Chapter Five
He pulled her to her feet and helped her to the bed. He brushed her hair aside and then he licked the trail of blood off her neck. He licked and sucked every last drop that had stained her skin. She didn’t fight him. Instead, she turned her head to the side and a soft moan fell from her lips. Alastair struggled to control himself as he tasted her alabaster neck. He could feel the thump of her heart on his tongue, her blood made him salivate. He bared his fangs, but stopped short of piercing her skin.
“I’m so very confused,” Avery said weakly as her eyes grew heavy.
“I know,” Alastair answered, his hand took hers and he squeezed. “Sleep now. I will answer your questions in the morning.”
He drank blood from a chalice and watched her sleep. Her dress slipped, revealing her bare shoulder and he traced his hand along it, all the way to her neck. Her wonderful, soft neck. The sound of her breath was like music.
She woke the next day and was able to walk around. Sitting up in bed, she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and looked at him sheepishly.
“Good morning,” he smiled. A plate of food had been set out for her and she dug into it with relish, biting into the eggs and tearing the bread with her teeth. Her every movement captivated him. He could have easily sat and watched her all day.
“Good morning, My Lord,” she replied.
He walked over to the edge of the bed and sat down next to her. “I apologize for the Princess’s actions the other day. I had intended to keep you a secret here for your protection, but you must be very careful in the palace. There are spies everywhere and Myrcel is not pleased. But I don’t want you to worry,” he said, cupping her cheek with his hand. “I am the Crown Prince and I will let no one harm you.”
She nodded and smiled up at him, before returning to her food. “What are you doing, My Lord?” she asked nodding towards his table covered in maps and scrolls.
“Working,” he said with a shrug. “Managing a kingdom is a heavy burden.”
With a blanket draped around her shoulders, she stood and walked over to the table. He wanted her to get back into bed. Her skin was still pale and there were bruises under her eyes. She swayed when she stood up, taking a moment to gather her balance.
She stood over the table and traced her delicate human finger over the roads through The Sands. The Sands were the southernmost part of the Kingdom. Most of it was desert, but there were valuable mines that had added to his father’s wealth.
“Your map is out of date, My Lord,” she said tilting her head to the side. He stood up and walked to stand next to her. She was so close he could smell her sweet, human scent. He wanted to kiss her, to gather her up in her arms.
“What do you mean?” he asked as he stared down at the maps. “My father’s mapmaker was just there last season to update the maps. He personally travelled down each of these roads and made these reports.”
She gave him a knowing look and said, “Did he actually do it? Or did he just take the money and say he did it? The roads of The Sands are long and harsh. We travelled through them last summer. It was horrible. Just the desert as far as the eye could see. It was sweltering during the day and freezing at night. We did not have enough water to bathe or cook properly. It took us weeks to get through it,” Avery shuddered at the memory, pulling the blanket tighter around her shoulders.
“This road here,” she said pointing to a narrow lane that wove around a tall mountain, “is impassable. There must have been a mudslide or something, as the road is blocked by giant boulders. It took us four hours to go around them.”
He watched her finger as it moved over the map. He leaned down over the map with her. Her face and neck only inches from his mouth. He could not stop himself, he brought his hand up and placed it on her lower back, letting it rest there.
“There’s another road here,” she said, pointing farther north. “It’s not on your map, but it’s controlled by bandits. They demanded seven gold pieces to let us pass. My father-” she stopped suddenly and pulled her hand away from the map, pulling herself in and holding the blanket tighter.
“Your father what?” Alastair asked. He did not want her to stop speaking. He wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know that she didn't hate him for killing her father.
She shook her head and took a deep shaky breath, “We were pooling our money together to pay them. Everyone was putting in an equal share. But my father didn’t want to, he resented it. He...he offered them me instead.”
Anger rose in his chest. It was a furious, righteous anger. If only he had known, he would have made the man suffer more. He hadn’t deserved such a quick end. He deserved pain and then even more pain until he finally broke.
“Thank the Gods the men had a harem at their camp,” she said, her voice catching in her throat as she struggled to keep from crying. “They weren’t interested in me. I paid my father’s share instead and we were allowed to pass.”
“I’m sorry,” Alastair said. He tightened his grip on her and slowly pulled her towards him until she was facing him. A tear slipped down her cheek and he brushed it away with his thumb. “You needn’t fear him anymore. He’s dead and you are safe with me.”
“Am I?” she asked, her grey eyes staring into his. “Why am I here?”
“Because I want you here,” he said.
She looked at him in confusion. Was it possible she had no idea how sublime she was? Did she not understand what she did to him? He wanted her at every moment of every day. The thought of living without her was impossible. He had only tasted her, but it hadn’t been enough.
He wanted to lie with her. He wanted to spoil her. His little nomad, he wanted to worship her body.
She looked at him and then understanding came to her face. Her grey eyes shone in the firelight. It was night. Outside the ocean was crashing against the shore. It all merged together into one glorious sensation.
Her eyes never left his. She let the blanket fall from her shoulders and his heart skipped a beat as he looked at her. Her hair was wrapped up in a bun and she released it, letting the soft dark curls fall around her shoulders. She was wearing a simple dress and he knew there was a thin shift underneath.
She licked her lips and then it was too much. He reached towards her wrapping her in his arms and pulling her in for a deep long kiss.