The scent of bacon, syrup, and fresh fruit made her mouth water and her stomach rumble. Unlike other harpies, she didn’t have to steal her food in order to prevent sickness. A perk of being a royal phantom.
“Well? Unchain me already. Let’s feast,” she commanded, so snotty she annoyed even herself. “Apparently, we only have an hour.”
He didn’t glance her way, either, but he did stop writing. “The she-beast is hungry, is she?”
She rolled her eyes. “You do realize she-beast isn’t an insult to me, yes? It’s a compliment. But yeah, I’m hungry.”
That snared his attention. He set the notebook aside, asking, “Do you want food or the Phoenix I mentioned? Or both?”
“Food.” And maybe soul, just not the Phoenix’s.
“Very well.” Roux stood and breathed deep, as if steeling himself for a coming blow. He popped the bones in his neck and rolled back his shoulders. Muscles andalevalarippled before her eyes.
Mmm, mmm, mmm. Look at those washboard abs.
Dang. Ogling him now? Trying to ignore her fluttering belly, she quickly averted her gaze. So he had a physique sculpted from fantasies and power? So what? She had no interest in bedding him. Nope. None. Like any harpy who’d lost her beloved consort, Blythe was dead from the neck down.
Well, mostly dead. On the verge, anyway. Perhaps a libido took time to wither completely? Yes, yes. That must be it. Her foe’s incredible strength had nothing to do with anything. This was simply her body’s last-ditch effort to revive.
From the corner of her eye, she watched as Roux swiped up the tray closest to him and dragged the stool at the desk to the foot of the bed. He eased atop the stool’s rounded top and balanced their breakfast on his lap.
Did he think to feed her by hand? “No way,” she spat, facing him. Too intimate! Too reminiscent of the time she’d had no memory of their past. She’d sat on him, in total lust with his ferocity, feeling as if she’d stumbled upon a treasure of untold riches, delighting in his reaction to her teasing.
“If you wish to eat this food, yes way,” he said. His pupils immediately pulsed, momentarily covering his irises. Twoalevalajumped, switching places.
Ohhhh. What was this? Was he fighting a battle within himself again?
Wasshe? Blythe realized she was panting ever so slightly. Panting. With desire. For him. So close she had only to reach out to touch him...
No! No, no, no. The desire wasn’t for him but sex. There was a difference.
Desperate to eradicate the tension in the air and prove herself right, she rushed out, “Why don’t we bargain?” She would do almost anything to avoid having his fingers near her mouth.
His gaze dropped to her lips, and his lids turned heavy, sinking to half-mast. A good look for him. “There’s no need. Without an Oath Stone, I cannot trust you to keep your end of an agreement.”
The tension thickened. Irritated, she snapped, “That sounds like ayouprob—”
He shoved a strawberry onto her tongue, silencing her. A heated protest dissolved as the sweet juice awoke her taste buds.
After she swallowed, she tried again. “Look. I decided not to—” The tanginess of pineapple hit her awareness, and she moaned. His scent in her nose deepened the richness of the flavors.
“See. No need.”
Okay. At this rate, they’d get nowhere. Blythe did the only thing she could. She kicked the tray from his lap before he could feed her anything else. Instant outburster’s remorse! Bye-bye pineapple. Bye-bye strawberry.
Roux looked at the food splattered over the floor, then her, then the food, then her. He blanked his expression. “Very well. You may go hungry. Act like a she-beast, and you’ll be treated like one.”
When he made to rise, she slammed her foot atop his shoulder to hold him down. “Unchain me, and I’ll act like a mildly mature human adult. I’ll stay put. I promise. Consider this a test run for my level of honesty. While we eat, each feedingourselves, we can exchange questions.” Win-win for her. There were mysteries she longed to decipher. Also, freedom!
He arched a brow. “You think there’s something about you I wish to know?”
“Yes.” A confident statement. “I’m the daughter of your worst enemy, and I’ve had more dealings with Erebus than anyone you’ve ever met. You must be curious to learn his greatest weaknesses. Or perhaps you’d like to learn the plans I’m privy to.”
Roux snorted. “And you’ll tell me all without lying, yes? Me, the male you despise.”
“Well, yeah. Why not? Daddy Dearest arranged for my passage here, only to betray me. I’m looking forward to returning the favor. Also—see! You have questions. In a show of good faith, I’ll answer this one for free. Erebus is the reason I’m wearing a wraith’s jewel with my see-through jammies.”
When she angled her metal-bound wrists to trail a blunt-tipped claw down the center of the ruby, he followed the action with his gaze and gulped.Got him!“What do you say?”