He was supposed to be impervious to his emotions.
“The minute I caught sight of you, I was captivated.”
She made a sound of disbelief. “You were a complete jackass.”
“True.” He could hardly deny his fierce attempt to reject what was happening to him. “I spent several centuries convinced I’d purged my baser instincts. It was an unpleasant shock to have that belief shattered by a tiny scrap of a female with a smartass mouth and enough power to turn me into a newt.”
She rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t sound captivated.”
“I couldn’t get you out of my thoughts no matter how I tried,” he continued, his brooding gaze sweeping over her delicate features. That beautiful face had been seared into his brain the moment he’d caught sight of her, tormenting him with a craving to possess her that refused to leave him in peace. “And when I found that damn fairy bringing you a tray of food I nearly ripped out his throat. No one was allowed to take care of your needs but me.” He gave a rueful laugh. “I knew I was in trouble from the start, but I couldn’t stay away.”
A hint of yearning softened her dark eyes, as if longing to believe his confession. And then, abruptly, she was giving a shake of her head, clearly preparing to change the subject.
“Roke . . .”
He swooped down to plunder her mouth with a kiss that stole her words. Her hands instinctively lifted to clutch his shoulders, her lips parting in astonishment. Only when he felt her tremble in answering need did he reluctantly lift his head to study her flushed cheeks.
“That’s better.”
“What are you doing?” she husked.
“You’re going to say something I don’t want to hear,” he confessed.
She made a choked sound. “And you think kissing me is going to stop me from saying it?”
His gaze lingered on her soft lips, his body reacting with predictable enthusiasm to having her near.
“I was hoping for a distraction.”
She jutted her chin to a stubborn angle. “That’s not going to change my mind.”
His hand cupped her cheek. “What will?”
“Roke, I have to do this.”
He growled deep in his throat, frustration slamming through him.
“I still don’t understand why,” he hissed through clenched teeth.
She met his smoldering gaze, silently pleading with him to understand.
“You’re not happy with Zoe, right?”
He went rigid at the mere mention of his former clanswoman. “If she has any sense of self-preservation she’ll be careful not to cross my path,” he snarled.
“But if she was in danger you would rush to her rescue, wouldn’t you?”
His frustration amped up another notch, cracking the marble floor beneath their feet.
“It’s not the same,” he mulishly insisted. “Zoe has been a part of my clan for a very long time.”
“She is your duty,” she insisted. “Just as my father is my duty.”
He was shaking his head before she finished. “You don’t even know for sure he’s your father.”
She blinked, as if startled by his words. “Why would he lie?”
“This could be a trap.”
Her hand lifted to lightly touch his cheek. “There’s only one way to find out.”
He rolled his eyes toward the heavens, knowing he was once again defeated by a tiny female witch with velvet brown eyes and an annoying habit of twisting him around her little finger.
“Shit.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Seated behind his desk, the King of Vampires tapped an impatient finger on the glossy surface.
“I don’t like this,” he muttered, his gaze tracking Roke as he paced from one end of the priceless carpet to the other.
Roke curled his hands into tight fists. He’d left Sally less than a quarter hour ago, unable to sway her stubborn determination to go in search of her father.
“I can’t say I’m particularly happy about it either, but Sally refuses to listen to reason,” he admitted, wondering if this was fate’s way of laughing at him for assuming he could choose a meek, easily trainable mate.
Styx gave a resigned shake of his head. “She’s a woman on a mission.”
“A ridiculous mission.”
Styx winced. “You didn’t tell her that, did you?”
Roke continued his pacing, grimacing at the memory of his mate’s angry response to his attempt to dissuade her from charging into danger.
“Not in so many words,” he muttered.
“Ah.” There was a wealth of censure in Styx’s voice. “A tactical mistake, amigo.”
Roke sent his king a glare. “Thanks, but your words of wisdom come a little late.”
“Do you want me to lock her up?”
His lips twisted in a humorless smile. He was desperate, but there wasn’t a chance in hell he was going to try to physically restrain Sally. Each time she’d been caged, it had destroyed something inside her.
Besides, he knew that she wasn’t entirely wrong.
Something was going to have to be done to get the Nebule off her trail.
“Yeah, because that worked out so well the last time,” he pointed out dryly.
Styx shrugged. “Just a suggestion.”
“Would you lock Darcy up?”
“I tried once.”
Roke came to an astonished halt, regarding his companion in disbelief.
Darcy might be a peace-loving vegetarian, but she was also a pureblooded Were who could do some serious damage when she was pissed.
“What happened?”
Styx pulled back his lips to expose his massive fangs, his hands landing on the desk as if he was being tormented by an unpleasant memory.
“She slipped away and damned near became the Queen of Weres instead of vampires.”
Roke grimaced. Thank the gods he hadn’t been around when Darcy had disappeared on Styx. The resulting meltdown had no doubt been the stuff of nightmares.
Turning his thoughts back to his mate, Roke gave a fatalistic lift of his shoulder. There was nothing he could do but accept the inevitable.
“I can’t stop Sally. I can only try to protect her.”
Styx nodded, slowly rising to his feet. “How can I help?”
Roke considered for a minute. There was no point in taking any of his brothers on his journey. The Nebule not only had his nasty poison darts that could kill a vampire, but Brandel’s ability to turn into mist meant that they were virtually worthless in a battle against the creature.