Page 37

The bandage on my palm stayed in place. I’d rolled my jumper sleeve above my right wrist instead. There was no open wound there, which meant he would have to bite me.

I stopped outside his reach and wrapped my left hand around the loose length of chain attached to his restrained wrist. The iron was warm. If I pulled it hard, I could drag his arm away from me.

Stellan looked at my bare wrist. His free hand flattened against the stone.

“I’m going to feed you.”

“Tell me why.”

He wasn’t asking me to defend myself. Hunger had stripped the charm from his voice, leaving the question plain.

“You’re the only person down here who knows what Adrian is and how this court works. If you lose control, I’m trapped with a starving vampire. If you die, I’m alone with a Crown that keeps trying to put itself on my head. Feeding you gives both of us a better chance. I also want to know what the bite feels like, but curiosity isn’t making the decision.”

Stellan held my gaze. “That’s honest. Hold on to that reason. The bite may make the pleasure stronger than you expect, so if you want me to stop, pull away.”

“How much reaches through the bond?”

“I’ll feel fear, pain, pleasure and when your body begins to tire. I’ll know whether you’re moving towards me or trying to get away. You’ll feel my hunger, pleasure and relief. The strongest part fades once my mouth leaves your skin. No thoughts, and no control in either direction.”

I took that in without moving. “Good. Tell me where you want me.”

His gaze travelled over me. “You understand that I’m trying very hard not to answer that honestly.”

“Try harder.”

A trace of amusement touched his mouth. It vanished when another wave of hunger tightened his body.

“Come to my right,” he said. His voice had gone rough. “Kneel at the edge of the dais and keep hold of the chain. Don’t put yourself between my knees.”

I moved to his right and lowered myself onto the stone. The dais was high enough to bring my face level with his chest. I stayed close to the edge, with one knee still on the floor.

His free hand remained flat beside him.

“Closer,” he said.

I shifted forwards until his knee touched my hip.

The contact sent a warm pull through my stomach. Stellan felt it. His nostrils flared, and the red in his eyes darkened.

“If you tell me to go back to the bedroom now, I may hit you with your own chain.”

“I want your blood far too much to pretend this is noble restraint.” He turned his hand over on the stone. “Give me your wrist.”

I placed my right hand in his.

His fingers closed around mine, large and careful. He didn’t pull me closer. He turned my arm until the inside of my wrist faced him, then rested my hand against his shoulder.

“Hold on to me. The first bite may make you jerk back.”

I curled my fingers into his shirt.

The amusement returned, warmer this time. It made him look less like a starving king and more like the dangerous man who had been watching my mouth since I entered the court.

He lifted my wrist.

His lips touched my pulse first.

The contact was gentle. The reaction wasn’t.