Smoldering Hunger

by Donna Grant

  That was the crux of the problem since Rhi hated waiting for anything.

  Next, she moved to the blues and selected another color from the Hawaii collection. The lagoon blue name was This Color Is Making Waves.

  She was about to turn away when the bright green caught her eye. Just as she went to grab it, she spotted a purple that reminded her of the reefs she swam near her island. Rhi picked up the bottle and read the title—Lost My Bikini in Molokini—and laughed.

  Rhi made her way to the counter and paid for the three bottles. It felt very … human. Of course, she used magic to get the money, but no one needed to know that.

  Then she teleported to her salon where her nail tech, Jesse, waited. Rhi closed her eyes and sat back in the chair as Jesse began her manicure. Rhi wanted to relax, but her mind kept going round and round between Balladyn, Ulrik, Con, and her confrontation with Darius.

  She hadn’t had the guts to ask Darius if her lover had been talked into severing their relationship. And did it really matter? If her lover allowed himself to be talked into anything then he’d never really loved her.

  But their love had been deep and powerful.

  Why had he let that go so easily? Why hadn’t he fought for her, for them?

  Rhi felt her watcher’s eyes on her and began to relax. He hadn’t harmed her—and there had been many opportunities. She also didn’t feel as though he were there for any malicious intent.

  It had annoyed her at first that he was always there, and she’d even been frightened of it. Now, she felt almost safe. No, that was the wrong word. She felt … protected. As if he were a sentry guarding her.

  She opened her eyes and looked to her left where he stood. Rhi imagined him leaning against the wall. He’d seen her as very few had. Did he think her flighty? Vain? Stubborn? Arrogant?

  All too soon her nails were done. Rhi moved to the massaging chair where Jesse put her feet in hot water to soak them. Her watcher remained on her left while her pedicure began.

  Her mind drifted to Balladyn. She could have a relationship with him. He waited for her. Rhi had been alone for so long that she craved a man’s hand on her back, his adoring gaze on her face, and his lips on hers.

  She wanted to run her hands through his hair and wrap her arms around his neck as she lifted her face for his kiss. She wanted to caress his body and face. She wanted to be filled with such desire that she couldn’t form a coherent thought.

  She wanted to make love all night and feel pleasure so profound that it wiped away the past with one swipe.

  Balladyn loved her. She saw it in his red eyes each time he looked at her. Rhi felt something for him, that she couldn’t deny.

  If only she could stop loving her Dragon King. First, she needed to stop calling him “hers.” He hadn’t been hers in … ages.

  He’d moved on. For one, he was a male. For another, he was a Dragon King. Women flocked to them in droves, and he had needs.

  It made her gut clench when she thought of him with someone else. She’d been chaste all this time, waiting for the possibility that he might want her again.

  How utterly stupid. Why had she thought he might realize his mistake? His words—delivered via Darius—had been plain enough.

  “Our time together was good, but it’s over. It’s time we go our separate ways.”

  By the stars! She was a complete nincompoop to think he might still love her. How many times lately had she seen him at Dreagan? How many times had he looked right through her? How many times had he pretended she wasn’t even there?

  He’d faked whatever love was between them. Rhi had known it for centuries, but she hadn’t wanted to face it. No longer would she blindly hold onto something that was only a passing affair for him.

  She’d never felt such love for another before him, but she had held a torch for him long enough. It was time to close the lid on that part of her past.

  Rhi took a deep breath, and felt a huge weight lift off her chest. She was worth so much more than pining over a King who’d used her. She deserved happiness and the love of a man who would cherish her.

  There was an itch on her cheek. She scratched it, only to realize it was a tear slowly making its way down her face. Rhi sniffed. That was the last time she would cry over the lost love of her King.

  When her toes were done, Rhi paid Jesse and exited the salon to walk down the street. The next block over she teleported to her island. Rhi set her three new polishes on the shelf with the others, careful to put them with their colors. Then she strolled out of the hut and into the sun.

  She held out her hands to look at her nails in the sun and smiled as she saw Jesse had chosen the lagoon blue polish. It had just enough shimmer to catch the sun. The thin gold line curving along her nail tips added a touch of color. With a snap of her fingers, Rhi’s clothes were gone, replaced with a gold metallic bikini.

  Was it her imagination, or was her watcher smiling?

  She turned to look over her right shoulder to where she knew he stood. There was no use talking to him. He wouldn’t answer her. Besides, there was no need for words between them.

  Rhi sank onto the sand and lay back, letting the rays of the sun heat her skin. She stared at the vivid blue of the sky and wondered how it would feel to be with someone again, to not be lonely.

  Because she was lonely. Oh, she told everyone this was the way she wanted it, but it was one big fat moose dick of a lie.

  Each time she went to Dreagan and saw one of the Kings with his mate sharing smiles, holding hands, kissing, or just laughing, it was like a knife to her heart.

  She closed her eyes and let her mind drift to anywhere but thoughts of her King and her broken heart. Her eyes snapped open when she felt something brush her hand.

  Rhi turned her head to look at her right hand. There was an indent in the sand as if someone sat beside her and rested his hand alongside hers.

  Her watcher. He was so close she felt his warmth. Rhi smiled and closed her eyes once more.

  * * *

  Daire wanted to touch her. He could sense Rhi’s lonesomeness. She did a valiant job of hiding it from everyone. Except when she was alone. Then she let the mask fall away. She allowed him to see the pain and heartache she suffered daily.

  Yet something occurred at the salon when she was getting her nails done. There was a kind of peace that descended over Rhi, almost as if she’d come to some kind of decision. There was still sorrow in her silver eyes, but it had lessened. Even on her island, her smiles came easier today. He was curious about what she’d decided. Was it about Balladyn?

  Daire had an uneasy feeling about the Dark Fae. Balladyn cared about Rhi, that much was obvious. But what would his association with Rhi do to her?

  Though Daire didn’t know why Death was interested in Rhi, it must be important for Daire to be following her around everywhere. And Daire was fairly certain Death didn’t want Rhi becoming Dark.

  For the next hour Daire sat beside Rhi while she lay in the sun. He watched the waves crash upon the beach, the turquoise waters vibrant against the golden sand.

  Everything around him was dazzling in both color and beauty, including Rhi. It was no wonder she had chosen such a place. It was where a Light Fae would be drawn with all the colorful flora surrounding them.

  He turned his head to look at her. Long black lashes lay still against her cheek, though he didn’t think she was sleeping. If Rhi knew how important a piece she was in the upcoming war she wouldn’t be lying in the sun now.

  Con was suspicious of Rhi when he should be courting her favor. Rhi was a formidable ally, and she had proven time and again that she would fight alongside the Kings.

  Balladyn should push a little harder to win Rhi to his side. Balladyn could easily take the throne from Taraeth, but to lead the Dark and win against the Kings, he would need Rhi.

  As for Ulrik, Daire suspected the banished King knew exactly how important Rhi was to this game. Ulrik had been there when Rhi needed him, and on occasion h
e had asked Rhi for help. Ulrik was smart in that he wasn’t pulling Rhi one way or another. Which might very well win him her allegiance if Con didn’t wise up.

  He saw by Rhi’s even breathing that she was asleep. Daire reached out and gently pulled a lock of hair from her cheek. Her head turned toward him as if seeking his touch.

  His hands itched to caress her cheek, to smell the sun upon her skin. But he was a Reaper, destined to be alone. His only companions were the other Reapers. If Rhi or any Fae discovered the Reapers, they were immediately put to death. It was one of Death’s strict rules involving the Reapers.

  Daire wondered what Rhi would think of them and what they did. Knowing Rhi, she would approve. Then she might ask to join them.

  That made Daire smile. Though they had both Dark and Light Fae in the Reapers, there had never been a female. He wasn’t sure why Death only chose males, but it wasn’t for him to ask.

  He was reaching out to run the backs of his fingers along Rhi’s cheek when Balladyn appeared. Daire was glad he’d remained veiled. He jumped to his feet and backed away even as he watched Balladyn look at her as if he had found the greatest treasure in all the realms.

  That’s when Daire realized that Balladyn truly loved her. The kind of love that all mortals dreamed of, but few actually found. The kind of love that Rhi thought she’d had with her King.

  “Rhi,” Balladyn whispered as he knelt beside her. He put his hands on either side of her head and leaned down to place his lips upon hers.

  Her lids fluttered open to gaze up at Balladyn.

  His smile was slow as it pulled up the corners of his lips. “You smell like sunshine and salt.”

  “You’re not supposed to be here,” she replied.

  “As if I can stay away from you. I ache to be near you. Don’t you understand that I crave your touch? I hunger for your kisses?”

  She placed her hands on his arms and slowly caressed upward to his neck. “Show me,” she bade in a husky voice.

  Daire couldn’t look away from the kiss that began slow and turned passionate. He continued to watch when Balladyn lowered himself onto her and gathered her in his arms before rolling to his back and taking her with him.

  He held his breath when Rhi sat up and untied the top of her gold bikini before tossing it away. Daire gazed at her full breasts and hard, dusky nipples.

  But he turned away when Balladyn sat up and wrapped his lips around one of the turgid peaks. Daire didn’t want to be there, but he couldn’t leave. He was tasked with watching Rhi—even when that meant remaining as she made love to Balladyn.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-FIVE

  Sleep never came for Sophie, even within Darius’s arms. She couldn’t stop thinking of everything. It was shocking and exhilarating to find she’d fallen in love again, but on the heels of that was the terror of knowing she was in the middle of a war that had no end in sight.

  Ulrik wasn’t going to stop until she was dead. Sophie didn’t want to die. She had too much to live for now—one big one was Darius.

  She tightened her arm around him as they lay on their sides, her front to his back. Though she didn’t ask, she had a suspicion that he wasn’t sleeping, but she let him pretend. It gave her time to think.

  Because when they were awake, they couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

  That kind of passion was heady, spine-tingling, and oh so amazing. Now that she’d experienced it, she’d never settle for anything less than that.

  Career or Darius?

  She didn’t want to have to make that decision. All she could do was pray that she was worrying over nothing, that Darius lived in Edinburgh.

  That brought her up short.

  “What is it?” Darius asked sleepily.

  She leaned over to see his face, but his eyes were still closed. “Where do you live?”

  “Dreagan.”

  “I meant here in the city.”

  He opened his eyes and then turned over, wrapping an arm around her. “There’s a warehouse we use if I need somewhere to go. We doona need to sleep or eat as you do.”

  “So when this thing with Ulrik is done, you’ll go back to Dreagan?”

  “Aye.”

  Just as she’d feared. So she definitely did have something to worry about. That is if he wanted her with him. He may not feel the same as she.

  “I’ll no’ leave until Ulrik is dealt with.”

  “How long has this been going on with him?”

  “It began a few years ago.”

  “Years?” she asked.

  Darius wound her hair around his thick hand. “We can no’ just attack him, Sophie. He doesna have all of his magic. It would be like an adult attacking a child.”

  “So you want to wait until he has all of his magic? That makes no sense. He’s threatening friends of the Kings, and you want to wait?”

  “He has to challenge Con. He’s no’ done that yet.”

  “You could take him.”

  Darius’s jaw clenched. “I’d like nothing more than to do just that, but I’ve orders from my King.”

  “You’re a King yourself.”

  He sat up to lean against the headboard. “It doesna work that way.”

  “It should.” She faced him, crossing her legs.

  “Think of us like the military. Con is our general. He makes the decisions, and we carry them out.”

  She shook her head. “You’re not the military. You’re a Dragon King.”

  “With no dragons to lead,” he said quietly.

  Sophie winced as she realized her voice had grown louder.

  He took her hand in his. “The last time someone disobeyed Con was when Ulrik went after the humans. We may disagree with him, which happens often, but we doona go against a direct order.”

  “Even if it means saving someone?”

  “I’ll no’ let anything happen to you.”

  She sighed. “I know that.”

  “What is this really about?”

  Sophie tried to shrug it off, but he tightened his grip on her hand when she would’ve pulled it away.

  “Tell me,” he urged in a firm voice.

  “What is this between us?”

  It was his turn to fidget. “I doona know.”

  “I need to know something. If this is just a fling, then it needs to end now.”

  “It’s no’ a fling,” he assured her.

  That relieved some of her anxiety, but not all of it. “I like what I’m feeling. I don’t want it to end.”

  “Even though I’m a dragon?”

  “A Dragon King,” she corrected with a smile. “And the answer is yes.”

  He ran a hand through his disheveled blond locks. “You doona know what you’re getting involved in, doc. We’re bombarded on all sides with Ulrik, the Dark, and MI5. We have more enemies than allies, and we’re always battling someone.”

  “That sounds like the emergency room.”

  “We live on Dreagan. All of us.”

  She knew he was telling her that if they remained together, she’d have to live at Dreagan.

  “You have a career here. Your path is set before you. If you remain with me, that’ll change.”

  Sophie’s confusion over what she wanted kept her quiet. She’d worked so hard to get to where she was at the hospital. She was in line to be Chief of Staff, a goal she’d set before entering medical school.

  Then again, she had a man who healed her wounds and her heart. A man who loved and cared for her as if she were a precious piece of him.

  When she compared her life with Scott to Darius, the differences were black and white. She would’ve never been truly happy with Scott. Though she hated that time of her life, it had happened for a reason. Now she knew what that reason was—Darius.

  The sound of her alarm pulled her out of her thoughts. Sophie rose and headed to the bathroom, her mind still a jumble as she readied for the day.

  * * *

  Darius tried to get Sophie to take a t
axi to work, but she was determined to walk, despite the temperatures. Snow was falling, but she walked with determined steps. Once more Darius didn’t see Ulrik’s men. They no longer watched her building—and that was disconcerting.

  Ulrik wouldn’t pull away. He was planning something. It was enough to set Darius on edge. He didn’t want to worry Sophie though, so he didn’t mention it.

  As they reached a café just a block from the hospital, Sophie said, “I need some coffee.”

  He had his hand on her back as he opened the door to the café and waited for her to enter. Darius quickly scanned the restaurant, but he saw no sign of Dark. The mercenaries Ulrik hired Darius could easily handle.

  They were standing in line to order when Darius felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle. He peered out the windows of the café and spied three Dark Fae. Two used glamour, but the third flaunted his short black and silver hair and red eyes with a smile.

  The trio approached from different directions, and their focus was the café. Darius was eager to take out the Dark, but not in front of witnesses. Nor was Darius keen on leaving Sophie alone for even a second.

  Darius sent out a call through the dragon link to Con, Rhys, and Kiril. They would be here soon. Until then, Darius would remain by Sophie’s side.

  “That’s a Dark,” she whispered, her voice shaking as she caught sight of the Fae.

  “Aye.”

  Her breath hitched as she caught sight of the other two. “I thought they were gone from the city.”

  “So did I.”

  This was some kind of trap. Darius knew it in the pit of his soul. If he left Sophie, Ulrik would be there in a heartbeat.

  Each of the Dark soon had humans take notice of them. Moments later the Dark not using glamour smiled directly at Darius through the café window and led two women into an alley.

  “He’s going to take their souls,” Sophie said in shock.

  Darius fisted his hands. That’s exactly what the Dark was doing. He was also attempting to draw Darius out.

  “You must save them.”

  He glanced down at Sophie and shook his head. “It’s what they want.”