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“Yes.”

“I see.”

He’d somehow managed to get closer to her without her realizing it, and Tessa tensed. Theon noted the small movement as he said, “This works well for both of us. I was not planning on staying for the feast either.”

“What?” Tessa said, taken aback by that news. “But we need to eat.”

“You just told me you were not planning to eat here.”

“That was before I knew I’d be served first. Right after the heirs.”

“So…you are hungry?” Theon asked, cocking his head to the side and studying her as if he couldn’t figure out a puzzle.

“Yes. I’m hungry. You took my chocolate,” she snapped, and Theon’s eyes widened at her tone. “My apologies,” she added quickly, lowering her gaze to the floor.

“No need to apologize. It is good to know you get irritable when you are hungry.”

Her eyes snapped up at his almost teasing tone, and she found him standing directly in front of her. She gasped in surprise, bumping back against the wall and tripping on her dress.

“Easy, beautiful,” he murmured, reaching out to steady her. “Come sit. Have a glass of water.”

Theon led her over to the small table and guided her into a chair before pouring her a glass of water from the pitcher. He handed it to her, and she took a small sip, wishing it was something with a much higher alcohol content. He continued to study her, and she shifted under his gaze, her eyes darting around the room. Why weren’t there any windows in here?

“What do we do now?” she finally asked.

“We should discuss what is going to happen this evening.”

“Which is?”

“The initiation of the Source bond and the first Mark.”

“I thought the first Mark was the initiation,” Tessa said, sipping the water again.

Theon shook his head slowly, holding her stare. “Your body is not ready to accept the Marks yet.”

“Okay… How do I make it ready?” Her knee was bouncing, unable to contain her nerves, and Theon’s attention flicked to the movement. She instantly stopped.

“I will help with that,” he answered, stepping forward so their legs were nearly touching. He slowly crouched before her until he was looking up into her face. “Part of this bond is that you need to trust me implicitly, Tessa.”

“But I don’t even know you,” Tessa argued. “And I definitely don’t trust you.”

“That was…blunt.”

“You told me not to lie to you.”

His lips twitched as if amused, which was good, because she was essentially talking back to the Arius Heir. She didn’t give much thought to self-preservation a lot of the time, but this was pushing it, even for her.

“Indeed I did,” he agreed. “But the bond tends to rush things like trust along. Once completed in its entirety, we will be connected so deeply, you will feel as if we are the same person. Our wants and desires will be the same.”

Tessa knew that, and she hated it. The idea of it made her feel…used. Another thing she knew all too well, and something she’d sworn she’d never be again. Yet here she was.

“I know you do not trust me right now, Tessa, and what I am about to do will likely not help with that,” Theon continued.

“What are you going to do?” she demanded, lurching back in her chair and knocking the water glass over.

“Relax, Tessa,” Theon said, pushing to his feet and moving to grab a towel to soak up the water. Once cleaned up, he leaned back against the small table. “To prepare your body for the Marks, a tonic was created. It does a couple things, but the main thing it does is it allows my power to slip through the magical barriers you have no control over yet to allow my magic in.”

“That doesn’t make sense. I can’t access my magic yet,” Tessa said, her hands gripping the arms of her chair and her knee bouncing again.