The Warlord (Rise of the Warlords 1)

“Haven’t drained someone in so long, and oh, the power! I usually only take enough to stay strong.” She wiped her lips with the back of her hand and winked at him. “I don’t have to ask if you enjoyed the show. Your measuring log says plenty.”

Knew she’d gloat. “Come here.” Today he issued orders, and she obeyed him. He would settle for nothing less.

She didn’t come here. “Is this the part where we kiss and make up? Because—” Her brow wrinkled, and her smile dulled. She clutched her stomach, accusations flickering in her eyes. “Did you poison me, Commander?”

“Not on purpose.” Was this another trick?

In response, Taliyah hunched over and vomited a stream of bright light. The more she lost, the faster the shadows returned to her eye sockets. By the end, onyx swamped her irises once again.

No, no trick. Concern seized him.

If Erebus had predicted Roc’s actions, he’d known where Roc would source for his phantom bride’s food. Had the god purposely tainted the soldiers? Or was this something else?

He didn’t know anything anymore.

At her side once again, he removed the shackles, preparing to relocate her. Chafed red skin ringed both of her wrists, the sight...disturbing. “Has this ever happened to you before?”

“Never.”

Chest tight, he clasped her nape and flashed her to the master bathroom. “I’ll find you someone else to eat.” Another male who would feel the softness of her mouth.

Hot blood rushed to Roc’s muscles, stardust singeing his palms.

“Don’t worry, Roc.” She pushed at him. “I have no interest in you as food. I like my meals with a little less hypocrisy. Beggars can be choosers.”

A lie. The woman was starved. If he wanted her to eat from him, she would eat from him. But he didn’t, so the point was moot. “Explain how I’m a hypocrite.”

Shrug. “You judge me for eating souls, yet every five hundred years, you snuff one out.”

He huffed a breath. “Better a hypocrite than a phantom.” How did she remain so intelligent? So lucid?

“Are you kidding? There’s nothing worse than a hypocrite.”

Her disdain wouldn’t affect him.

It wouldn’t.

Appearing to stand by force of her will alone, she cast her gaze around the spacious enclosure. Planning her escape?

He inspected the room for anything she might use against him. The former General had obviously adored over-the-top luxury. Gold dragon scales covered the walls. Every faucet and knob boasted an array of precious gems. A beast-skin rug draped the marble floor in front of a claw-foot tub. The shower stall possessed multiple showerheads, a marble bench, a circular glass partition.

Taliyah could use everything as a weapon in a thousand different ways. He’d have to remain on guard.

“You may bathe.” He turned the knobs in the shower, hot water raining from different spouts. Steam quickly filled the stall.

He removed the pinner, and she sighed with relief, rolling her shoulders and flapping those delicate wings.

Chest clenching, he explained, “I won’t shower with you, but I also won’t leave you unattended. When I said you’d stay within my sight, I meant it.” The phantom couldn’t be trusted.

She shrugged and pulled her shirt overhead. “You want to perv out while I shower. No need to explain.” With a flirty smile, she tossed the garment at him.

Roc bit his tongue, catching the item while keeping his gaze on her face. Do not look down. A single glance at her nipple piercing or the tuft of pale curls between her legs might be his undoing.

“I’ll give you a temporary reprieve from your belt.” More eager than he would ever admit, he lifted the key from his head and removed her belt. “Don’t even think about attempting to seduce me.”

“Uh, I love to break it to you, Roc, but that ship has sailed. Why would I bother seducing you, anyway? I already proved I could. You’re a sure thing.”

He pursed his lips. “That was before I knew what you were.”

Something akin to hurt flickered in her eyes, there and gone. Her usual irreverence showed up, and she smirked. “You should probably pass the memo on to your penis. You’re Roc-blocking it.”

Hurt? A phantom? No. “Bodies can be tamed. They just take a little longer than minds.”

“Sure, sure.” She held her palms up in a gesture of innocence, then stepped into the stall and glanced at him over her shoulder. “I promise to do my very best not to tempt you beyond reason. Do your best to resist.” As she entered the water, droplets cascaded down her incomparable form.

As he watched her through the fogging glass, she leaned against the wall and washed her hair, her body. Her weakness displeased him. He had duties; in this state, she wouldn’t be able to keep up.

He knew harpies used blood as medicine. Before he could talk himself out of it, he bit into his finger. Blood welled as he extended his arm into the stall.