saw nothing but Seraphia’s face. She haunted me, as I had once haunted her. And now I needed to find a way to convince her to practice her magic. She’d do nothing I wanted her to, however.
What other leverage did I have?
I could try to use her friend Mac again. But would she believe me?
No. She was too smart.
A knock sounded at the door, fainter than the one Lucifer preferred.
My heart accelerated, that same obnoxious physical default that I hadn’t yet been able to address.
No one else would dare come here unless expressly ordered.
It was her. And my damned traitorous heart knew it.
“Enter.”
The door pushed inward, and Seraphia stepped into the doorway. The sight of her caught my breath, tightening my throat. She wore a long black sweater that she must have found in the wardrobe. It cut wide over her shoulders, revealing her collarbones, and stopped at midthigh. The pale length of her legs showed between the hem and the tops of the tall woolen socks she wore.
In fact, so much of her was on display. Chest, hands, legs. It was far more skin than I was used to seeing. Far more than I’d ever considered myself to be interested in.
And yet, I was.
Dreadfully so.
I clenched my hands in the gloves I wore constantly, my gaze on hers. “I would have expected you to avoid me.”
“I would have liked to.” She stepped into the room. The long fall of her dark hair was swept over one shoulder in a riot of loose curls that glinted with gold.
I turned from her and walked to the window, looking out over the sea. It was bracketed by bookshelves, but I ignored the tomes, my gaze instead seeking the calming presence of the black waves.
“Then why are you here?” I asked.
“I need something from you, and I cannot afford avoidance.”
I turned to her, surprised. “Need something? The cure for your friend?”
“Yes.”
“You think I would give it to you?”
“No, and I can’t take it by force. I wouldn’t stand a chance against you.”
“Then what do you propose?” My heart, that traitorous organ, raced.
She strolled to the small table in front of the fireplace. A chess board sat upon it, and she touched the black king with her fingertip. My gaze riveted to the sight, and I couldn’t look away.
“I’d like to play you for it,” she said. “If I win, you give me the cure. If you win?”
“I get something I want.”
She nodded.
My heart raced even faster, a frisson of unfamiliar excitement racing up my spine. I’d never faced an opponent like her. For fates’ sake, she’d resisted my power.
She alone, of all the people in my kingdom, resisted my magic. I couldn’t control her, and it frustrated and thrilled me in equal measure.
“And you trust me to stand by the agreement?” Foolish mortal.
Yet, she wasn’t foolish. Seraphia was many things, but she was not foolish. She had a plan.
“Of course not.” She reached into the pocket of the sweater, withdrawing two tiny vials. “This is Torantia, a potion that will ensure we each stick to our end of the bargain.”
Ah. This could work well for me.
I’d never met an opponent I could not defeat at chess, and she would be no different. It would be a challenge, no doubt, but I would be the victor. This was precisely how I was going to get her to practice her magic. She’d come to me with the solution.
“All right.” I strolled toward her, my gaze locked with hers. “I will play.” I stopped a few feet away from her, but she held her ground, her eyes burning into mine.
“What do you want if you win?”
“I want you to practice your magic. Embrace it and learn to master it.”
Her brows rose. “Really?”
I nodded. “Really. It is a shame you don’t use it.”
“There are no plants here for me to practice with.”
“I’ll see that they are brought in.”
Her eyes narrowed. “There’s more to it than that. It’s too easy. You wouldn’t want me stronger.”
“Not unless I wanted you on my side.”
She laughed, a joyless sound. Not that I’d be particularly good at identifying the emotion. “You’ll never have me on your side.”
“We will see.”
She nodded. “Fine. If you win, one session—one hour—of me practicing my magic. If I win, then you give me a cure for Mac and allow me to leave.”
“You can play for one thing. If you win the cure, play again for your freedom.”
Her jaw tightened, but she finally nodded. “Agreed.”