Page 39 of King of Storms and Feathers

“Because it will amuse me. Wait too long to do as I bid, and you’ll serve me tonight in the Grand Hall, where the whole court can watch you feed me.”

Hand trembling, she swiped bread through the rich gravy, then held it in front of my mouth. Taking my time, I ate from her hand, then licked the juice from her fingers. At the first touch of my tongue, she drew backward. I narrowed my eyes in warning, wrapped my lips around her fingers and sucked again, laving her flesh.

Scraping my teeth lightly along her fingers, I eased them from my mouth and pointed to the cloth napkin on the table. “Clean the mess you made.”

She wiped her hand on her clothes and stared at the soup splattered on my lap, digging her fingernails into the outside of her thigh, something I’d noticed she did when she was cornered, her gaze remaining blank and distant.

My pulse quickened as I crossed my arms and awaited her next move. Picking up the bowl, she tipped the rest of the soup into my lap.

With a snarl, I seized her wrist. “Now that wasn’t very nice of you, was it?”

She stumbled backward, staring at me with wide eyes and the scent of fear emanating from her pores. A lick of heat burned in my gut. It took all of my resolve not to throw her over my shoulder and carry her to my bedchamber.

Slowly, I wiped the soup from my lap, then placed the napkin on the table. With my chin still angled down, I looked at her. “Run,” I whispered.

Without a word, she fled down the stairs to the river room. The chain dragging between her feet barely hindered her progress. I should order it shortened, but the truth was I liked to see her limbs free and body mobile. All the more fun to catch.

My chair crashed across the floor as I leaped to my feet, my hunter’s instincts roaring for me to give a quick and brutal chase. But I repressed the power firing in my veins and stalked slowly down the stairs instead.

Sunlight slanted over the rocks and plants surrounding the river. Other than the soft cooing of the auron kanara, traffic noises drifting up from the street below, and the gentle rush of the water, all was quiet.

I stopped near the water’s edge, widened my stance, and scanned the room, listening for the girl’s staccato heartbeats.

The air sizzled as clouds left the mountains and sped toward my dome-topped apartment, summoned by my heightened emotions.

“Not now,” I mumbled, shifting my focus to keep the storm from breaking. The elements obeyed, clouds retreating, and I switched my attention back to the girl. “Where are you, little Leaf?”

Moving broad leaves aside, I prowled through the vegetation, hunting my prey, taunting and teasing her as I went, savoring the game. I inhaled deeply, seeking her scent. Yes. Found her. She was hiding behind a thick copse of ferns on the other side of the river. Triumph swelled in my chest.

“No matter where you hide, I will always find you,” I reminded her.

Crossing the low footbridge, I made sure she heard me approach, not bothering to soften my steps. Leaves rustled, then she burst out of the garden and leaped into the river. She splashed to the other side, climbed out, then raced over the bridge toward the ledge that the bathroom perched on.

I broke into a run, catching her on the threshold. “There’s nowhere to hide in there,” I said, sweeping my arms around her waist, then swinging her over my shoulder.

With one hand, I gripped her ass firmly, snatching a bunch of grapes from a platter on a sideboard as I passed. I settled on a couch under a palm tree with a view through the open arches of the golden desert and let my shoulders sink back into a pile of cushions. Dragging Leaf forward until she straddled my waist, I grinned, then placed the grapes on my chest.

She stared at them with raw hunger, the way I aimed to make her look at me.

“Stay still,” I said, gripping her hips when she struggled, the chain between her ankles cool across my legs. “There’s no point fighting the inevitable. When will you learn?”

She huffed, wriggling once more, the warm center of her body an exquisite torture against my stomach. Breath ragged, anger blazed in her eyes.

“You must be weak with hunger. Does it pain you?” I asked, fighting a smile.

“As if you care. You’re the king. I assume you’ve never gone without food or water for longer than an hour in your entire life. But I’m fine. Thanks for asking.”

She didn’t sound very grateful.

And she was wrong. As children, all Light Court fae trained as warriors, and none suffered deprivations more than the princes and princesses of our realm. To be assets to the crown and help our family rule, we needed to be strong, never weak, and able to survive the harshest of conditions.

I plucked two grapes from the bunch and ate them slowly.

Moistening her lips with her tongue, she stared at my mouth.

“Since you’re fine, I suppose I’ll eat them myself.”

“I am hungry,” she admitted.

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