Page 66 of Happily Ever Crowned (Underworld Royals 1)

“Is that what you’re doing here?” Necros mused, lifting his head to look at me. “Looking for mischief?”

There it is—the distrust. I smiled. “Always.” Ignoring him, I nipped at the woman’s neck, hard enough to bleed. She jolted, then sighed as I ran my tongue across the superficial wound, absorbing her tangy essence. I preferred Valora’s, but I needed to do this to gain control of the female on my lap.

Riian, I thought, finally learning her name with a brief prod into her mind.

Another lap at the wound gave me access to her emotions: her intrinsic fear of Necros and her gratitude for my presence. Mmm, it seemed not even his harem enjoyed his company. Well, lucky for Riian, I’d be saving her for the evening.

I took a real bite, drinking from her pulse with a thick pull that satisfied the growing hunger inside me. It also provided me with the depth I required in her mind, one that would allow me to control her with a quick command of a thought.

She sighed against me, her body succumbing to my vampiric kiss.

I wasn’t a Son of Noxia but a Son of Shadows. And we were very closely related, both possessing the need for blood to satiate our appetites. Only, my kind required significantly less, and we tended to temporarily inherit the powers of our victims. As Riian wasn’t the first succubus of my acquaintance, I was prepared for her seductive energy and knew exactly how to tame it. But I might just bring it out later for fun with Valora.

Necros chuckled. “I like you, Adrik.”

My lips curled against Riian’s and licked the bite marks marring her pale skin. “Does that mean I can stay for a while longer? Continue my brand of mischief?” It was meant as a challenge—did he want to demand I leave, or allow me to stay and determine my motives?

“Depends on what you’ve been up to.”

I shrugged. “Training your wife, mostly.” I met his gaze. “She has a problem with authority. Seems to think her title of queen grants her some sort of right over me. We’re still working through it.”

He regarded me curiously as the women on his lap switched places, the darker-skinned female going to her knees between his splayed thighs. The poor girls were going to be doing this all night at this rate. No wonder Riian felt thankful to be seated on my lap, even if her throat hurt a little from my not-so-pleasant bite.

“I’m surprised you feel that way, what with your mother being the supreme authority in your kingdom.” He wrapped his arm around the female, pulling her to sit astride his lap and on top of the woman’s head below. “Please yourself for me, whore.”

“Yes, My Lord,” she whispered, her hand disappearing between her thighs.

A real man would take care of her himself. But Necros knew nothing about feminine pleasure, as was evidenced by his wife.

He leaned to the side to better see me, ignoring the show going on before him.

What a prick.

“Does Lux know you feel queens are beneath your station?” he asked, arching one bushy auburn brow.

I smirked. “Not all queens,” I corrected. “Just yours.”

Both his eyebrows lifted at that proclamation. “Should I be offended?”

“Hardly,” I scoffed. “I mean, surely you’ve noticed there’s nothing special about her. Aside from her beauty, of course. But it seems the galaxies only gifted her with looks, no real power. She’s as ordinary as a gremlin demon.” I tilted my head. “Isn’t that why you opted to have her trained? A woman of her stature and appeal is meant for the bedroom, but only if she knows how to behave.”

Fuck, I hated myself a little. But I needed him to believe me ignorant as to her true nature.

And from the glimmer in his irises, he did.

“I think there’s more to her than she allows us to see,” he admitted, surprising me. “It’s why I thought these games would, perhaps, awaken her.”

“Like a dormant power?” I asked, scratching the stubble dotting my jaw. I’d forgotten to shave earlier before sparring with Valora.

He lifted a shoulder. “I mean, it’s just a theory. But I thought if I scared her enough, she might, I don’t know, unlock an ability and fight for herself.”

I snorted. “Oh, she tries to fight—with words.”

“Which are useless.”

“Indeed,” I agreed. Unless she pairs them with angelfire, in which case, good luck to you. “She never feels afraid to me. Just pissed off.”

His responding grin radiated evil. “She felt fear last week.”

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