Fine,” Darius said. “I was with her.”

  Ulrik’s eyes narrowed. “You gave in too easily.”

  “I told you that you wouldna believe me.”

  Ulrik looked away and was silent for several minutes. Finally he asked, “Why lie? Why no’ tell me the truth?”

  “How do you know I’m no’?”

  “My men didna see you enter her flat.”

  Darius nodded slowly. “So if they didna see it, then it’s no’ true.”

  “You’re trying to play me.”

  Darius didn’t hide his smile. “Am I?”

  Ulrik’s head swiveled to him. “You are. I think you care about the doctor. I think the idea that she might actually consider my offer infuriates you.”

  “I doona want her involved with you, but no’ because I have feelings for her. I’d feel this way about any mortal getting entangled with you. They all end up dead.”

  “How would you know? Have you tracked all the people who work for me? Nay, you’ve no’. You’ve no’ because you doona have a clue as to who they are.” Ulrik cut him a derisive look. “I treat my employees verra well.”

  “As long as they do what you want.”

  Ulrik shrugged, his look stating that was a given. “It’s true that I put an end to anyone who attempts to betray me. Only those who are completely loyal remain. Con is the same way in regards to each of the Kings. All of you are just so used to it you doona realize it anymore.”

  “He doesna kill us.”

  “Of course he doesna. He just sends you to your mountain and tells you to sleep for a few thousand years.”

  Darius tried not to react, but he couldn’t stop his body from stiffening. How had Ulrik found out? There was no way Ulrik should know of such things since it happened when Ulrik was battling the humans.

  Ulrik’s cocky smile made Darius want to physically remove it.

  “Con would never kill a Dragon King. I’m proof of that,” Ulrik stated. “It matters how many of us are here. Did he tell you that?”

  It was the first Darius had heard of it. Of course the more Dragon Kings that were alive the better, but Ulrik made it seem as if there were more to it. Knowing Ulrik, it was a trick to make Darius doubt Con.

  Then again, Constantine had a habit of keeping things to himself. The only other one who knew was Kellan as Keeper of the History.

  “Of course he didna,” Ulrik continued. “When does Con share that kind of information with the rest of the Kings unless it involves the continuation of Dreagan?”

  “What’s your point?”

  Ulrik lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug. “I think the Kings should begin asking Con questions. Make him answer for his decisions as he’s always made each of you answer for yours.”

  “Let me guess,” Darius said with a flat look. “If you were King of Kings, things would be different?”

  Ulrik threw him a smile. “Of course they would. I’m no’ Con. He wanted to be King of Kings from the moment he was born. He didna stop until he achieved that position. Do you really think he’d give it up so easily? Why keep me alive if I could potentially challenge him one day?”

  They were damn good questions, and it pissed Darius off. He wasn’t here to have Ulrik put thoughts in his head. Yet that was exactly what was happening.

  “The lengths Con went to in order to be King of Kings were extreme,” Ulrik said. His smile vanished as if he were recalling days long past when he and Con were still friends. With a slight shake of his head to dislodge those memories, Ulrik was smiling again. “Perhaps you should ask Con why he’s kept me alive. He says he’s ready to battle me. Why then is he holed up in his suite no’ far from here?”

  “He willna fight you in front of the mortals.”

  Ulrik laughed as he got to his feet and adjusted his suit jacket to button the top button. “I never said I’d fight him in front of humans. I just said that I’d challenge him. And I will win.”

  CHAPTER

  NINETEEN

  Rhi? Can you hear me? Please hear me.

  Balladyn’s voice reached her deep into her sleep. The note of longing and worry was enough to yank her awake. She lay still until she was sure she was alone.

  Rhi tried to gather the darkness around her to sleep once more, but Balladyn’s voice shattered whatever tenuous hold she had on it.

  She opened her eyes. It took blinking a few times before the room came into focus. She stared at the white ceiling and crown molding for a few seconds before she sat up.

  The room was decorated in various shades of white and taupe. It was a soothing palette. One that made her want to curl up on her side and sleep some more.

  Rhi.

  She winced at Balladyn’s call. Had Taraeth discovered he was the one who’d told her where Lexi was being held? Was Balladyn in trouble? That thought made her swing her legs over the side of the bed and stand.

  Instantly, she felt the eyes of her watcher on her. Every time she had woken he’d been there. Did he ever leave? And what the hell did he want with her?

  Rhi got a look at herself in the mirror and grimaced. She was still in the same clothes from the battle, and the holes in her shirt from the Dark magic were doing nothing to make her look good.

  With a snap of her fingers, Rhi replaced her clothes with pale denim jeans and a bright orange long-sleeved shirt that hugged her breasts and waist. She looked down at the brown booties and smiled.

  Orange. She couldn’t remember the last time she had worn orange. In fact, she’d worn nothing but black and white for some time. She hadn’t exactly chosen orange, but she hadn’t thought about her usual colors either.

  There was a sound at the door. Rhi whirled around to see Rhys. He was looking at her choice of shirt with a smile about his lips.

  “I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to wake,” he said as he walked into the room.

  Rhi looked pointedly at the door. Rhys closed it without question and walked to her. Before Rhi could react, he enveloped her in a hug.

  “We’ve been worried,” he said.

  She closed her eyes and returned the hug. There was something calming about a hug. Something that made all the stress melt away. “I’m sorry.”

  “Are you all right?”

  “I don’t really know,” she admitted.

  “And the sleep? Was it only the Dark magic?”

  Since Rhi couldn’t lie without experiencing extreme pain, she opted not to answer.

  Rhys blew out a breath and leaned back. “It’s what I suspected.”

  “I needed some time.”

  “I can respect that. I took some as well. We all need it, but that doesna mean you have to sink into such a sleep that we can no’ reach you.”

  Rhi didn’t bother to tell him that she’d heard some of the conversations. Others she had been too deep in the sleep to hear.

  “I’m back now.” What else was there to say really?

  “Aye. So it seems.”

  Rhi looked away from Rhys’s penetrating gaze. She looked down at her nails and knew one of the first things she was going to do was get a manicure. Might as well get a pedicure too. If her fingers looked that bad, then she could imagine how her feet looked.

  She tossed her long hair over her shoulder. Just as she was about to teleport away with some snappy remark, she heard Balladyn say her name again.

  That hesitation had Rhys beside her.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  She turned her face to him. “What’s happened while I’ve been asleep?”

  “Nothing much. All the Dark are out of Edinburgh. Out of most of the cities, actually.”

  “The Dragon Kings kicked ass, I suppose.”

  Before she finished speaking, he was shaking his head with a frown. “That’s the odd thin
g. Darius is in Edinburgh now, and he was killing plenty of them. Then it became harder and harder to find Dark. The last time Thorn spoke to him was a few days ago and Darius had gone days without seeing a Dark.”

  Wasn’t that interesting? Had Usaeil stepped up and done what a Queen of the Light should have done as soon as the shit hit the fan?

  Rhi looked to where her watcher stood in the corner of the room. She knew he was Fae. Only a Fae could veil themselves in such a way, but as far as she knew, not even Usaeil could remain veiled as long as Rhi. And her watcher stayed that way almost indefinitely.

  A Fae for sure. But Light or Dark?

  More importantly, what did he want with her?

  “What’s going on with the Dark?” she asked offhandedly.

  Rhys snorted loudly. “You mean what’s going on with Balladyn?”

  She looked at him and raised her brows, waiting for him to tell her.

  Rhys gave a little shake of his head. “I understand you were close to him at one time. He tortured you, Rhi. Remember the Chains of Mordare?”

  There were times she could still feel the weight of them on her wrists. She took a step toward Rhys. “I wore them,” she said in a clipped tone. “I remember.”

  “Fine.” Rhys threw up his hands in surrender. “As far as we’ve heard, Taraeth doesna know Balladyn told you where Lexi was.”

  “Was that so difficult?” she asked with a smirk.

  A vein ticked in his temple. “More than you know.”

  “As for why I care about him, he helped us. At the risk of himself, he gave me the information I asked for.”

  “Because he wants you to trust him. Can you no’ see that?” he beseeched.

  There was a good chance Rhys was right.

  Then there was the hope that someone loved her.

  “I see it,” she admitted in a low voice, unable to meet Rhys’s gaze.

  He grasped her arms and waited until she looked at him to say, “I’m sorry.”

  She looked at him askance, unsure of why he was apologizing. “Why?”

  “Because I didna know the depth of the pain you experienced when … he … turned away from you.”

  Rhi didn’t want to listen to this. She tried to pull away. Yet Rhys held fast.

  “I understand now. Lily has given me a love I didna think possible. Even if I feel only a drop of what you experienced, I get it. I want you to find that kind of love again.”

  She looked anywhere but at Rhys. No way was she going to see the pity in his gaze. “A love of the ages, Rhys. Remember that? It’s gone now. I can find happiness elsewhere.”

  “Aye. Just no’ with Balladyn.”

  Anger spiked in her. She couldn’t have her Dragon King lover. Now, she was being told she couldn’t have Balladyn either. When could she have love? When could she be happy?

  “I doona know when you’ll be happy again,” Rhys said in a soothing voice. “Calm down, Rhi. We’re just talking.”

  “I am calm!”

  “Rhi,” he said as he caught her gaze. “There’s no need to get angry.”

  She glared at him. “If you think I’m angry now, wait until I start glowing.”

  “You are.”

  “What?” she barked.

  Rhys glanced down at her. “Glowing.”

  She looked at herself and saw the white light emanating all around her. A glimpse at the room showed everything was shaking.

  There was a commotion at the door. Rhi looked over to find Phelan, Henry, and Kellan gawking at her. She closed her eyes and slowly pulled her anger back into a little ball within her.

  “Out!” Rhys yelled over his shoulder. Then he enveloped her in a tight hug. “It’s all right. I didna mean to make you mad. I’m just trying to look out for you.”

  She clung to him, tears threatening. What was wrong with her that an innocent remark could set her off in such a way? She was a danger to everyone.

  “You’re going to love again. I know it, Rhi,” he said while stroking her hair. “You’ve been through too much no’ to find someone.”

  “I don’t want to be alone anymore, Rhys. It’s…”

  “Awful,” he finished for her. “I know.”

  Rhi squeezed her eyes closed, but the tears still spilled down her cheeks.

  “Stay here a wee bit longer,” Rhys suggested. “Con is gone to Edinburgh, so he willna bother you.”

  Yes. A few more days might be just the thing.

  But … there was Balladyn.

  Rhi pulled out of Rhys’s arms and wiped at her tears. “He’s calling for me. I need to see what he wants.”

  “Balladyn.”

  It wasn’t a question. “I’ll be back soon.”

  “You’ve been asleep for over three weeks. You’ve missed a lot.”

  “And I need to catch up.” She put a bright smile in place and winked. “Don’t worry, stud. I’ll be back soon.”

  Rhys blew out a breath once she left. “You can come in,” he called to the others.

  The door to the room opened and Henry, Phelan, and Kellan walked in.

  “She’s going to see Balladyn?” Henry said with an angry glint in his hazel eyes.

  Rhys exchanged a glance with Kellan.

  It was Kellan who said, “He gave us the information for Thorn to find Lexi. She owes him.”

  “You heard her,” Phelan said. “She’ll be back.”

  With a noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl, Henry turned on his heel and strode away.

  “Shit,” Phelan said. “He’s got it bad for her.”

  Kellan crossed his arms over his chest, looking at the door where Henry had disappeared. “Aye. We need to turn Henry’s attention onto someone else.”

  “Who? The only females here are mated to us,” Rhys said.

  Kellan twisted his lips. “We’ll have to think of something fast.”

  “Speaking of fast,” Phelan said. “What set Rhi off?”

  Rhys glanced at the floor. “Me. I told her Balladyn wasn’t for her.”

  “We heard her yelling,” Kellan said.

  Phelan nodded. “It broke my heart to hear her asking when she would get to love.”

  “Aye.” Rhys felt Kellan’s gaze on him. Both were thinking the same thing. That it was time to beat the shit out of a certain Dragon King until they discovered the truth of why he’d ended things with Rhi.

  “Oh, I doona think so,” Phelan said, looking between the two of them.

  Kellan frowned. “What?”

  “I see the way you’re looking at Rhys. You want to go find Rhi’s lover and hit him a few times. That’s no’ going to happen unless I’m with you,” Phelan stated.

  Rhys slapped him on the back. “It’s no’ a secret that will be held for eternity. And trust me, when you find out, you’re going to wish you didna know.”

  CHAPTER

  TWENTY

  Rhi arrived at the desert and looked around for Balladyn. She was disappointed when he was nowhere to be seen. She hadn’t bothered to track him, because she assumed this was where he would be. She didn’t know how, but the desert had become the location where they always met.

  It felt good to have the sun on her skin again. After weeks asleep, she craved the warmth of the sun and the way it made her skin prickle.

  She didn’t know how long she stood there before she felt the presence. It wasn’t her watcher. He’d been there seconds after she teleported in. No, this was someone else.

  Rhi turned around, ready to call up her sword if need be when her gaze landed on Balladyn. He was looking at her as if she couldn’t be real.

  “I saw you fall,” he said. “I saw the magic hit you, and you didn’t get up. I tried to get to you. You didn’t rise after the blast, and I feared you were…”

  “Dead? Not me,” she said with a flip of her hair.

  In the next moment, he was before her, one hand on her back and the other cradling her head as he kissed her deeply, fervently.

  She felt his arous
al against her stomach just as she felt his passion in their kiss. Rhi wrapped her arms around him and returned his kiss with a heavy dose of her own desire.

  He took her head between his hands and ended the kiss to stare into her face. She looked into his red eyes and saw the concern he didn’t try to hide.

  “You could’ve died,” he whispered.

  She closed her eyes as he put his forehead against hers. This was a side of Balladyn she had never seen before, and it touched her greatly.

  “Where have you been?”

  She rubbed her hands along his arms. “Asleep.”

  “Did the Dark magic wound you that bad?”

  “No.” She didn’t even think of lying to him. “Con healed me, but the darkness was my escape.”

  Balladyn straightened. “From me.”

  She tenderly touched his face. “From everything. Usaeil, the Dark, Ulrik, the darkness growing inside me, and yes, the feelings you’re stirring within me. I needed a break from it all.”

  “I see.”

  “I’m here, aren’t I?” she asked him with a grin. “If I wanted away from you, would I’ve come?”

  He gave her a crooked smile. “Nay.”

  “Then ease your mind about that. I don’t know what I want yet, so don’t think this is me saying yes.”

  His smile grew, making his eyes crinkle in the corners. “You will. One day soon, you will.”

  Was it her imagination, or had the red of his eyes dimmed a little? Rhi only had that glance before he was kissing her again.

  * * *

  Sophie woke to the sound of her phone vibrating on the coffee table. She hurriedly reached for it to read the text from Claire.

  She smiled and quickly typed a text letting Claire know that everything was all right. Sophie then sighed and dropped her head back on the couch.

  Her thoughts were on Darius, not Ulrik. But then again, she was always thinking about Darius. The sex was amazing, but was it enough? Did it matter that he could give her a couple of orgasms?

  A couple? Girl, it was a dozen!

  A dozen or not, it didn’t matter.

  Sophie laughed at herself. Of course it signified. To have a man be able to touch her and bring her to the edge of release in a matter of seconds was a skill rarely found.