She’s near my desk now, close enough that I can see the pulse fluttering in her throat. Close enough that her scent is overwhelming, flooding my senses until I can barely remember my own name.
I think about King Aldric. The cautionary tale every royal child learns.
Three hundred years ago Aldric experienced the Blood Calling for a human woman. A farmer’s daughter, of all things. He claimed her anyway, made her his queen, defied the Council and everyone who told him it was madness.
He lost his throne.
The nobles revolted, pure-blood families withdrew their support and the kingdom fractured into civil war. Thousands of Krovenians perished in battle. Aldric eventually died in exile, broken and alone. His human queen had already succumbed to her slightly shorter mortal lifespan, their half-blood children were scattered across the continent, stripped of their titles and inheritance.
It’s the only recorded case of a Krovenian royal mating a human and it ended in complete disaster. I’ve been told since I was a child that Krovenian royals follow arranged marriages or the kingdom suffers, bloodlines weaken and everything our ancestors built will crumble to dust.
“The papers on the left side of the desk need to remain undisturbed.”
Claire freezes mid-motion. “I wasn’t going to touch them, Your Majesty.”
“You were looking at them.”
Guilt flashes across her face before she controls it.
Interesting.
Yesterday, before I caught her with the photograph, she had been examining my documents. I still don’t know why and I’m surprised at my own disinterest. I haven’t even bothered to alert my security team.
“I was looking at the desk,” she says carefully. “Which I need to dust. Around you.”
Would I lose my throne for this woman?
Am I willing to throw away everything my ancestors built for a human I don’t even know?
The thought should horrify me. Instead, I find myself wondering what she would taste like if I kissed her.
“Are you suggesting I’m in your way?”
She turns to face me. Meets my eyes with that defiance that makes my blood sing and my cock throb.
“No, Your Majesty. I’m suggesting nothing.”
“You’re a poor liar.”
“I’m an excellent liar, actually. I’m just choosing not to lie right now.”
Gods help me. She’s magnificent when she’s angry. My eyes drop to her mouth before I can stop myself. Those soft, pink lips, slightly parted. I think about kissing her. Biting her lower lip until she gasps. Sinking my fangs into her throat while I sink my cock into her wet heat and?—
I force myself to look away and slam the door shut on those thoughts.
“Are you staring at my breasts?”
Heat rushes up my neck as I look up to meet her gaze.
She places a hand on her hip, her eyes narrowing. “You were also staring at my ass earlier. What is going on here?” she questions.
“Nothing,” I clip. “You are working and I am also trying to work. Finish your duties and leave.”
A snort escapes her lips as she moves away, but she does not leave the suite. Claire instead returns to the bookshelves on the far side of the room. And I suspect she sways her hips intentionally as she moves.
The guilt gnaws at me. Yesterday I called her species stupid and unworthy of my goodwill. I was lashing out, trying to create distance and make her run away before I did something I couldn’t take back. Instead, she called me an arrogant, condescending asshole and stood her ground.
Humans aren’t stupid. I’ve gone to university with them and have known many humans my whole life. I respect her species. Anger felt safer than this terrifying, all-consuming need. She should hate me for what I said and request a transfer and disappear from my life forever. But she keeps showing up, meeting my eyes like she’s not afraid of anything.
