spared from her temper this time, though I’m not sure exactly why, unless it’s because he seems to not notice or care. His purple eyes are only on me as he plucks up what looks like a dried cherry and brings it to my lips. At the brush of the fruit, I open my mouth and he pops the morsel in, drawing a higher flush of anger into the naga’s cheeks.
My moan of pleasure at the sinfully ripe cherry—better than any cherry I’ve ever tasted, as if it had been dipped in chocolate before being preserved—elicits a groan of desire from the unicorn as he nuzzles my neck. The surge of lust that fills my belly is a surprising reaction, but not more than the molted reddish-purple color filling the naga’s face.
Now that’s a curious reaction.
“Are you planning on watching us eat then?” Grimsal asks around a mouth of food as he flicks a dismissive look up at the female. “Or were you interested in joining us?” The grin that tugs at his lips seems to incite her anger further, however.
“I have no interest in eating with the likes of you, goblin—or that human. These were not meant for you. They are from my private supplies, and I…” She stopped short, practically vibrating as she stops herself from blurting out more information than she wanted to share.
If she thinks that the goblin is just going to let it slide, she’s bound to be sorely disappointed. I suck my lips in, trying to hold back my delighted smile as Grimsal grins wickedly at her.
“Oh, yes, I imagine so. You had hoped to catch the weak little human and the hedonistic goblin while we slumber so that you could ply the best of your offerings on my unicorn friend.” He lifts a flask and uncorks it to give the contents a sniff before slamming it shut again. A dark eyebrow wings up, and he barks out a laugh. “Elutharian wine, an intense aphrodisiac. I had heard nagas are great seducers and seductresses, so I suppose that it shouldn’t surprise me that you would be prepared, even for a thoroughly mated male. And once you copulate, there would be no escaping you.”
My mouth drops open in shock, and a dormant possessive side that I had forgotten that I possessed rears up ferociously.
That bitch!
“Wait…You planned to drug him and mate with him forcibly?” I snarl.
Our hostess gives me an impatient look, one that tells me just how beneath her she considers speaking to me. If it weren’t for the fact that Eliph has tensed completely behind me, his arm tightening around my hip hard enough to bruise, I think she might have remained silent on the issue.
I’m pushing up to my feet, getting ready to teach this female a thing or two, when Elipha’s warm hand curls around my arm firmly, drawing me back to him. The moment my body leans once more into his
“You would dare violate me and the ahandral bond?” Eliph asks, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper.
A smaller shiver runs over her body, and something that looks like lacy fins lift up and fan from her tail as she lets out a small pant.
I blink up at her, a fresh wave of fury falling through me at the obvious sign of her sexual interest, and my fingers curl aggressively.
“Answer me!” Eliph demands.
“Yes, I would. A unicorn is a worthy mate for a naga. You are strong and full of magic. Few males could compare. You are wasted on a human, whereas mine is a water-loving species that would be happy to dwell with you for ages at your well.”
“You would dare to presume!”
“Do not look so indignant, unicorn! These are the games that your kind thrives on. Do you not whisk females away from beneath the noses of the males who would keep them safe? Does your kind not plot to take what you desire the most? In this, our species are evenly matched. I would do nothing more than what a male of your species would do—what you have done yourself with this female—and like all the females your kind mates, you would have grown content and adoring toward me. You would love me, my little unicorn,” she hisses.
Eliph stands, lifting me up with him effortlessly, and shakes his head.
“That is where you are wrong. This is not how I would do things. My female comes with me willingly. I did not rob her will as one of