Page 2

There was a feast, and various people toasted Luken, wishing him happiness in his marriage. Some of them tacked me onto the end, but I was just a prop in this game. I didn’t say anything; I just smiled as Luken said his thanks and made speeches of his own. We wouldn’t be presented to the public until tomorrow, but I didn’t have a moment’s respite from the many eyes on me as the day wore to night.

Finally, we rescinded to the ballroom. Luken took my hand and pulled me into the center of the floor. Everyone stared at us as the music started to play.

“What is this?” I asked as Luken pulled one of my gloves off. “What are you doing?”

My heart hammered. Some rumors said vampires consummated their marriages with witnesses present. A sick feeling twisted in my gut. If that was expected here, he would have warned me, wouldn’t he? Even if he’d proven again and again that I couldn’t trust him, he wouldn’t go that far, would he? I told him after that first night, I wasn’t going to let him touch me. He wouldn’t…

No.

I let him take off my other glove, and he tucked both into his belt. If there was any expectation of sex tonight, he would have said something. No matter how betrayed I felt by him, there was one thing I knew for sure. He wasn’t going to touch me without my consent. And he wasn’t going to force me into a situation where I felt like I had no choice.

“It’s our first dance,” Luken said, holding his hand out to me. “It’s a human tradition, is it not?”

I gulped. As soon as we’d been officially wed, we both put on gloves. Now his bare hand was held out to me. The cut on the tip of his finger was already healed. Skin to skin, though. And his arms would go around me. His hands on my hips. Dancing was an intimacy I wasn’t used to. How would I be able to resist him when our bodies were pressed together?

The music still stretched on. Luken smiled at me reassuringly. “We don’t have to if you’re nervous.”

“I’m not nervous,” I lied. I glanced over my shoulder; everyone kept waiting. A few people frowned disapprovingly. Clearing my throat, I said loudly, “But I don’t know how to dance.”

“It’ll come naturally, I promise,” Luken murmured. “Just imagine me naked.”

Heat flooded my cheeks. The image that immediately popped into my mind didn’t help. Still, if I was going to bring my plan to fruition, I couldn’t fight him too much. He had to think that I was struggling to accept my role, but that I was closer to submitting than I actually was. So I took his hand and stepped in close to him, pressing my body against him.

He let out a soft hiss, his pupils widening. His hands dropped to my hips as we started to sway back and forth. It wasn’t really dancing, but there was an intimacy to it that set my blood boiling. The feeling of him so close brought me dangerously close to breaking.

If he had only told me that he would try to save Darcie, I would have believed him. I’d pull him down on top of me right now, in front of everyone. I’d give him everything if he only promised me that one thing.

“You are ravishing,” he whispered to me, our cheeks pressed together. “Are you doing it? Imaging me naked?”

The image flitted through my mind again, forcing me to bite back a whimper. “Don’t do that.”

“Don’t do what? Show my wife how happy I am to have her in my arms?” He leaned back and gave me a winning smile. The glow of his amber eyes was brighter than usual, but the light was soft, a warm glow rather than a harsh shine.

My traitorous heart fluttered at that smile. I inhaled shakily, trying to keep hold of my emotional balance. “Are you? Happy? You didn’t give me much choice as to whether I became your wife.”

His smile slipped for half a moment before he leaned back in and pulled me tighter to him. “I’m trying to protect you, Elara. The Gods have already tried to kill you. They will keep coming after you. You don’t understand how precarious your situation really is. By making you queen, I am declaring to everyone that you are under my protection. You have people loyal to you, know.”

I lowered my face to his shoulder. Every word rang true. But… “You never loved your little brother. You can’t possibly know how I feel about Darcie.”

He spins us, lifting me briefly off my feet, before setting me back down. “You’re right. I never loved my brother. But I love you, Elara. I promise I will make you happy.”

“I wish I could believe you.”

“Let me show you, then.” His lips traced over my neck, making me shiver. “Let’s beg off this pompous party and enjoy our wedding night. I can tell you all my plans. How I intend to give you everything you want.”

He really didn’t get it, did he? I ran my hand down his strong back to distract him. He shivered, and I felt him harden, pressed into me as he was. If we moved aside, the whole court would be able to see. I leaned back slightly and smiled up at him.

“You already had your wedding night,” I told him. “You don’t get to touch me again.”

To the outside, his expression didn’t change. Only I saw the way his eyes hardened. “Is that so?”

“It is. You are the only man whom I will ever give myself to, but you will not have me again, Luken. We will have a marriage, but it will be sexless.” I told him calmly and plainly, not bothering to try to hide my feelings from my voice. My face, though, was completely enamored. The many people watching us would think we were whispering the sweet nothings of newlyweds.

Luken’s arms tightened around me. “Are you testing me, Elara? Seeing how far you can push me?”

“Nothing of the sort. I’m telling you exactly how I feel,” I answered. I curled my fingers into his hair, and he shivered, his eyes half-sliding shut. A surge of power went through me, to see how he responded to such a simple touch. But whatever limited power I had here wasn’t enough. “Hell will freeze over before I go to your bed or let you into mine.”

Luken laughed breathlessly. “There’s a lot we can get up to without any beds involved.”

“Ugh, don’t be so literal.” I rolled my eyes.

“Hell will freeze over, will it?” A dark challenge entered his gaze as he spun us some more. My hair flowed out around us, whipping toward him. His hair did the same, and together, it made a circle around the two of us. “I can arrange that.”

A spark of heat lit in my stomach. He could; I was certain of that. Which only made it more frustrating. I pressed my lips together as I struggled to reign myself back in. I wasn’t going to let my hormones get the best of me. I’d trusted him before, and look where it got me. I wasn’t going to make that mistake again.

“If you can make hell freeze over, why can’t you save my sister?” I asked him, my voice low.

Luken’s motions didn’t slow, but some of the spark left his eyes. He sighed. “I’m not going to promise you something just to get you into bed. Besides, even if I told you right now that I’m working on a plan to save her, would you believe me?”

“No.”

He spun me again and brought me even closer to him. “There you have it, then. Why should I waste words on something you don’t trust me with? I will prove myself to you. You will come back to my bed, I assure you. Once I’ve shown you with my actions what you won’t believe from my words.”

What did he mean by that? If he was trying to be reassuring, it had the opposite effect. I tensed, and it took everything I had to remind myself that I couldn’t yank myself away from him, not in front of all these people.

“Do you think marrying me means that my body belongs to you? Is that what you’re getting at?” I hissed.

Luken’s head dropped toward mine, as though he was going to kiss me. But it was only to hide my expression from the people still watching us. His nose traced over my cheekbone.

“You belong to me as much as I belong to you, Elara. You hate me, but you still want me. I’m cruel, but I don’t want you until you want to want me.” He pressed a chaste kiss to my forehead. “Do you regret the night we spent together? If you could go back, would you stop yourself?”

I bit my lip, hating that he’d asked me that. The truth of it was that I wasn’t sure.

He searched my gaze for a moment before he sighed. “Perhaps I was too hasty. Perhaps you and I need to spend more time getting to know each other. I always assumed that my mate would understand me perfectly without words or actions. My assumptions have hurt you.”

Why did my heart have to flutter at his words? Why did I have to believe that he didn’t want to hurt me? That he longed for that fairytale love that I used to dream about? He was a vampire king, used to getting anything he wanted. He didn’t have the same dreams as the na?ve eighteen-year-old I’d been four years ago.

“Let us put the conversation aside,” Luken said, his voice soft again. “I won’t try to seduce my unwilling wife. I can wait. I will wait. You’ll soon be begging for me, just like you did before,” he said, his lips twitching into a smile.

I gaped at him. Heat flooded my cheeks, and I barely refrained from yanking myself from his arms. All his talk about wanting me to want to want him. Proving I could trust him. And he ended it like that? With that arrogance that said he could override my wishes and wants and put that desire in me?

My nostrils flared. “You’ll be waiting forever, Luken.”

“We’ll see,” he laughed.

The music ended, and he stepped back, his body leaving mine. Only his hand remained in mind. He bent over it formally and laughed again, his eyes sparkling. If I wasn’t so humiliated, I might have found it attractive—or been curious about what made him so certain. But the anger bubbling inside of me was dwarfed by the chill that stole over my skin from no longer being in his arms.

Even now, when I didn’t want him to touch me, I still wanted him to hold me. And I hated him even more for making me feel like this.

“Thank you all for celebrating my wedding,” Luken called to the gathered crowd. “We are so pleased that you have joined us for these heady celebrations. Now, let’s get this party into full swing. Maestro!” He called, turning to the orchestra that had been playing. “Give us something lively!”

Luken kissed my cheek as a modern song started to play. He winked at me and whispered, “Try not to look like you want to murder me, my dear. I don’t think that will go over very well.”

“Bastard,” I hissed back.

But by then, he’d already released my hand. He moved off with a group of kings from other kingdoms, all of them slapping each other’s backs and congratulating him. I plastered a smile on my face and turned to greet the women who came to flock around me, his words ringing in my ear. I had to get out of here. I had to escape this gilded cage. I had to prove him wrong, to show him I was more than he thought I was.

I was Elara Tideborne, and I would save my sister.