Elena stifled a laugh. She was beautiful. Rosy cheeks and wild hair. Her T-shirt barely covered the flushed skin between her legs.
“You’d better leave.” Her voice was breathy.
“I’d better.” I didn’t budge.
“We need our rest.” She took a step closer to me.
“We do.” My muscles hummed with the need to take her again.
“Shildreth will hear,” she whispered.
I licked my lips. “She might.”
Elena took the final step and closed the distance. I kissed her as fiercely as my heart demanded. She answered and wrapped her arms around my neck.
“My lord?” Faren’s voice at the door.
I bit out one of the only curses I knew in the old language.
I held Elena’s gaze, pinning her to the spot like I wanted to pin her to the floor. Again. “Soon.”
She gave me a look that was even hotter than her fire magic. “Yes, my prince.”
Chapter Seventeen
Paris
I woke with a headache. My heavy drinking the night before came crashing down, landing right on my temples. But those memories were far overshadowed by the pleasures I’d shared with Elena. I smiled like an idiot at the memories—her voice in my ear, her mouth, her delicious blood. Not even the vicious headache could blot out those flashes of bliss.
Faren had drunk far more than me yet was perky and up and about as soon as the suns dawned. Thankfully, he left for an hour or two while I slept off my hangover. I rubbed my temples to stave off the throbbing ache. One look at my half-empty cup from the previous night turned my stomach.
“Up and at ’em, my lord.” Faren burst in the front door and handed me a fresh cup of what I hoped was water. It was.
“Your queen has been up for hours, talking to my men and Shildreth. You may want to keep an eye on that one.”
I was about to correct him about the “queen” part but thought better of it. I rather liked the sound of her as my queen, even though I had no kingdom as of yet and may never have one.
“What has she been talking about?”
Faren laughed, the sound a bit off, as though he didn’t think a thing was funny. “Like I said, keep an eye on that one.”
Now my curiosity was well and truly piqued. I dressed and headed out into the daylight. Elena was ahead of me. She, Shildreth, and several soldiers were gathered around a diagram of what appeared to be the Bloodkeep. Elena motioned, showing plans of attack, no doubt, and the men followed her hands.
“The sooner the better,” she said. “Surprise, understand?”
As I approached, Shildreth cleared her throat. Elena stopped speaking and rolled up the map. The soldiers played it casual, as if they just happened to be standing around an in-depth battle plan review led by a lethal warrior maiden of the gods.
I ran a hand through my hair, attempting to smooth down the bed head. “What’s going on?”
“We were just going over the best ways in and out of Bloodkeep.” She was dressed in another set of Daphne’s leather pants. They clung to her hips and flat stomach. Her shirt was likewise fitted, the fabric molding to the curves of her breasts. The Olympian sword glinted at her side. I noticed some of the soldiers staring at her, their greedy gazes traveling up and down her body. If they’d been any others, I’d have spilled their blood. As it was, they were my kinsmen, so I forced the anger down.
I took point next to her. “Do we have a plan?”
“We do,” Elena chirped, a bit too quickly.
“We do.” Faren stepped up to the table. “But first, we need to do a scouting mission. Reconnaissance around the keep. See what patrols they’ve changed, how many guard the walls. We’ll need to know their movements before we can sufficiently plan our attack.”
“So, it’s going to be an open offensive?” I was surprised Elena would take such a direct tack, but if she thought this was the way to win, then I had no problem with it.
“Right, but first, like I said, recon. I suggest you and Elena here gather up your weapons for our little tour, just in case.” Faren turned toward the soldiers. “Scout team, with me. The rest of you stay here and make yourselves ready.”
A dozen vampires stepped forward, most the same from yesterday’s group. Faren spoke to them in the vampire language. I could only make out a few words here and there— “protect” and “plan” and “hold steady.” The rest was lost to me.
Shildreth pulled me aside. She leaned on me as we walked away from the crush of the soldiers.
“My king, we have chosen a bloody path to the keep. But”—she stopped and pierced me with her gaze—“we will stay the course. We will see it through until you reign over these lands.” Her tone softened. “But you must trust her. Do you understand? Trust is the only way we will prevail.”