“You know, I feel like I owe you an apology,” Isabel blurted out.
Thad frowned. If anything, he owed
her
one. “I’m not sure I understand.”
“Earlier, I was kind of rude to you. I just wanted to apologize for that. I was still kind of feeling the wine I drank, and I was in a weird place. And frankly, you freaked me out with that whole…” She leaned back on an exhale.
Yeah. “I get it. And you don’t have to apologize. I mean, I’m still sufficiently baffled over this whole thing myself, and I’ve known about it for a long time. If someone had approached me the way I did you, I’d have thought they were crazy too.”
Isabel smiled and leaned her head to the side. “The thing is, I don’t see how I can be who you think I’m supposed to be. I… I don’t even know how to imagine that.” She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “I mean, you’ve probably figured out by now that I’m not exactly royalty material. Not by a long shot.”
He tapped his thumb against his chin. “I’ll be honest with you. I’m not sure what I expected, but you weren’t it. You know, when my parents first told about the prophecy, I just kind of nodded and smiled. And then I blew it off.” He rubbed again at his arm, where the scar continued to pulse insistently. “Wasn’t till after my parents died that I finally decided maybe I needed to figure out what was going on.”
He was quiet for a second, but Isabel still said nothing. No questions, no comments. She continued to stare. Her green eyes were wide and fixed on him, but she made no move to reply. It was like at the taco stand all over again.
Drawing in a deep breath, Thad continued. “See, about a year ago, I started feeling things where this scar is here. Throbbing, tingly, buzzy sensations. They’ve started to get stronger, more intense. Right now, it’s really sore. Pulsing. Feels like my arm has a headache. Nothing like that’s happened to you?”
Her answering shrug was fairly noncommittal, but her hand went to her lower back, almost unconsciously. He took that as an affirmative.
“See, all I’ve got to go on is what’s right in front of both of us. The fact that I found you where we were tonight. Then there’s the matching scar on your back. I don’t know any better than you do where we go from here.
“What I do know is that more and more vampires are getting hit by the wizards. Folks are getting nervous.
I’m
getting nervous. I’ve stepped up as my father’s successor, but if it comes out that I’ve got no power, they’ll see me as weak. So I feel like I have to try whatever I can, even if it seems completely crazy. And it does. I know that. At the risk of sounding dramatic: for the sake of our entire race, I need you to keep an open mind.”
She blinked. “But you’re the king whether you have a power or not. Being able to hurl lightning bolts or whatever doesn’t make you a smarter ruler.”
In
a
perfect
world
. He smiled slightly. “You’d think that, but you’d be wrong.”
***
Isabel groaned softly and rubbed her temples. She thought about her parents and the reasons why they had moved to Florida decades earlier. “Actually, no. I wouldn’t. I know our kind can be stuck-up about abilities.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Oh?”
“It’s why I’ve always lived in the human world.” She gestured vaguely. “Neither of my parents ever came into their power. They kept me away from the rest of our kind so I wouldn’t face the same kind of discrimination they had.”
“Ah… I was wondering.” He blinked, which seemed to highlight how incredibly blue his eyes were. He didn’t look the way she would have expected a king to look. She had seen plenty of the human royal families on TV, and he didn’t look a thing like any of them. Honestly, he was more like a cross between a bodybuilder and a frat boy. Lord knew Lexi had brought enough of both specimens home for Isabel to know what she was talking about. He was dressed in denim and leather, and she was fairly sure he carried a gun. He wasn’t scary, but he radiated strength and a touch of danger.
Very sexy.
“You know,” she said softly. “Even if I’m not on board with this, you are the king. You can do whatever you want, right?” A tremor went through her body at the mere thought of it. He was handsome, yes. But… well, there were an awful lot of buts.
“I won’t club you over the head and drag you out of here.” He smiled, warming his somber expression. “I guess I’m hoping maybe my wit and charm will be convincing enough.”
It was going to be hard not to like him if he kept saying things like that. Against all logic, she found herself wanting to touch him. Or lick him all over. But she’d had her fun at the club already, and she was pretty much sober now, so she didn’t really know what to do. This was the king. The
king
. The enormity of it practically made her brain shut down.
He cleared his throat. “I’ve been wondering something, so I’m just going to go ahead and put it out there. Are you attracted to males?”
What?
“Of course.” Oh. Right. The female she’d fed from. She could see how that might have looked to a passerby. She laughed again. Inexplicably, a tight squeeze in her chest loosened a little. “I guess you’re asking because of the human at the club?”
“You seemed pretty into her.”
Isabel squirmed in her seat again. “I’d had some red, and I needed to feed.” Heat crept over her face. “And besides, she was in a bad place. I could tell. Sometimes when I find a host, I try to make up for taking their blood by offering solace.” She drew a deep breath. That last part, well, she hadn’t even said that to Lexi. Why she so did now was a mystery even to her.
Thad frowned. “How do you know? About the female being in a bad spot?”
Isabel resisted the intense urge to squirm some more. It was a long story, and one she didn’t want to tell. “I’ve been through some rough stuff myself, and I’ve just figured it out over the years. Body language, stuff like that. Sometimes you just know. I figure if I’m going to drink their blood, I should provide a little comfort first, right? Lend an ear, rub their shoulders… that kind of thing.”
Now he was looking at her like she was a Rubik’s cube. “And you drank from her?”
Hadn’t they established that? “Yeah, well, I’ve never had a mate in my life or anyone else consistent to drink from. Being in the party scene makes it easy because there are huge crowds, a cornucopia of hosts, and usually lots of dark corners where I can do what I need to without being noticed.” She was startled by her compulsion to be so open, but she kept going. Lying to the king seemed wrong.
“Drinking wine started out as a way to meet people and lower inhibitions, but I guess I started really getting into the scene and everything it had to offer. I love the music. The fact that things don’t get started until late at night is a huge bonus.”
“So that’s what red wine does? Lowers your inhibitions? I’ve only tasted a tiny amount, and you never know for sure about the stories everyone tells.” His eyes widened with apparent interest.
She nodded slowly, choosing her words. “It does a lot of things, but that’s one of the biggies. It, uh, it feels really amazing, actually. I mean, individual mileage varies but in general you feel kind of euphoric and buzzy; your senses are heightened. It enhances physical and emotional intimacy. Even if you’re talking to a total stranger, it’s like you’re connected to them. Which is why it’s so easy for me to cozy up to a strange human and drink from them. It always feels really natural in the moment, you know? It’s not just your garden-variety, alcohol-induced mellow, but also a rather sensual experience.” She narrowed her eyes at Thad, who had his eyebrows drawn downward, deep in thought. “I’m weirding you out, aren’t I?”
His face relaxed, and he chuckled. “A little. I mean, that sort of thing was discouraged when I was younger, and it’s not like I’ve gotten a lot of time off to party. It’s all a little foreign to me.”
Her face burned hotter. “Yeah, sorry I—”
He held a large hand up. His fingers were thick and strong. Calloused. He might be royalty, but he wasn’t afraid of a little hard work. “No, wait. Don’t apologize.”
Isabel bit back the growl that had bubbled in her throat. She couldn’t stand being cut off. By anyone.
Thad rolled his shoulders a few times and cleared his throat again. Goodness, he did that a lot, didn’t he? “What about negative side effects?”
Isabel’s arms crossed in front of her chest. Where was this going? Did he think that because of this supposed destiny thing, he could grill her about a little recreational drinking? King or not, where did he get off judging her? It wasn’t like she was the first vampire to ever drink blood from an unsuspecting human who was otherwise intoxicated, and she
never
hurt them or anything.
Thad’s eyebrows remained elevated. Fine, he wanted an answer, so she’d give him one. “For humans, too much wine can make them sick or give them headaches. For us, not really. Sometimes you grind your teeth, so it can be rough on the fangs, especially if they’re extended for feeding. I’ve always been extra careful about that one since I can’t just go to any random dentist if I crack one. I’ve heard that on rare occasions males have trouble getting hard for awhile, but like I said, usually it’s a major aphrodisiac.”
Thad cringed. “There’s a thought to make me feel cold and clammy all over. How rare is the, uh, performance issue?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think it happens often. This area isn’t teeming with vampires, and I haven’t exactly taken a poll.”
“Huh.”
Thad’s far-off gaze gave her pause. She wrinkled her nose and studied him hard. “Thad, why are you asking me about all this?”
Thad rubbed his eyes and forehead, and took a couple of deep breaths through his nose. Myriad thoughtful expressions seemed to flash across his face, but then he met her gaze head-on. Goodness, those eyes were blue.
He coughed nervously. “Yeah, well, I’ve been thinking about it as you’ve been talking just now. And I think I’d like to try some. With you.”
Isabel looked at Thad like he had just suggested they go streaking. Through a gang of wizards. At sunrise. “You can’t be serious.”
Yes, absolutely, 100 percent seriously crazy.
“Do you have more available?” Suddenly he realized that red wine might not be the kind of staple one kept around the house like toothpaste or flour.
“Sure, I do. But I’m surprised you would want to try it. You just said it was discouraged.”
He scooted closer to the edge of the bed so that their knees were barely touching. It was the slightest of brushes but enough to evoke a nice zingy sensation all over that got him slightly more aroused. The thought of consuming the slightly illicit beverage was nuts, but a sense of excitement was overriding that. The idea of getting intimate with her the way she described… his pulse raced with anticipation.
Thad clasped his hands together and leaned to rest his elbows on his parted thighs, just as he had during their conversation outside the taco stand. “You said, did you not, that this stuff lowers inhibitions? Fosters intimacy?”
She nodded without comment, still staring him down like he belonged in a zoo.
“So it would seem to me that for the two of us and this unique situation, it could be a useful tool in getting to know each other better. Maybe even for getting more intimate… seeing as how I’ve been given the message that we are destined to be mated.” He flashed a smile. Females usually loved his smile.
The corners of Isabel’s mouth lifted just slightly. Bingo. “It amazes me that you seem to have a sense of humor about this.”
Yeah, that was one way of putting it. Thad leaned against the headboard and stretched his legs across Isabel’s rocket-ship-themed duvet. To buy himself some time to respond, he loosened the laces on his heavy boots and kicked them off. Might as well get comfortable.
“See, it’s like this. The more I think about it, the more I figure there must be something to this whole prophecy thing. I’ve spent the last few weeks and God knows how many miles playing some wacky version of hot and cold, and somehow that led me to where I found you. Now here we are. It’s just past dawn so we’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Why not make the most of it and see where things go?
“Unless you plan to shoot me down, in which case we’re stuck playing twenty questions, or maybe go fish. And as for my sense of humor, I’ve run the gamut of emotions tonight, from pissed off to freaked out and everything in between, so for right now, focusing on what’s funny about this whole thing seems like the best way to keep from blowing my brains out.”
She grinned. She wasn’t fully fanged the way he was, but still her smile was amazing. Sexy. Her entire face lit up, even when she narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t you think it would look really bad to the society if word got out that the king was hitting the Merlot?”
Thad crossed his arms over his chest and swept his gaze pointedly around the small space. “Just you and me in this room.” He smiled back at her. “Come on, you don’t want to say no to this. I can see it on your face.”
She studied him, hard. “You’re really sure about this?”
Hell, no
. “Absolutely.”