Page 70 of Queen Takes King
I yearned to taste her again. Her blood, bright crystal on my tongue. Pure, sweet water after centuries of drought. Her passion like a hot, flickering flame on myskin.
It had been solong.
So fuckinglong.
And I was only a man now. A man who burned to touch the woman who had savedhim.
It would be so much easier to hate her if she would command me to bare my throat on my knees, force me to feed her, and order me to her bed. Then I could fuel my rage and despise her like every other queen beforeher.
I wanted to hate her. Ineededto hateher.
Because I didn’t want to loveher.
As the sun set, I felt her awaken. Excitement rose in her bond, mixed with nerves. She wanted to form a nest, but she’d never seen or lived in one to know how it was done or what it would feel like. Her nervous energy tugged on me like a leash, drawing me to her. To them. Her Blood could not bear to be out of her sight forlong.
Even me. As much as that thought churned mystomach.
I wanted to feel her fangs in my throat again and remember the sensation of soaring through the night sky, piercing the clouds, impossibly high, only to fall in a death spiral toward theearth.
She’d saved me once. Would she be able to save me again? Would she care enough to try, or toss me aside like rubbish and leave me to rot as Ideserved?
Three of her Blood glared at me as I approached, but the alpha only nodded once in acknowledgment. He didn’t puff up his chest or growl or even block my approach. All things Iexpected.
He was young, though big and strong. He ought to be, since he was well-fed on our powerful young queen’s blood. I didn’t know his history—didn’t care to—but I’d bend knee right here and beg for a taste of the honey between her thighs if he’d ever served a queen before. He wouldn’t realize exactly how much power Shara Isadorwielded.
:I know full well our queen is already mighty enough to rival the Triune, and she’s still growing inpower.:
I blinked, surprised that he’d spoken directly into my mind. I hadn’t had his blood, nor he mine. So for him to touch me soeasily…
Shara looked at me, her dark eyes shining with a midnight sky sparkling with million stars. Her bonds were so deep and strong that even her alpha could touch us all whether we’d shared blood or not. A sobering thought, not that I intended any secret mayhem.Yet.
The feline Blood snorted with disgust. “We all fully expect you to be plotting mayhem as wespeak.”
Correction. All her Blood could sense each other’s thoughts. Even mine, the new one, who’d only tasted the queen once. She held my gaze, and I knew she was privy to my doubts. She’d heard me ranting and raving inside my own head, clinging to my hate, even while thirst burned like a white-hot flame in mygut.
Yet she said nothing to me as she turned away. “So, how do I do this,exactly?”
The alpha signaled one of the older Blood, the one who moved like a medieval knight. I would have had a very good time chomping on knights if I hadn’t been locked away. I didn’t bother hiding that thought, and the man’s eyes narrowed, though he didn’t grace me with a retort or directlook.
“Guillaume is going to walk you through it, since he’s participated in establishing a new nest from scratch,” the alpha said. “But it’s basically like the salt circles you used when we first found you, only you use bloodinstead.”
“Mine?”
“And ours,” Guillaume said. “You’re the power. We’re the deterrent. The most important thing to remember is that whatever you start, we have to finish, or it’s useless. If you make the circle too large, we may not be able to close it before one of us faints or needs to be fed. This first circle, I think we all should participate.” He did give me a stern look then. I barely held back a smirk, though I’m sure he felt my disdain in the bond. “Then each time we walk the perimeter to guard your nest, we’ll add blood to it. We’ll constantly strengthen and expand your defenses. But this first time is crucial. This will be the heart of your nest, the tightest, safest, most secure part of yourcourt.”
“So it needs to be big… but not too big,” she mused aloud, looking up at the main house. “I’m feeling better. Good, actually. How much blood do I actually need to put on the ground? A solid line? Ordrops?”
“Drops are enough, but the more you do, the better, as long as you complete thecircle.”
She held her hand out and Guillaume made a blade appear in his hand like a magician. Yet the knighthesitated.
“I feel I should warn you about the… sideeffects.”
“Yeah, I don’t want any of us tofaint.”
He coughed, a slight smile curving his lips. “Indeed, my queen, but that’s not what I meant. You know what your blood does tous.”
“And what our blood does to you.” The alpha’s voice dropped an octave. “Plus, you’ll be building power into the nest. A great deal ofpower.”
