Page 113 of Mated to Monsters
Slowly, so she doesn’t bolt, I put out my hand to her. “Will you join me?”
68
NATALIE
He’s waiting for an answer, hand outstretched.
There’s something gentle in his expression, despite the marks over his sharp eyes and cheekbones that occasionally flare with magic.
Can I trust him at his word?
He is not like the trolvor demons, that snarl and jeer without an ounce of remorse. But if he is intelligent enough to deceive me, then he could be just like the dark elves. Still, I have to take the leap, or I may never eat again.
I find my voice again, meek and unsteady as I repeat, “Food?”
A small smile finds him. “Yes.”
I want to believe him. His is the first kindness I’ve experienced since arriving here, aside from Cora and the other women. I observe his proffered hand, with long, slender claws cutting out from where nails ought to be. All he has to do is reach out and…
He retracts his hand and his face becomes unreadable again. “If you’d rather not-”
“No!” I shout, only realizing I’ve done so once the room goes deadly quiet. “I- I mean, yes. I’ll join you.” If it isn’t proof enough, a growl rips through my gut that makes him cock an eyebrow at me. I throw my gaze to the floor as if I’ve broken a rule.
And maybe I have.
He told me not to make any unnecessary noise. But when I dare to glance up at him again, humor sparks in his void dark eyes, and his chuckle is low. “This way,” is all he says, leading me from the security of my new room.
I clamp my mouth shut and follow after, listening hard for any sounds of the demon girls that flooded the lower level with their ramblings. But all is quiet as we descend the fine staircase made of what looks like obsidian. Everything in his home is elegant, in its own way.
The King’s castle was cold and rigid, along with its owner.
This place, it’s not like anything I’ve ever seen, resembling nothing of the dark elves’ architecture, intricate for the sake of intricacy. Yet it’s far more ornate than the shacks and hovels the dark elves submitted us to in the work camps.
I don’t know if I could ever get used to it.
The way opens up into a wide living space with finely carved furniture in slight disarray, as if the female demons had made a quick escape when I wasn’t looking. I feel fortunate that it’s only him and I, in this moment.
He’s more than enough demon for me.
When the heat of his focus turns on me again, I pause in my descent. There’s a hardness to his refined jawline that wasn’t there before, as if he’s measuring me up. And I can never quite tell if he’s looking at me, or through me.
“They’re gone for the time being,” he says as if he was already aware of my concerns. “You can meet them later, at your own pace.”
I don’t dare speak my mind, but the questions pile up. Who are they to him? Are they his daughters or… lovers? They seemed too young to be full fledged demons, but I know scant little about his kind that is not mired in terror. And if I ask the wrong questions, I fear I’ll garner more than just his ire.
I can’t forget how the demon King charged him with bedding me, like I’m some captive bride for his pleasure. There is nothing stopping him from taking me, and yet he wants to feed me, instead. To make me strong, I think with sudden dread, so that I can bear his demonic spawn.
My heart leaps into my throat at the notion.
There’s no use forgetting the role I’m meant to play here. Toklys didn’t love me for what my body could offer him. He wanted me. Just as I wanted him. No matter how his world was slanted in his favor, he never did use it against me.
But this demon has no such reservations.
By the cut of his lean shoulders, I can tell he holds himself to a higher standard than the others of his kind. The King held him in high regard as well, enough to fulfill the task laid out for him without question.
Tears sting my eyes, and I bat them away just as he leads me into a grand dining hall with a long table built to seat at least a dozen demons, its top at the level of my chest. Above it is an impressive chandelier that’s already glowing softly with unearthly flames.
The table, however, is empty.