Page 36 of Kingly Bitten

And I had no idea what to expect from the powerful vampire kneeling before me.

“Does that mean you’re untouched?” he asked, his focus lowering to the apex between my thighs.

“I was used once,” I told him. “Just to test the immortality bonds.”

“So it was by someone you weren’t linked to?”

“Yes, a lycan lab subject,” I replied, my stomach churning at the memory of the experience.

It had occurred on my thirtieth birthday. I’d had to give blood and other bodily samples annually to test myself for signs of aging or any other changes to my growth patterns. When my statistics had remained exactly the same for a decade, Lilith had been satisfied and never put me through the trial again.

“She killed the lycan afterward, then beat me for making her react that way,” I added, recalling the incident with astute clarity because it often haunted my dreams.

The experience had been worse than the lycan’s rut.

“I actually died.” My flat tone lacked the emotions I’d experienced that day. “But the links to immortality brought me back… slowly.”

A final test.

One I’d unfortunately passed.

Shaking my head, I met his gaze once more. “That was the only time Lilith allowed anyone else to touch me. Apart from her.”

His eyebrow rose, and I suspected he wanted to ask me what I meant by that. But he didn’t push it. And a part of me was glad. He could guess what I meant. There was no reason to go through Lilith’s brutal feeding habits in detail.

Besides, if we found the logs, he’d know everything then.

He pressed another kiss, this one to my inner thigh, then he fluidly stood and walked over to a panel near the door. I couldn’t see what he did to call the device to life, but I heard the female’s voice purr over the intercom. “Good evening, My Prince.”

“Hello, kitten,” he replied, his voice holding a warm touch to it. “I was wondering if you could help me with a meal. For a human.”

“Of course, My Prince. Any preferences?”

He glanced at me. “Any cravings, little genius?”

I blinked at him. “Cravings?” Why would one crave food? It existed as a nutrient for life and nothing more.

His lips curled into a devious grin. “Grab a pen, Tracey. I’m about to give you a list.”

12

Jace

I didn’t giveCalina any clothes. Mostly because I rather liked her naked. And also because I wanted to maintain the upper hand in case she found a way to escape.

She sat at the table across from me with her back straight and a fork in one hand as she sorted the items on her plate into quadrants.

It was methodical and intriguing—meat in the bottom corner, vegetables above it, then starch, followed by more starch. “This meal isn’t balanced,” she said.

“Indeed it’s not,” I agreed. “But you’re going to eat it anyway.”

Her full lips curled down. “What is the purpose of the yellow noodles?”

“Macaroni and cheese,” I corrected. “The purpose is, it’s delicious.”

“What ingredients are key to the substance?”

“Cheese,” I drawled. “Eat.”