“Excuse me?” I ask, a bit slow on the uptake.
“Your presence will not be required once the child is born. Maurelle and I will raise it as our own,” he says.
“Err, I don’t think so, pal,” I say, stepping forward. “First things, there isn’t going to be a child and second, even if there was, you would have to pry it from my cold, dead hands.”
“Not a problem,” he says, and I gape at him. “The child will grow up Dark and a true Fae to take over. Neither you, nor the Light, will have any part in its upbringing.”
“My parental rights aside, I think you will find that any Light bearing Fae child will have Aelfric beating down your door to get to,” I say fully confident of my words.
“I’m not concerned about Aelfric,” he says dismissively and then frowns. “Kalen on the other hand will be more of a problem. One that you will see doesn’t cause me grief.”
That gives me pause. Sebastian is more of a threat than his father? How come? What secrets is he still hiding from me? Whatever it is, I will beat it out of him when I kick his arse for betraying me.
“Must we discuss my uselessness now and ruin what has thus far been such a pleasant afternoon?” I say, changing tactic.
He smiles at me. “You aren’t completely useless, my dear. We do still need you to create the child. You will be treated well, want for nothing, looked after and cared for until the baby comes, but then you are surplus to requirements.”
“What if you actually grow to like me and want me to stick around?” I say with narrowed eyes. I know he is trying to get to me. I have witnessed master manipulation at the hands of my sire for a thousand years. If he thinks he is going to hurt me with his words and turn me into a weeping little girl begging for Daddy’s approval, he is sorely mistaken.
“Stranger things have happened,” he admits, and I see it again, that small glimmer of amusement. “However, I think that I will send you packing myself the second you can stand up after giving birth. I can tell you are going to be a major pain in my ass u
ntil that day comes.” He grins at me, his sharp teeth flashing before he adjusts his features back to their usual sneer. Oh, yeah, I had him pegged. One thing I am good at, well, actually, I am good at many, many things – no false modesty here, remember – is being able to get away with defying authority. Men like Drake, like Constantine, and a hundred other intimidating, smug, arrogant beasts that I have come across over the years like a challenge. They get bored after centuries of having everyone falling all over themselves to please them. Along comes the pretty little girl with the delicate looks and smart mouth and it twists them into knots. Delights them even. I think I am going enjoy twisting Drake into a big ball of yarn that my inner kitty can play with. I think he is going to enjoy it even more. For all of his harsh words, he wants a daughter he can dote on. It isn’t just about duty to him, no. He has protested too much that this is all it is to him.
“Well, never let it be said that I didn’t make an impression,” I say, uncrossing my arms.
“Oh, I don’t think anyone can ever say that about you. Trouble is, your first impression leaves a lot to be desired,” he retorts.
I smirk at him and he turns to leave. “Flat shoes only from tomorrow, please. You will abide by our dress code.” And he slams the door shut, but not before I got a peek at the not one, but two, guards stationed outside my door. He wasn’t kidding about not having me wandering around.
Dress code, my arse. Repression more like. I sit on the bed and stare woefully at my Louboutins before I take them off. Once again, I am going to be the shortest shit at the party. I could make myself taller, but I really don’t want to change myself any more than I have to for him.
I sigh and decide to see just how tall everyone is tomorrow. Surely, they can’t all be Drake’s height, there must be some folk round here more my size. I flop back to the bed and receive an unwelcome guest.
“Fuck off. Turncoat,” I snarl at Remiel, who positions himself in a matching pose to mine on the bed, staring the ceiling.
“Language, Alice,” he tuts.
“Stop fucking calling me fucking Alice!” I yell at him.
“Oh, my dear girl, our first night together and I think I am going to have to wash your mouth out with soap.”
“Try it and we will see just how much you like being impaled on the business end of a sword made from Hellfire,” I snarl at him.
“Your sense of humor is abhorrent.” He sniffs. “You know how sensitive I am about that thing.”
“Oh, poor you,” I say and turn on my side to face him. He stays on his back. “Tell me something. When you take me, will I just be asleep the whole time or will I be, you know, wasting away?” I ask him quietly.
He slowly turns his head to look at me. “Oh, bless you. You think I am going to take you for the whole seven days.”
“You aren’t?” I ask surprised.
“Of course not, my dear. I will only take you when you sleep. I want you healthy and focused, otherwise, yes, you will start wasting away. It will be slight in your case, you wouldn’t even notice it, but the process would begin.”
“Oh,” I say, a bit relieved that at least I don’t have to spend an entire week asleep and with him. Although, I do quite like the idea of sleeping for a whole week. “You feed off me to stay in the dreams?”
“In a manner,” he says shortly.
“When will you start?” I ask.