But I push that thought away as servants arrive to show me to my new home. Tomorrow will bring the real beginning of my education in fertility magic.
Tonight, I get to sleep in a palace, finally recognized for exactly what I'm worth.
What could be more perfect?
CHAPTER 6
THORIAN
Maya followsme through corridors that pulse with living light, her dark eyes wide as she takes in the impossible beauty surrounding us. Flowering vines cascade down marble walls, their blooms responding to my presence with brighter colors, stronger scents. The palace recognizes its king, even as I lead my prey deeper into the heart of my domain.
She has no idea what she's just agreed to.
"These quarters are magnificent," she breathes, stopping in the doorway of what will become her beautiful prison. The Scholar's Wing offers luxury beyond anything her human world could provide—silks and crystals, books worth more than most university libraries, windows overlooking gardens that defy every law of nature.
"I'm glad you approve." I step closer, watching her pulse flutter at my proximity. Even now, after the magical reading that left her trembling, she gravitates toward me like a flower turning toward the sun. "Your comfort is very important to me, Maya."
The way I say her name makes her breath catch. Perfect. The bond between us strengthens with every interaction, every moment of trust she offers so freely.
"When do we begin the actual research?" she asks, setting her small travel bag on the massive bed. The sight of her belongings in my space sends satisfaction curling through my chest. She's here. She's mine. Now comes the delicate work of ensuring she stays that way.
"Tomorrow we'll begin your orientation," I say, moving to the window that carefully avoids showing the memorial garden. Seven headstones gleam white in the moonlight beyond the rose gardens, but from this angle, Maya can't see them. "Tonight you rest and adjust to our magical environment."
Maya joins me at the window, close enough that I can smell her virgin scent—clean and untouched, with an underlying sweetness that makes my cock stir despite eight centuries of discipline. She has no idea what that innocence costs, what it makes her worth to me. Her small body radiates heat, and I have to clench my hands to keep from reaching for her.
The size difference between us is staggering. She barely reaches my chest, so delicate I could snap her in half without effort. The thought shouldn't arouse me, but it does—imagining how perfectly she'd fit beneath me, how completely I could cover her with my much larger frame.
"The gardens are incredible," she murmurs. "Everything blooms so perfectly here."
"The concentration of fertility magic creates ideal growing conditions," I explain, which is true enough. "We've cultivated this environment for centuries."
She turns from the window, and the trust in her dark eyes twists something sharp in my chest. She believes she's here for academic collaboration. Believes I value her mind, her research, her contributions to fertility science.
All true, but not the whole truth.
"Professor Thorian," she begins, then pauses. "May I ask you something personal?"
"Of course." I lean against the window frame, deliberately casual. Let her think we're colleagues, equals in this academic partnership.
"Why me? I mean, there are researchers with decades more experience, universities with better funding, scholars with established reputations." Her insecurity bleeds through every word. "What made you choose someone so... ordinary?"
Ordinary. The word she uses for herself makes my hands clench. Maya Nakamura is many things—brilliant, vulnerable, desperate for recognition—but ordinary isn't one of them. Her bloodline compatibility readings were off every scale we use. Her omega markers practically glow with potential. Her virgin biology offers possibilities that experienced women simply can't provide.
She's the most valuable person in this palace, and she thinks she's unremarkable.
"Maya." I step closer, watching her pupils dilate as my presence affects her. "You're here because you're exactly what we've been searching for. Not ordinary—extraordinary in ways you can't imagine yet."
She flushes at the praise, that desperate hunger for recognition surfacing immediately. So easy to satisfy, so grateful for the smallest crumb of validation.
"The fellowship involves more than traditional research," I continue, settling into the chair across from her small sitting area. "The magical work we'll be doing requires your complete participation. Not just intellectual—personal."
"Personal?" Her voice takes on a note of caution that suggests she's not as naive as I hoped.
"Fertility magic requires living subjects to study. The growth work we'll be observing needs to be tested on compatible biology." I keep my tone academic, professional. Just a professor explaining complex theories to his eager student.
"You mean I'd be participating in the actual magical research? Not just documenting it?"
"Exactly." I lean forward, letting my presence wash over her. "The magical growth we study here enhances the subject as much as the plant specimens. Increased fertility, deeper connection to natural magical processes, stronger affinity with the life forces we harness."
