“Shae?”
She spun around. Dagan stepped into the room. “I was looking foryou.”
“And you foundme.”
Amusement brightened his eyes at her comment. He strode across, put his mouth on hers, and kissed her. But her heart was too heavy to enjoy it. He eased back, his gaze searching hers. “What’swrong?”
Tell him she’dseenhis encounter with that horrible goddess? Everything inside her rebelled at that thought, but she had to. If she didn’t, it would fester inside her and cause a rift between them. And they already had one thing that hung like a black cloud betweenthem.
She pushed away from him and wandered to the window overlooking the back courtyard, rubbing the chills spreading over her arms. “Last night, my dream…” After an emotion-laden pause, she faced him. “It wasn’t about my dad. I saw you withher. With Kaerys. Inthisroom.”
Instantly, his expression shut down. “Whatelse?”
Shae bit her lip, hating to reveal what she’d seen, more, loathing that he’d been with the goddess inthatway for so many centuries. It took everything in her not to rub the piercing ache in her heart. “She said you knew what she wanted, and if you gave her everything, then you could have what youneeded.”
A nerve jumped on his rigid jaw. He leaned against the table, gaze lowered to his sneakers. But she’d seen the anger in hiseyes.
“She wouldn’t let you feed because you wouldn’t sleep withher?”
“I’m sorry you had to seethat.”
Hewas apologizing? “You didn’t ask for any of that to happen toyou.”
Silence lengthened dark and heavy. Just when she thought he wouldn’t speak, his gaze lifted to hers. The shame there—God, to see her big, brave warrior so utterly humiliated stole herbreath.
“When I finally realized I could only feed from immortal females without killing, Michael arranged for a few to be donors. But they wouldn’t come. Only Kaerys did. She refused any monetarypayment—”
“Because she wantedyou.”
He nodded. “I thought it a small price to pay until she started using it to controlme…”
“Why would she dothat?”
His mouth tightened briefly. “Resentment because I ended ourbetrothal.”
They’d been engaged? Shock held her immobile. Of course, he would have had someone.He’s centuries old for Christ’s sake.But that his ex was still in the picture…the hole in her stomachdeepened.
“My grandsire, An, is the ruling god of the Sumerian pantheon,” he said then. “It was an unpardonable thing Idid.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re…likeroyalty?
A terse nod. “I was with Kaerys for a while. She wanted a commitment, so I agreed to the betrothal. Except my sister, Inara, became the Goddess of Life, and I her protector. Away from home, I realized my life would never be my own, so I broke off the arrangement, wanted her to find a male moresuited.”
“But she didn’t want that. She wanted you and what yourepresented.”
“Perhaps.” He exhaled heavily. “I realize now, had I mated her, I would have missed out on finding my destined mate. Despite the dark path my life took, it led me to you. For that—hell, I never thought I’d be grateful to the damn Fates foranything.”
Her eyes misted at his words. “And your obsidian dagger stayed with me when I first usedit.”
“Yes. Only the Guardians possess those blades, a gift from Gaia. We had no idea what it meant then, thought it just another weapon to aid us. Her cryptic words didn’t help mucheither.”
“What do youmean?”
His gaze drifted over her face. “Gaia called it, theembodiment of my oneweakness.”
She was his weakness? Her smile trembled, and her heart expanded at his words, then dipped. She didn’t want to be his weakness. If anything, she longed to be hisstrength.
Straightening her backbone, she crossed to him, stopping an inch from his foot. “Dagan… Feed from me.Please.”
