Up his hand delves, over my thigh. Then stops.

“You’re shaking.”

I close my eyes. His words carry no inflection, so I can’t tell whether he considers this a good or bad thing. I have no idea what the hell I’m supposed to be doing either, but chances are, if I take an active role in whatever’s going on, I will end up attacking him, the Undying King. That can’t happen.

That won’t happen.

I lick my dry lips. “I’ve never … done this.”

“This?” the king repeats like he’s confused. His fingers brush between my legs.

The small burst of pleasure tightens my stomach, and I glare at him. “Yes, that.”

His hands slide out from under my skirt. “What have you done?” Curiosity smolders in his eyes.

“I’ve been kissed.”

“That’s it?” Again, his words are inflectionless. He lays a hand on my hipbone

“That’s it.”

He swears under his breath, his grip tightening. I can tell conflicting desires war within him because he’s looking through me more than at me. I also know the moment they resolve themselves.

He hesitates, then rises to his feet. “Leave.”

I don’t move. This is not how it’s supposed to play out.

“Move, Serenity, before I change my mind.”

Slowly I stand. The fear is fading, replaced by confusion. I consider the man in front of me. Logic is telling me that he’s letting me go because of some moral compass he carries. My emotions are telling me any moral compass he possesses is so warped and eroded he wouldn’t know a good deed from a bad one.

“I’m giving you tonight,” he says, not looking at me. “Enjoy the company of your father. Tomorrow, you’ll be at my side, not his.”

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Serenity

A year ago I discovered I was dying.

First my appetite diminished. I’d skip breakfast because in the morning I couldn’t keep even the tasteless oatmeal down. Better to leave the food for people whose bodies wouldn’t reject it.

Life continued that way for a couple months—long enough for people to notice. Long enough for them to assume I was pregnant despite the fact that I’d never even been kissed. Will took a lot of heat for that. But when months passed and no baby came, people forgot.

All save for me.

The nausea fled as quickly as it came. For a while I could pretend my health issues away, until one morning when my nausea returned. I made it to the bathroom in time, only what I retched up wasn’t simply food and bile. Blood tinted my vomit red.

I breathed heavily as I stared down at the irrefutable evidence that I was sick. I never told my father. I never told Will.

The sickness never fully went away.