The tiniest tilt of his lips told me he was amused. And thatwas terrifying. This male was dangerous. Fire and ice. Rage and silence. A dichotomy I was only beginning to understand.
I swallowed down my drink, then put the glass at the top of the tray. “Tell me we’re not sharing.” I gestured to the steaming stew.
He lifted a brow. “I can fetch my own, but if you insist.”
A sound of disbelief slipped out of me as his mouth turned up at the corner. “I would never want to share a spoon with you. That’s disgusting.”
“We share a bond,” he pointed out, crossing his arms as he braced against the wall behind him in a move that was entirely too alluring.
“Doesn’t mean we have to share anything else,” I countered. Like this bed, though I didn’t say that part aloud for fear of speaking it into existence.
He sighed. “Is that a yes or a no?”
I wiggled the toes on my good leg while I considered. On the one hand, I didn’t want to spend any more time with him than necessary. On the other, I didn’t want someone else to try to take me. I’d beenpetrifiedwhen one attacker had pinned my legs while he sawed off the rope tying me to the cart. At least with the Issaraeth, I knew where I stood.
Those males?
Well, maybe my mate had been right and they would have hurt me before turning me in for a bounty.
So finally, I said, “If you can eat standing.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” he grunted and shoved off the wall, setting his drink on a table.
The moment the door closed behind him, I unclenched every muscle holding me still. What was it today that had my soul lurching sideways?
I picked up the spoon and dug it into the stew. Blowing on it for a moment, I waited for it to cool before taking a bite. Theseasoning was divine. Perfectly salted, with a hint of pepper among the other savory spices, the taste melted into my tongue. Along with the tender vegetables. On my second bite, I encountered a hunk of gamey meat. In this part of the forest, that likely meant a deer of some type.
I’d consumed half my bowl by the time the Issaraeth returned. He plopped another fluffy roll on my tray before retreating to the washbasin with his own meal. I kept my head down, eating until only broth remained, which I sopped up with the bread.
Afterward, I took a long drink of wine. Warmth spread through my limbs as the alcohol worked its way into my system. “Tell me, Issaraeth,” I said, draining the glass, “why you are being so kind to me. What do you want?”
He paused with the spoon halfway to his lips. Remained there as he stared at me. Finally, he dropped it back into the stew. “You are my mate.”
He said those four words like they meant something.
“So?” I pressed on, boldness sharpening my tongue. “You’re going to hand me over to your sister the moment we arrive in Sivy, are you not? So why squander what little kindness you possess on me?”
Something flashed in his eyes, and he looked away like the fire was suddenly infinitely more interesting than me.
“It’s yourduty, Issaraeth,” I reminded him.
His gaze thundered back to meet mine. His chest rose—slow and dangerous—as he set his food aside. “Do you like when I am cruel, little fugitive?”
In three swift strides, he towered over me.
“Are you addicted to pain?” Two large hands framed my head. Sinewy muscle flexed as he edged in, his face inches from mine. “Because I can make thishurt. In fact, I might enjoybreaking you with how frequently you use that mouth for your own cruelty.”
“I am not–” I started to protest, only to cut myself off with a sharp click of my teeth. I had been awful to him. I couldn’t deny the overtness of my hatred at all hours of the day. But it was only because I was protecting myself. He’d hurt so many people. He hunted me down. He was the reason my knee was broken.
And yet with him close enough to feel the brush of his stubble against my cheek, I couldn’t bring up those dark emotions. Every nerve in my body was primed like a lightning strike for the moment he might touch me. Our bond vibrated with the barest hint of restraint, like it was waiting for the moment to twist itself so tight we couldn’t possibly peel away.
“You will never break me.” The breath in my throat trembled, though the words did not.
A low, rumbling laugh raised the hairs on my arms. “We’ll see about that, little fugitive.”
Yet he didn’t retreat.
Because he wouldn’t? Or he couldn’t?
