Page 131 of Bound to the Shadow Prince

“I never abandoned you. Never. Not once.” He slides a hand under my chin and tilts my head up. “You look unwell. Is it the child? Have you eaten?”

As if his reminder saps all the strength out of me, my head spins. I try to push the dizziness aside so I can gaze on his gorgeous face for all eternity, because I never want to look away. “I have one dose left,” I tell him. “Saving it. And no, I haven’t eaten. Nothing to eat.”

Nemeth shakes his head, cradling me against him again, and I find my face shoved into the crook of his neck. “I’m going to get these bodies out of here, and then I’m going to give you your potion, love. And then we’re going to eat.”

“You’re not listening,” I say, voice muffled against his neck. “There’s nothing to eat?—”

“There’s always something to eat.”

I gasp. “You want to eat the dead humans?”

Nemeth snorts, giving me a funny look. “Of course not. We’re going to eat the horse they just killed.”

Oh. Well, that makes a lot more sense than my theory. Even so, my stomach roils uncomfortably at the thought. “I’m not sure I can.”

“I’ll make it into a stew,” he tells me, voice stern. “And you’ll eat.”

I…guess I’m eating horse. Because the look on Nemeth’s face tells me whatever argument I have, I won’t win.

Chapter

Sixty-Six

Ashort time later, I have my arm folded over and I’m leaning back in the chair by the fire. My head is spinning and I’m dizzy, but there’s a comforting edge to it because I know it’s from my potion, the very last dose I had. I don’t know what we’re going to do tomorrow, but I suppose that’s tomorrow’s problem. Nearby, Nemeth fusses with the small cook-pot over the fire. We found some spices in the kitchen, along with salt, and I have to admit that even though I’m not excited about eating horse, it smells utterly divine. My mouth waters constantly and I watch my mate with sleepy, blurry eyes.

He looks so good. I could stare at him all day and all night, just admiring the strong lines of his back. His kilt is water-stained and the leather distorted, the decorative straps no longer lying flat. They part across his backside, revealing the short stump of a tail that he’s so prudish over. His wings are folded up neat, the wing-points framing his head, and he just looks so familiar and cozy that I want to stay in this moment forever. Just me, drowsy with a hit of medication, and Nemeth fussing over a delicious-smelling meal and sneaking glances back at me while rain patters away on the roof.

“How did you find us?” I ask him when he dips a wooden spoon into the pot and tastes the stew. “Was it magic?”

Nemeth glances back at me. “I told you, Candra. I never lost you. I’ve been following this entire time.”

The words don’t make sense to me, no matter how many times I turn them over in my head. “I don’t understand. What do you mean you were following?”

“We were talking, remember? In the cottage?” He licks the spoon, then dips it into the pot once more, and then blows on the steaming contents to cool them. He holds it out to me, an offering, his other hand underneath. Reluctantly, I lean forward to eat and the meat is tough, but it’s delicious. My stomach cramps hard with hunger and I nod at him. He takes the spoon back and then stirs the pot once more. “Not too much longer. We’ll let it cook down a bit more, soften the meat.”

“Nemeth,” I chide. “Don’t change the subject.”

“I’m not. But feeding you is first and foremost in my mind.” He turns his head and gives me a wry smile. “Everything about you is first and foremost in my mind.” He stirs the meat again, then lets the spoon rest against the side of the pot. “Something broke my perimeter spell, and I gathered shadows to investigate.”

“Perimeter spell?” I frown. “This is the first I’ve heard of such a thing. What is it?”

“Magic, of course. It’s a type of enchantment that allows me to watch over the periphery of an object. You know the old battle saying that you can never sneak up on a Fellian?”

“No.” I give my lover an amused look. “I’m not up to date on my battle sayings, I’m afraid.”

“Ah.” He rubs one ear, looking embarrassed. “Well, we like humans to think it’s because of our shadow magic, but it’s truly due to enchantments. You can never sneak up on a Fellian because most of us have a perimeter ward upon our belt buckle.”And he gives his a pat. “The moment someone comes close, it makes a strident noise that only I can hear and alerts me that there’s an intruder. I cast another perimeter spell upon my food stores back in the tower, too. You’ll recall I caught you sniffing around?”

“I never stole from you!”

“Aye, I know you didn’t, love. But at the time I didn’t know you well. So…a perimeter spell. We were in the cottage, and I heard the noise of someone approaching, and I slipped into shadows to see who it was. When I saw it was the humans, I kept to the shadows, ready to attack…and then I saw that they had horses.”

My stomach gives a funny, uncomfortable little flip.

Nemeth’s expression is uneasy. He won’t look me fully in the eye as he continues. “And I saw those horses, and it made me pause. Because we weren’t going to reach the human settlement before you ran out of medicine. I knew I couldn’t fly you there, and so I made a choice.”

“Nemeth,no.” I’m horrified. He left me with those men deliberately?

“I couldn’t let you die, Candra.”

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