“Indeed.” He chewed a bite of meat before washing it down with mead. Annie waited patiently for him to speak. “Jarronn and Alice are mated. Alexi and Darronn are also mated.”
Annie’s jaw dropped. “You’re telling me that my cousins are queens now?”
“Alice is High Queen and the Queen of Hearts.” Karn almost smiled as he thought of the queen who was generous and loving. A laugh almost burst from him as his mind turned to Alexi, who had a penchant for kneeing males in the balls when she was displeased. “Alexi is the Queen of Spades.”
Annie shook her head, as if trying to rattle the thoughts around in her head. “This is not computing.”
He raised a brow. “Computing?”
“It seems so fantastical and like it couldn’t possibly be real.” She placed both her hands on the tabletop, as if to ground herself. “But then all that has happened—nothing seems real.”
He reached out and put his hand over hers. “I know this is strange for you. But it is real and you are now in the world in which you belong.”
She didn’t seem to notice his hand over hers. “How do I know I’m not dreaming?”
He squeezed her hand. “What do you feel in your heart?”
She surprised him by turning her hand up, lacing her fingers through his, and squeezing. “As confused as I am, as strange as everything is…” She stared into his eyes. “I think it is real.”
He gave her hand one more squeeze before breaking the contact so that he could once again eat.
“So you have one other brother?” she asked, and then added again, “Any sisters?”
“My youngest brother is Ty.” Karn hesitated. “One sister. Mikaela no longer speaks to the family.”
“A rift like that must be difficult for you.” Annie’s words were gentle.
He wanted to change the subject. His sister was a topic he did not discuss when not with his brothers as they came up with plans for strategy against her.
“Tell me of you and your home,” he said.
She hesitated as if wanting to continue questioning him, but then shook it off.
“Home seems so far away right now.” Her eyes seemed distant, as if she had traveled elsewhere in her thoughts. “I’m originally from Tennessee but I’ve lived in San Francisco for a long time now. I’m a college professor by day, a closet artist by night.”
“My mother was an artist.” Karn thought about the woman who had raised him, who had loved him, and who had left him when she passed away. “Her name was Elinara.”
“Q.E.” Annie said his mother’s initials as if making a mental note of them. “Queen Elinara.”
“Yes.” He studied Annie, trying to read her mind to know what she was thinking. Sometimes he could read her thoughts, but mostly when he was a tiger. Even then it was only small touches of what was going through her mind.
“I would have loved to meet her.” Annie hadn’t touched much of her food.
He gestured to her plate. “Eat.”
She picked up her fork. “I want to know more about your parents.”
He didn’t understand why he felt compelled to tell her about those he had loved and lost. Perhaps it was to make sure she would understand in the future why he would never love again. “My mother died many years ago of the magical fever that took my father and my betrothed, Ima, as well. It was my parents’ fault they caught the fever. They fooled with magics they had no business disturbing.”
“I’m sorry.” Annie’s eyes told him how deeply she meant it.
He shrugged, stuffing away the feelings that no longer mattered. What was done was done, and he had learned to steel his heart long ago. “What of your father and mother?” he asked.
She sighed and gave a sad smile. “I never knew my father, and my mother often said she wished I’d never been born. My cousins Alice and Alexi, and my aunt Awai, are my only true family.”
The temptation to pull Annie into his arms and brush his lips over her forehead was almost too strong to restrain himself. “I feel sorrow for your losses.”
“I’m okay.” Her eyes pleaded with him. “Do you understand why it’s so important for me to see my cousins? To make sure they are alive and well?”
“Yes.” Without meaning to, he reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. “You will see them, soon enough.”
She sounded insistent, like a demand, when she said. “I want to see them now.”
He frowned and pulled his hand away and hardened his voice. “You will see them when I say the time is right.” He ignored the pained defiance in her gaze and used his fork to point to her plate. “Eat.”
Karn no longer wished for conversation. What they had spoken of was enough for now. Later he would learn more about his kitten, before he made her his queen, trapping her for all eternity in a loveless bonding.
CHAPTER NINE
THE FOLLOWING MORNING, Annie started to come around as Abra made biscuits in her hair.
“Good morning.” Annie shifted and sat up in bed. She had slept in a sheer baby doll nightie again. She yawned and stretched as Abra did the same.
Annie’s mind turned to Karn. She’d dreamed about him. Her nipples tightened and she ached between her thighs. She wanted him more than she could ever have imagined.
A fire crackled in the hearth, telling Annie that Beya had been here. The woman appeared, a breakfast tray in her hands, startling Annie. She didn’t know if she’d get used to the little woman popping in and out.
“How are you this morning, Mistress?” Beya set the tray on the window seat. “I hope you slept well.”
“I slept very well.” Annie was surprised she’d fallen asleep so easily considering the circumstances. “I feel good this morning.”
“I am pleased to hear that.” Beya went to the wardrobe, the doors opening before she reached it. She pulled out a leaf-brown dress and brought it to Annie. “I think you will find this to your liking while you are not with the king.”
“This is perfect.” Annie took the dress from Beya and was beyond grateful for the outfit that was made of a thick material and not in the least bit see-through. “Thank you.” It wasn’t skimpy and would be far more comfortable, in contrast to what Karn wanted her to wear.
“His majesty will be gone from the mansion until late afternoon.” Beya reached into the bottom drawers of the wardrobe, rummaged around, and withdrew a pair of leather slides with flat heels. “These will be suitable for walking in if you have the inclination to leave this room.”
Annie smiled. The slides had not been in the drawer when she’d looked there yesterday. “I appreciate them.” She took the shoes from Beya.
“You are free to do what you wish.” Beya winked before vanishing.
Of course, Beya had meant that Annie could go to the art room, and she was more than happy to do just that.
Annie hurried to change into the dress, happy to toss aside the nightie. She slid her feet into the shoes and went to the window seat where she put a saucer of milk and a plate of paté on the floor for Abra. Annie looked out at the still gloomy sky as she ate, taking in everything with her artist’s eyes. She wondered if it was ever sunny here.
It didn’t take her long to finish breakfast. She set the tray on the small table in the room, after putting Abra’s empty dishes on it. She made the bed and left the nightie at the foot of it, not sure what she was supposed to do with it.
When she was finished, Annie started toward the door. The moment Abra realized Annie was going to leave the room, she started to yowl, loud and angry sounds that became more demanding.
“How do I know it’s safe out here?” Annie thought of the spirit she thought she’d encountered yesterday. Not that a spirit would likely hurt Abra. “What if you got lost?”
“Yerowl.” The cat was so insistent that Annie knew she wasn’t going to win.
“Okay, okay.” She threw her hands up. “You can come with me, but you have to stay with me. No running off. Understand?”
&nb
sp; Abra gave a self-satisfied “meow” and purred as she rubbed her head against Annie’s ankle.
Annie rolled her eyes. Not only was Karn ordering her around and controlling her, but her cat was, too.
“Come on.” Annie opened the door to the bedroom and peeked out into the hall, just in case someone was around.
Abra pushed her way past and turned to the left, the direction Annie had intended to go. “Wait for me. I mean it, Abracadabra.”
Sheesh. She was just like a mom reprimanding a child by using her full name. Well, Abra was like a child to her.
Abra looked over her shoulder and raised her nose before continuing on.
Okay, it was clear the cat was certain she owned Annie, not the other way around, and Annie figured she was probably right, but Abra was the closest thing Annie had to a child.
She thought about having an actual child. What would it be like to have children? She’d never given it a lot of thought since she didn’t date. It had passed her mind that she could always do in vitro fertilization or adopt, but didn’t a child optimally need two parents?
Not all kids have two parents, Annie thought. And that had not been a good childhood. Maybe that was the reason why she had never really considered having children. She had to consider, though, that her mother hadn’t wanted her at all. If Annie had kids, she would do it because she wanted the child.
She pushed thoughts of children aside and followed Abra down the hall. The cat disappeared into the abandoned wing. Annie walked faster. When she rounded the corner, she saw Abra.
The cat’s back was arched, her hair standing on end and she was hissing—at nothing. The hallway was empty.
Annie shivered. She’d read an article stating some animals appeared to see things that humans weren’t able to, like ghosts or spirits. She’d laughed and hadn’t given any amount of credence to the so-called “research,” because she didn’t believe it was scientifically provable. But now, at least in this world, she was beginning to think there was something to that belief.
She felt a hand touch her shoulder. She yelped and whirled. No one was behind her.
Her skin prickled. Her heart rate had kicked up a notch and she took a deep breath in and let it out. She turned to see that Abra was no longer hissing and looked calm as she stared at something past Annie’s shoulder.
“Let’s go, Abra.” Annie ignored the shudder that went down her spine. She walked down the hall, glad to be wearing the slides that protected her feet from the dirty floor.
Abra stayed ahead, her tail raised and the tip flicking as she walked. She reached the door, turned to look at Annie and made a sound of impatience.
When she got to the door, Annie felt the touch of an invisible hand on hers as she grasped the door handle. She swallowed and the latch clicked. This time the door swung open when she pushed. The hinges creaked and groaned like they had the first time she had entered the room.
She wondered if Beya could get her a little oil to stop them from making such loud sounds. She was careful not to say the woman’s name aloud, not wanting to draw her away from whatever task she was taking care of at the moment.
Annie let her gaze drift over the room and put her hands on her hips. The room was dusty but had a magical feel to it. Magical, as in the perfect place where an artist could create something amazing.
Abra had already gone ahead of her and had soon disappeared amongst all of the artist’s treasures in the room.
Annie decided she would spend the day, as long as she could, exploring the room. The first thing she went to was large and cloth covered. She pulled away the covering and her heart leapt as she felt a thrill at finding a large stack of empty canvases just waiting for an artist to fill with color.
She went around the room, straightening pictures that had tipped over. While she did that, she approached something much larger than the easels, also covered. She pulled off the cloth and found it had been covering a large wooden chest with drawers of all sizes. Her whole body tingled as she started exploring the drawers. They were filled with pots of oils in all colors of the rainbow, a box of pastels, and another box with sticks of charcoal.
Something she thought was brush cleaner, which smelled like linseed oil, was in one drawer. In another was a box of ebony-handled brushes with bristles made from fine silver, gold, and bronze hair, perhaps from the horse-like beast she’d seen in the village that Karn had said was called a jul.
Even though the room was unbelievably dusty, telling Annie it had been awhile since its contents were used, the supplies were in fabulous condition.
In this magic place, everything is probably enchanted, she thought as she arranged the rainbow of oil paints by colors. The short fat jars were clear with stoppers.
The pastels were in a drawer, kept inside a long wooden tray that had a snug-fitting wooden lid. The lid was inlaid with a heart, a spade, a diamond, and a club.
One of the larger drawers held a clean palette made from rosewood. The palette was in the shape of a paw print with wells where each pad would be. Another one was covered in swirls of paints that an artist had used to mix colors while painting.
Annie smiled. She felt like a giddy child who’d been searching for the end of the rainbow and had found her pot of gold.
Abra wandered in and out and around, exploring and probably looking for mice. Annie hadn’t seen any sign of the tiny creatures and nothing damaged by something gnawing on it. Of course she didn’t even know if they had mice in this world. At one point Abra even found a shallow wooden box to curl up in to watch Annie as she worked.
She never could get Karn out of her mind as she straightened everything. He constantly filled her thoughts—his powerful presence, his incredible body, and his attributes. No, she couldn’t get her mind off of anything to do with him.
The things he’d already done with her made her wonder what else he had in store for her.
He was so closed off, though. He considered her nothing more than a possession. How could she allow a man to take her and use her like that? She frowned. He offered her pleasure and took pleasure, but nothing more than that.
Did she want more? For godsake, she didn’t even know the man. She was not one of his belongings that he could do with as he pleased. She needed to somehow make that clear to him.
She shook off the thoughts as much as she could as she continued working on the room.
When everything was organized, she took a step back and smiled. “All this room needs is a good spring cleaning.” A winter cleaning is more accurate in this bleak place, but a cleaning nonetheless.
Beya appeared in her usual manner—out of nowhere—scaring the crud out of Annie in the process.
She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Beya, don’t do that.”
“Pardon, Milady.” The housekeeper’s gaze traveled the now well-organized room. “It is time someone took this room in hand, yes. An artist’s touch is well needed.”
Annie’s fingers itched to hold a paintbrush and bring one of the many empty canvases to life. “I can’t wait to get started.” She looked from the room to Beya. “First a cleaning.”
“Indeed.” Beya gave a nod and once again she vanished.
Annie had tied her butt-length hair in a knot, but it had loosened while she’d gone through everything she could. She reached up and pulled it back so that it was in a tighter knot, and for the first time she realized she was sweating at her scalp and between her large breasts. Her muscles also felt tired, but a good tired from a job well done. She wasn’t ready to stop yet, though.
This time Annie was ready for Beya to reappear. When the woman did, she held a broom, a mop, and a bucket filled with cleaning supplies.
Annie clapped her hands. “Oh, this is wonderful. I’ll start now.”
“Cleaning must wait.” Beya set the supplies on the floor in the middle of the room. “These are for tomorrow. In the bucket of supplies is a tin of oil for the hinges as well.”
“That’s
wonderful.” Annie gave Beya a smile. “Thank you.”
Beya gave a low nod. “You are most welcome, Mistress.”
“I suppose I should get cleaned up before I see Karn.” Tingles skittered through Annie’s belly. A single thought of him made her ache between her thighs, and her whole body burned. She hoped Beya couldn’t read her mind or her expression. She hoped, too, that any exposed parts of her weren’t bright red from blushing.
“Yes, you need to be prepared to see the king, and you are quite filthy.” Beya, who was over a good two and a half feet shorter than Annie, reached up and patted her arm. “Dinner is to be served soon, and you will join His Majesty in the dining room. Your creature is in need of nourishment as well.”
“Abra.” Annie wiped sweat from her hairline with the back of her hand as she looked around. “Where are you?”
The cat appeared from behind the large art chest. Dust covered her, making her calico hair look gray and black instead of tri-colored with her normal patches of ginger brown, white, and black.
“Oh, Abra. You’re so dirty.” Annie shook her head. “Considering you don’t like baths, I don’t know how I’m going to get you cleaned up.”
“I will to see to her bath.” Beya had a glitter to her eyes as she scooped up Abra. The cat looked huge in Beya’s small arms. “Go to your chambers. I will have a servant draw a bath for you as well.”
The housekeeper poofed into sparkles with Abra in her arms, leaving Annie alone.
“If Beya is giving Abra a bath, more than likely she’ll be giving me the silent treatment until tomorrow morning.” Annie’s lips twitched and she almost felt a wicked delight. “At least she’ll be clean.”
Annie walked to the door and stopped to survey the room one last time. She felt a hand on her shoulder, as if the spirit was telling her she had done a good job.
“Thank you,” Annie said instinctively, before she could catch herself. She opened the door and headed back to her room.
Water was already tumbling into the bathing pool in the bathroom when Annie reached her chambers. She stripped out of her dusty clothing and climbed into the pool that felt heavenly warm, the perfect temperature.
Bound by Desire: King of Diamonds (Wonderland Book 3) Page 10
