Bound to the Elvin King (5 page)

“We hate each other. Of course you couldn’t have known.” Alarm colored her voice.

He closed the distance between them, and when she attempted to step back, he placed his hands on her shoulders. She wouldn’t escape him so easily. “I knew from the moment you set foot in Eriannon. But I had to be sure.” He smiled. “I had a delightful time testing my theory during each of our encounters.”

A scowl covered her face. “I’m sure you did.”

Sliding his hands down her arms, he pulled her nearer. Her body tensed, but he ignored it. The material of her gown brushed against the legs of his trousers. While he desired nothing more than to take her in his arms, he couldn’t. They would end up back in bed. That was most pleasurable, but the nature of their problem called for talk, not lovemaking. At least not right now.

But this simple touch, this simple contact, settled him better than any tincture could. He drank it in to prepare for the verbal warfare to come and then released her. “Come, let us begin our discussion.”

***

Maggie swallowed and glanced at the bed. His bedroom wasn’t the best place to talk. He might be an ass, but he was an ass she apparently couldn’t keep her hands off. “I don’t think this is the best place for a talk.”

“I see your point. It’s better reserved for other activities.”

She ground her teeth but ignored the innuendo. “Neutral ground is what I was thinking.”

He shrugged a shoulder elegantly. “I don’t know if it will meet your requirement, but my private library is right through that door.” He pointed to a door on the opposite wall from the bathroom. “After you, my dear.”

Propelling her forward with a hand on her back, he ushered her into the room over to a low-slung sofa. When he removed his hand, she almost sighed in relief. His touch did funny things to her. Yet it made her feel safe. What kind of mixed-up crock was that?

Once she sat down, she gazed about and tried her darnedest to ignore the presence of Talion, who sprawled in a wing-backed chair adjacent to her. The motif of the library echoed the one in his bedchamber, except bookcases lined most of the walls. And in the center of the room, another bookcase dominated the area. This one was crafted out of wood to resemble a tree whose branches soared to the ceiling, books nestled on its limbs. A ladder arched around the tree, allowing access to all branches.

All in all, everything was perfect and spotless. So much like the outward appearance of the elves. How she longed to smash this façade and grind it to dust, especially his.

The idea of being trapped here in this perpetual elvin land of the young was enough to make her scream. Humans were so much more her speed. They were noisy, dirty, and lived fast-paced lives compared to those in fairyland.

Responsibility wasn’t her thing, either. Being with a king pretty much blasted this preference to smithereens. Her life would be a study of strict scheduling, conformity, and political correctness. A shiver of horror racked her body. It would be a life of hell. Talion was really her abyss. If her attraction to him were any indication to go by, he might bring her untold pleasure in the bedroom, but he’d be the inferno that burned her life to a crisp.

The words slipped out of her mouth before she could shove them back in. “We can’t tell anybody about our bond. If it can’t be undone, we have to pretend it doesn’t exist.”

“Not tell anybody?” The deadly quietness of his voice shot through the room as he steepled his fingers under his chin.

She nodded her head vigorously until she feared it might come off. “I don’t want to stay here or be married to you. I have a life back home. College to finish.”

“Who do you want to be married to? Anyone back in your America?”

“No. I don’t want to be married to anyone.”

His eyebrows drew together. “Then what’s the problem?”

“Besides the fact I want to return home? Um, we don’t like each other.” She ticked that off on her finger and kept up the action as she talked. “How about choice and love? We don’t have either of those.”

He scoffed. “Females and love. Why this obsession? Affection can grow. And a bonding has very little to do with choice.”

She crossed her arms. “I’m not falling for that one. Undergoing the binding ceremony is done only if the couple agrees. For us, there was no binding ceremony. No magically fused bracelets appeared on our wrists to announce to the world a bonding would be possible. So I don’t see how we could’ve moved on to being bonded.”

“It can and has happened, though it’s not common. As I said, if a couple hasn’t attempted a binding ceremony and then consummates their relationship, a full soul-bond is always a very slim possibility. While it is tradition to undergo a binding first, it’s not required in order to become bonded. This is what happened in our case.”

“But there’s some way to get out of it, right?”

He shook his head. “If Relian and Cal found a mere binding inconceivable to turn away from, a bonding is a thousand times so. It is unbreakable, except through death. We are well and truly stuck with each other. Even in death, it is said the bond can be renewed under some circumstances.”

Panic rippled through her. Holy heck, tied to one person for the rest of her life…and maybe death. If she followed in Cal’s slippers, that life would stretch on far past what it should for a human. “Oh, this sucks.”

His shoulders stiffened. “How is this idea disappointing?”

Ooh, she stepped on his elephant-sized ego. Time for some damage control. She spread her hands placatingly. “I’m not knocking it, but marriage—bonding, whatever you want to call it—isn’t for me.”

He remained silent, his hands still clasped beneath his chin. His eyes bored into her, and she shifted uncomfortably on the sofa. She smothered a groan. He wasn’t satisfied with her answer, but she’d be damned if she’d spill all the dirty secrets he sought. Just because she had good reasons for not wanting to be married didn’t mean he had to know each and every last one of them.

“Look, for me love is a mistake, as is marriage. I don’t want it. I don’t need it. It’s fine for other people, but I want no part in it.”

“An unusual view coming from a female.”

With all the broken marriages back home? Yeah, right. “Not as much as you might think. We modern women don’t need a man. We value our independence.”

“You can’t have one if you have the other?”

“In too many cases, no. Why take the chance?”

He regarded her impassively. “Maybe because a woman wants a family?”

“Pssh, so adopt a child or go to a sperm bank.”

At that unfamiliar English term sprinkled in with the Elvish they spoke, his brow creased. “A sperm bank? What is that?”

Oh, hell. No way was she touching this topic. His royal highness would have to stew in his curiosity. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t know what human marriages were like when you guys were still around. But from what I’ve seen, most marriages are like blood-sucking parasites to the soul and heart.”

“That is a cynical view.”

“No, a realistic one.” She shook her head. “Sorry, this is all I’m going to say about the subject.”

“Yes, you’ve made your stance quite clear.”

The dryness in his tone mocked her, but throttling him would get her nowhere. Why was she even drawn to him? His position didn’t impress her. In fact, he was everything she’d attempted to avoid, but was now mired in right up to her eyeballs.

Maggie glared at him. “So, we’re stuck with no way out?”

“What do you think?”

She gave a huff of annoyance. Now was not the time to give her the runaround. Damn elves and their games. “I think we’re screwed.”

“If you say so.”

“Why are you so calm about this? If you ever remarried, I’m sure you wanted it to be to an elf.”

Something flashed across his face, but it disappeared before she could make sense of it. He shrugged. “We don’t always get what we desire.”

“Amen to that.”

“What is done is done. We must make peace with it.”

She sent him an are-you-insane look. “Peace? We can’t be in the same room without arguing.”

He smiled faintly. “We challenge each other.”

“Now I know you’ve lost it.”

“I think you hate how I make you—how do you say it?—lose your cool.”

The truth of his words spread molten lava through her veins. “You think too much of yourself.”

He chuckled. “Such passion. I’ll enjoy partaking of it.”

“You’ll partake of my fist if you try anything.”

“Like it rough, do you?”

Her scream came out a squeak. “You’re a pig.”

He glanced down at himself. “Last time I looked I was an elf.”

She slapped her hand against her forehead. “I can’t talk to you when you’re like this. Stop it.”

His rich laughter filled the room. “I think this bonding will be more fulfilling than expected. You’ll give me much enjoyment.”

“Is this all about you and your “enjoyment”? How selfish.”

His face looked as if fashioned from hardened plaster. “I want you because you please me.”

“Please you? Ha! Hardly.”

“Like I’ve said, you’re a challenge.”

“Well, challenge solved then. You’ve had me. The allure should be gone.”

“Even if it were, the bond doesn’t dissolve into thin air just because someone gets bored.”

A tide of helplessness swept her away. This loss of control almost undid her. Even though she hadn’t been able to go home for the last six months, she’d known the dangers of that possibility when she chose to stay by Cal when the veil came for her friend. Her presence in Eria had merely been a by-product of Cal’s. But now the stakes skyrocketed beyond her sidekick role.

She didn’t ask for any of this. But in order to deal with this situation, she needed space. Thinking was impossible around him. He caught her off guard way more than she liked. Though she hated to admit it, this was partly why he angered her so. That and his arrogant, taunting personality. Yeah, what was there not to love?

“I need time to think about…us.”

“Why? Nothing you do can change the fact we’re bonded.”

“Maybe not, but I have to get my head in order and come to terms with the fact I’m bonded to you.” Ha, good luck with that. She was more likely to sprout wings than accept Talion into her life willingly.

“You can start the process now,” he said, but made no effort to leave the room.

She narrowed her eyes. “I meant without you around.”

“I can’t leave, my dear, or don’t you remember what happened when I tried a little while ago?”

A melon-sized lump formed in her throat. Was he talking about her near collapse from chest pain and weakness? Her mind flew back to his own demeanor and appearance. He’d looked pale and…weak. The watermelon in her throat plummeted to her stomach.

A smug expression played over his face. “I see you’re comprehending the ramifications of our recent bonding.”

***

Talion watched as realization hit her. Maggie’s eyes dilated, and her face lost all color. A twinge of guilt pricked his conscience, but he quickly quashed it. He couldn’t afford to become maudlin, and as king, he found scruples sometimes had to be ignored. This situation could be no different. Maggie displayed enough hard-headedness, bashing the truth over her head would be necessary. The sooner she accepted the reality of their bonding, the better.

She ran a hand through her hair. “The bond brought about that horrible pain and energy loss?” Furrowing her brow, she shook her head. “It never affected Cal and Relian this way.”

“They had the benefit of a binding bracelet. We do not. But even with a binding bracelet, they suffered, especially Relian, as he’s more attune with the magic here. They felt the effects of the potential bond, but it was muted compared to what we feel.”

“A binding makes that much of a difference?”

His lower lip twitched in irritation. Hadn’t he said so? “Undeniably.”

“We can’t be far from each other?”

“Not for right now.”

“Right now?”

“That’s what I said.”

She shot him a nasty look. “I’ll come over there and whack you good if you don’t give me a straight answer.”

Did she know how desirable she sounded as she uttered those words? He grinned and patted his lap. “Come here, then.”

“Um, no. Get your mind out of the gutter.” A smirk replaced her frown. “You’re too old for such nonsense.”

So, she wanted to play? He’d oblige her. “You didn’t find my age a hindrance last night.”

“I don’t remember last night.”

Her memory still seemed to be affected by the bonding. Even his wasn’t as clear as he’d like. But she didn’t need to know that—yet. Hazy recollections of her both beneath and astride him blazed through his mind. Lust shot straight south, and his arousal pressed painfully against his pants. “Your loss, I assure you. Don’t worry, though, we’ll repeat the joys of last night so you can remember them vividly.”