by Lisa Kumar
A few tendrils of hair blew across her face. She raked them behind her ear and sighed as tangles impeded her progress. How could straight hair knot so easily? She drew a length forward and eyed it. She hadn’t had a trim since she’d arrived in Eria. Her boring brown hair now hit mid back. Maybe Vana, her maid, could do something about that. With any luck, the maid would be waiting to help her get ready.
After she took a few steps to head inside, the cat decided it wanted to be social and threaded around her legs. Maggie huffed out a sigh. “Cat, let me move.”
The little fur ball rubbed against her leg one last time before streaking off into a bush. Maggie shook her head and headed back toward the palace. “Crazy feline.”
***
Meals in the airy great hall were always a social occasion. Normally, Maggie enjoyed that hub of activity and chatter. The king’s impending arrival, along with her growing anxiety, caused enjoyment to flutter right out the enchanted window like a butterfly.
Speaking of the pain-in-the-ass. His presence buzzed through her like an alarm. She groaned and sank down into her seat. A look showed him in all his smug glory—smug, handsome— No. A shudder racked her.
“What is it, my sweet?”
She forced a smile to her face and turned to Avrin, who sat across from her. “Nothing. Just saw something unpalatable.”
The king’s advisor raised a brown brow. “The servants haven’t brought the food yet.”
Shit. “The smell of the food? Yeah, that’s it.”
He took a deliberate sniff of air. “I don’t smell anything unpleasant.”
“Trust me, I do.”
He shook his head. “I’ll never understand you. But it only makes you more alluring.”
Her saucy reply died upon her lips when Talion’s dreaded velvet voice interrupted from behind her. “Are you flirting with the human again, Avrin?”
She growled under her breath. The King of Asses butted in once again. Unfortunately, the head table was his table. If it weren’t for her friends, she’d sit elsewhere, but she didn’t want to be separated from Avrin, Kenhel, Cal, and Relian. The happy newly-weds had yet to show, though. Damn them. And Kenhel must still be tied up by his commander duties.
Avrin sent her a wicked glance before turning his gaze to the Erian king. “Of course. I find human women very fascinating.”
Talion snorted. “What other one is there to flirt with, my friend?”
She stiffened at his implication that no one would give her any notice if there were any other single humans around. He could take the insult and shove it up his elvin— His taunting voice cut into her thoughts.
“Nothing to say?”
“Oh, I have a lot to say. But none of it’s appropriate to say in public, especially to a person of your esteemed station.”
He chuckled and leaned down. His breath fanned against the sensitive skin behind her ear. “How about you take me to task in a more private locale?”
She froze as a shiver swept across her shoulders and down her back. Ignoring the funny feeling, she concentrated on the suspicion blooming in her mind. What fricking game was he playing now? Taking a deep breath, she turned to catch a glimpse of his face. Bad idea. His eyes glowed with a mocking light that highlighted the attractive laugh lines branching from them. All in all, he looked delicious. Oh hell, no. She wasn’t going there. “Not on your life, King Tut.”
“Who is this illustrious king you keep comparing me to? I think you have quite an obsession with him.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and faced the table again. “He’s a king who has long been dead and buried. That’s the whole point.”
“Ah, so you’re making light of my age?”
“What do you think?”
His eyes became hooded. “I think you’re a young girl who has to be taken in hand.”
The possible sexual implications of his words swept heat over her body. She gave an inner eye roll. Yeah, like he meant it that way. Bastard probably thought about it quite differently. He often made her feel like a gauche, clueless child, and enjoyed putting her in her place. This didn’t exactly shout lust. “God, you’re not my father.”
“I never said I wanted to be.”
Her breath stilled. His words—they were the heaven she’d been waiting for—and the hell. She hated him, didn’t she? Yet, he filled every corner of her mind. God, give me some fungicide. He seeped through her skin, flooding every pore with his presence.
To him, this was all a game. He reveled in continually taunting and poking at her until she hissed like a cat. “It’s a good thing we’re not related. Can you think of anything worse?”
A contemplative look spread over his face, and his gaze swept over her. “Indeed not. We wouldn’t want that.”
She narrowed her eyes, trying to see through the mocking façade. Why could she never tell if he was kidding? He made her feel so…out of control. The jerk.
“Father, leave Maggie alone.”
At Relian’s voice, Talion straightened. A sigh of relief escaped her, but she quickly masked it. “Yeah, what excellent advice. Listen to your son. Be a good elf and sit down.”
Talion stared down at her from his considerable height. “Mmm, I’m always good, which I think you’ll find out when we continue this discussion later.”
Her heart threatened to stop, while her throat strangled any retort wanting to spill out. Frustration and desire built within her until she felt like a malfunctioning boiler about to explode. She hated him—absolutely hated him.
Cal slid into the empty seat beside her and patted her shoulder before whispering, “Just ignore him. He’s only trying to get a rise out of you because he knows you’ll give him one.”
Maggie finished counting to ten. “You’re probably right, but I still want to pound his face in. Or cut all that shiny gold hair.” She glared at Talion, who stood at the next table talking to an advisor or courtier. Oh yeah, his hair would be history.
Cal gave a brisk tsk. “Oh, don’t even think about it. An elvin man’s crowning glory is his hair. Don’t give him reason to drag out the heavy artillery.”
Maggie snorted. “Bring it on.”
“Let’s not. I want to live in peace.”
“You’re no fun, Cal.”
“Someone’s got to be the responsible one. It’s certainly not you.”
Maggie picked up her wineglass and chugged down its contents. “Whatever makes you say that? I’m the soul of responsibility.”
Cal stared at the glass in Maggie’s hand. “Yeah, right. Tell that to the alcohol.”
“Pssh, it’s harmless.”
“Whatever you say.”
The doubt in Cal’s voice caused Maggie to glare at her and reach for the bottle of wine setting on the table. Avrin’s voice stopped her.
“You two are flint and tinder. The combustion is quite memorable. He’s normally courteous, but you seem to bring out the—”
“The bastard in him?”
He blinked, but it was the only hint of surprise he showed. “I guess this would be an apt description. Not that I would call his esteemed majesty any such name.”
Relian snorted from his seat next to Cal. “Maybe not in public, but behind closed doors, I’ve heard you say worse to my father’s face.”
“Ah, are you talking about me again, Avrin?” The king eased down onto his chair at the head of the table. His blue tunic stretched across broad shoulders. A silver chain at his throat highlighted the strong column of his neck.
All in all, he was one sexy elvin beast. Maggie almost slammed her forehead down on the table. It was going to be a long dinner.
Chapter 2
Light streamed through the covers Maggie had thrown over her face. She groaned. Who turned on the sun? She stretched her body then winced. Her muscles ached, and her head throbbed. What keg had she crawled into during the night? Had Kenhel been involved? Her hazy mind refused to dredge up any memories of the previous evening.
While idly scratching her leg with a toe, she froze. The sheets were silky soft. The ones on her bed were warm and cottony. Had Vana changed them without her knowledge? Well, the girl was efficient, so no surprise there. She’d gotten used to having a maid. It was the elves she couldn’t get accustomed to. Thank God, she’d avoided entanglements with most of them. The males were hot but very foreign. Let Cal have her elf. Maggie would settle for a good ole human if she ever wanted a serious relationship— but first she had to find a way out of this infernal elf-land.
The sound of someone moving around the room floated to her ears. Vana apparently couldn’t wait to get a start on her day. Dang elf made her feel lazy. Why should she get up early, though? She didn’t have anything to do but bug people she liked and avoid the ones who annoyed her. The last one could be achieved quite easily by staying in bed. Sooner or later, Cal would come to drag her out of her room.
As she shifted in bed, the ache in her head intensified. Tea and an elvin painkiller might just be the thing for it. The whisper of cloth moving over skin alerted her Vana was still in the room. “Vana, can you bring up some tea? I have a headache and don’t want to move right now.”
“I’m not surprised you have an aching head after last night.”
Alarm jackknifed through her veins. She shot up in bed, ripping the covers from her head. The voice didn’t belong to Vana. In fact, there wasn’t one feminine note in that disturbingly familiar and masculine voice. Her gaze landed on her worst nightmare. “You!”
A lazy smile came to Talion’s face as he buttoned his shirt. “Me.”
Maggie actually felt the blood drain out of her face. God, what had she done? “What are you doing here?”
“Getting dressed. It’s my room after all.”
Glancing around, she quickly took in the truth of his words. Sage-colored walls stood where cream ones should have been. Her stomach sank to her toes. Oh, this was bad. So bad.
His gaze fell to her chest, a fire kindling in those gray eyes. She looked down. The sheet had fallen to her waist, revealing her naked breasts. Hell, was that a hickey above her right nip— She yanked the sheet up to her neck and didn’t finish the thought. If she did, it would be true. And it couldn’t be. No way she’d sleep with him, no matter how much she drank. Sure, he was gorgeous, but more importantly, he was loathsome. That should trump all thoughts of attractiveness. Too bad it didn’t.
“Please, tell me we didn’t do what I think we did.”
A devilish grin spread over his face. “Hmm, that depends. We did many things last night. Many.”
Heat seeped into her cheeks. He baited her even now. The bastard. “Damn it, give me a straight answer. Did we do … that?”
“That and more.”
“Oh God, I slept with you?” The mere act of saying it pierced her disbelief and left the truth to burrow into her stomach. She slammed the back of her head into the headboard, but instead of knocking his words out of her mind, it caused pain to radiate over her scalp. She clutched her head and let her hair fall over her face so she didn’t have to see him.
“I can’t believe I slept with you. That’s totally messed up.” Liar! Intense fantasies about him and what he could do to her body had featured in her daydreams almost from the first second she’d seen him.
“You weren’t complaining last night.”
“Shut up.” She pressed a hand to her aching temple. “Always knew alcohol would be my downfall.”
The light glide of his footsteps told her he neared. Couldn’t he leave her alone? His hand pushed back her hair, and with the other, he held out a steaming cup of…something.
“Drink this. It contains a natural analgesic. You’ll feel better.”
A mirthless chuckle escaped her as she pinned him with a glare. “Nothing can make me feel better. You took advantage of me.”
His mouth tightened. “I did no such thing.”
“I was drunk.”
“Not that much.”
“Oh, yeah, right. Then how come I don’t remember last night?”
“Drink this. Then we’ll talk.”
She opened her mouth, but he cut her off. “After you take this.”
“How do I know what it is?”
He swore under his breath. “By the Mystics, woman, you’re impossible.” Lifting the cup to his lips, he took a sip. “There. Does this satisfy you?”
“Not really. But I need to know what happened, so give me that.”
“Finally coming to your senses, my dear?”
“Hardly. I just want to get this over with.”
A sardonic smile played over his lips. “It’s far from being over. Sleeping with me is now the least of your worries.”
She scowled at him and downed the vile concoction. “What are you talking about?”
He took the cup from her, and she sent it an appraising glance. Was it her, or did her headache already feel a little better?
“We’re bonded.”
The words took awhile to sink in, but when they did, ice froze her veins. The elvish equivalent of marriage? One that could last a long time and have dire consequences on them if the bond were broken? She scrambled out of the bed, almost tripping as she wrapped the sheet securely around her. “That’s a lie!”
“Is it?”
Her mind spun, but she marshaled herself. He was just trying to upset her like the prick he was. “We didn’t trade binding bracelets or have the bonding ceremony, so how can we share a soul-bond?”
His crystal gaze stabbed her mind, and a flicker of a mysterious emotion, unease maybe, crossed his face. "What do you think happens when a couple capable of forming a total soul bond consummates a relationship? Regardless of ceremony?"
Her life crumbled around her. Was there another way to become soul-bonded, one she was aware of? By sleeping with him, had she done it? Hell, no. Not possible. “In the human world, having sex with someone doesn’t make a person soul-bonded. How could I have known of this”—she made air quotes with her fingers—“other way? Don't I have to be willing and sober?”
His face settled into implacable lines. “Be that as it may in your human world, we’re still soul-bonded.”
“How do I even know you’re telling the truth?”
“What do I have to gain from lying?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe the satisfaction of seeing me squirm.”
“Watching you squirm last evening brought me more than enough satisfaction.
Her hands tightened on the sheet that secured her from his gaze. “You bastard.”
“My, my, your language is positively atrocious for a queen.”
Alarm speared through her. “I’m not your queen.”
A fire flared in his eyes. “But you are.”
She shook her head. “I don’t want the position.”
“What?”
“I don’t want to be queen.”
“As we’re bonded, you don’t get a lot of say in it.”
“Excuse me?” Maggie blinked at him, not believing he was going there. But judging by the tone of his voice, he was. Well, she wouldn’t agree. No way. Who did he think he was? Besides a king, an insidious voice chimed in her mind. Still, he wasn’t her king. And if she had her way, he never would be. Any kind of relationship with him was challenge enough without involving titles and positions of state.
She’d slept with him, but it didn’t mean she’d signed herself over to him like a parcel of land. “I don’t want the responsibility. I’m not into men that hold positions of power—so not my style.”
His voice was cruelly calm when he spoke, its very quietness telling. “I cannot separate who or what I am. When you’re with me, I’m Talion, yes, but I’m also still the King of Eria. Many women would vie to be in your position.”
At the mention of other women, something tightened in her chest, but she pushed past it. “Maybe they would, but not me. They can have it if they want it so badly.”
He gave a humorless laugh. “So you would let som
e other female usurp your place by my side?”
“By your side? You sound like you want a dog to pat on the head when you feel like it. Find someone else more pliable because that’s not me.”
He took a few steps until he towered over her.
She didn’t back away. Her pride wouldn’t allow her to be the first to back down. She met his gaze. “Stop trying to intimidate me.”
He snorted. “If you were, you’d never admit it.” With one last step, he closed the distance separating their bodies and pressed against her.
She bit back a groan. The hard muscles of his chest and legs fit perfectly against her softer curves. As the heat of his skin filtered through the thin sheet, her body threatened to melt against his. God, he felt so good. And the bulge against her stomach told her he felt the same way.
His hands ghosted over her bare arms and left goose bumps in their wake. Then his fingers trailed up her sides, and he traced the curve of her breasts. The way his smoldering gaze held hers captivated every particle of her being.
“You remember us, Maggie? How we felt joined together?”
His words shook away her haze. They inflamed her desire—and her anger. How dare he take advantage of her in a weak moment? She wouldn’t be ruled by her attraction to him.
She slapped his hands away. “Don’t touch me. You won’t be able to seduce me again. I’m not that gullible.” At least not this time.
He took a deep breath. “I didn’t seduce you. You welcomed my touch last night and came to me of your own free will.”
“Ha, excuse me if I don’t take your word for it. I was drunk and wasn’t aware of what I was doing.”
“That isn’t the reason you don’t remember.”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses. It’s over and done with.” Even as she said the words, despair coursed through her. What if they were bonded? Could it—could they—ever be truly over and done?
His shoulders stiffened, and he spoke through gritted teeth. “I’m telling the truth, you hard-headed human.”
