"I-I'm sorry," Elise stammered, putting her hand over the cut as if it could somehow stop the bleeding. The prince frowned down at her and drove the dagger into the mattress.
"You really are a terrible assassin, Elise. You're not meant to apologize for a scratch."
"Do I get points for trying?" she asked. That made him laugh and shake his head.
"No. You get punished," he replied and gripped her wrist, pulling it away from his chest and onto the bed. Elise tried to struggle again and throw him off, but it was futile. With one hand, he pinned her hands above her head, and the other gripped the front of Elise's shirt and pulled. The buttons popped open, revealing a black lace bra. It seemed to surprise and distract him, his red eyes heating the longer he stared at it.
Elise wriggled again, but a warning growl in the back of his throat made her freeze. He pulled out the dagger from the bed and pressed the tip to the skin of her chest.
Panic raced through her. "I promise I won't try and kill you again, even though you kidnapped me."
"Oh, I know you won't. I'm going to make sure of it."
"Please don't cut my tits off," she begged.
"Why would I do that?" he asked, his lips lifting in a sensual smile. "They are pleasing to look at." Elise held her breath as the tip of the blade touched the skin on the curve of her breast, making a small cut. "You cut me, I cut you."
"So we are even?" she asked, hopefully.
"Not even close. I've killed people for slighter offenses, but I'm going to make sure that you don't ever try it again." The prince lowered his head to the small amount of blood beading up from the cut and licked. Elise shuddered underneath him and not from fear.
What the hell is wrong with you?
He hummed against her skin, his sharp teeth scraping against it but not breaking it. The sound turned to a growl, and he flipped her so Elise was on top of him. She managed to scramble backward an inch before his hand clamped on her bicep and held her in place.
"Drink," he commanded. His other hand went to the back of Elise's head, pushing it towards the still bleeding cut on his chest. She pulled away, but his fingers tightened in her hair.
"No-" Elise couldn't fight him as her lips mashed onto his hot skin.
"Drink, or I'll have no choice but to kill you," he said, and she stopped fighting. Sweet liquid spring flooded her mouth, and Elise whimpered and swallowed. Burning heat and magic raced through her veins as her lips moved against his skin, savoring it. He swore when she tongued the cut again, high on the taste of him.
"Elise," he said, sitting up and loosening the grip on her hair. Elise's mouth came off him with a pop. She stared up in wide-eyed horror at what she'd done, at the desire tightening her chest. She could feel his dick hard underneath her and knew she wasn't the only one suddenly turned on by the enemy.
"Look at me," he commanded, and her eyes automatically opened, looking directly at his. "Say, 'I, Elise, will never raise my hand in violence to Prince Kian ever again.'" His magic inside of her took hold of her tongue without consent.
"I, Elise, will never raise my hand in violence to Prince Kian ever again," she whispered, her tongue curling around the feel of it. Kee-an. She had his name like he had hers. Elise raised a brow. "Your name is Kian?"
"Yes."
"And that's what I'm meant to call you?"
"Not if you want to keep breathing." He lifted her off him and did the buttons back up on her shirt. "You call me Master like everyone else." He got up and put a shirt on, the cut on his chest already closed.
And licked clean. She shook her head, still unable to believe what she'd done. What the fuck just happened?
"Are all fae vampires?" Elise asked, and his head snapped up. "You drink blood. Do the others?"
"No. Only me," Kian replied, pulling on a leather holster over his shoulders that contained a sword hanging down his back and a variety of mean-looking daggers. "And I'm not a vampire. I'm cursed. There's a difference."
"Good to know I'm not going to be cut and sucked on by everyone-" Elise began, but he was suddenly standing next to her, his hand gripping the golden cuffs around her wrists and eyes blazing with fury.
"These say you belong to me. My slave. If anyone lays a hand on you, they lose that hand." She nodded, and he let go. The prince lifted the cloak off the ground and wrapped it around her. For someone who had just claimed she was a slave, it was a strangely considerate thing to do. Elise must've looked as confused as she felt because he cursed.
"It's cold outside," he said irritably and pulled on a fur-lined black jacket. "It's time I find a use for you so you're too busy to plot ways to kill me."
"I'll make time for that," Elise whispered under her breath, but he still heard.
Kian's smile was sharp like the blades he carried. "You're always welcome to try again."
6
It was sleeting outside, and the ground was frozen solid. Elise clutched Kian's cloak around her shoulders, wishing she had proper boots on and not the fashionable ones that she only ever used for office work.
Elise stared up in terrifying awe at the hulking castle that had grown up overnight. It had six towers and looked like it had been carved from a single block of obsidian.
"Don't dawdle," snapped Kian ahead of her, and she hurried to catch up to his long strides. The small smile he'd worn in the tent was gone, and only the terrifying prince she'd met on the train remained. She still couldn't believe that she had tried to stab him, and he hadn't killed her. She had seen how ruthless he could be.
Be smart and stay alive, her father's voice echoed through her head.
The few fae that were awake bowed to the prince and stared at Elise with a mixture of curiosity and disgust. She tried to keep her eyes focused on Kian's back, his words about no one touching her oddly comforting.
Not that Elise trusted him not to kill her whenever he wanted. Just because she tried to kill him and stayed alive didn't mean she was dumb enough to think he wouldn't choose to get his revenge whenever he wanted.
I cut him. He cut me. Elise hoped that it would work the same way if she didn't try and kill him, he would let her live. It was a fool's hope, but she had to hang onto whatever kind of hope she had.
Behind the high castle walls was a large stable yard, already full of fae warriors attending to the horses. The horses were the biggest Elise had ever seen, with shaggy manes and feet. There were stone troughs next to the stalls that were big enough that she could've used them as a bath. The warriors bowed low to the prince, who gave them a nod as they walked past and in through a wooden back door.
Inside, the kitchen was a flurry of activity. Unlike the warriors, who looked more or less humanoid despite the pointed ears and horns here and there, the fae in the kitchens were more what Elise had imagined from the stories. They looked like nature had sexy liaisons with humans and ended up with wild children with leaves for hair or butterfly wings. She tried not to stare but couldn't help it.
"Oh, master! What are you doing coming in through the back door?" A short, squat fae with bark skin and unruly hair made from vines and budding flowers stood with clawed hands on her wide hips.