She sighed with bliss as she sank into the water. She wanted to relax and enjoy the bath, but she didn’t want Karn to come looking for her and see her naked. Although, he did seem to like her full figure, curves and all.
When she’d finished bathing, she climbed out and dried off with a red towel that had been resting on a rock shelf beside the pool. She wrapped the towel around herself and entered her bedroom to find Beya setting a very clean calico on the floor.
Abra glared at Annie before darting under the bed.
She had to put her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing aloud. When she’d gathered her control she smiled at Beya. “Thank you.”
“You are quite welcome.” Beya gestured to the bed. A skimpy, sheer, white dress lay on the blanket. It had a red design along the bottom hem and Annie saw that it was a row of red diamonds. “You best hurry,” Beya added.
Annie obeyed and slid the dress over her head. The thing was so damned short.
She pulled at a lock of her wet hair. “It’s so long it takes forever to dry.”
“Allow me.” Beya grasped a hunk of Annie’s butt-length hair, which was easily in the little woman’s reach.
A tingling sensation prickled Annie’s scalp and then Beya released the locks she had been gripping. Annie ran her fingers over her head and pulled her hair over her shoulder. It was completely dry. “Wow. That’s amazing.”
Beya produced a brush. “It needs a good swipe or two.”
“Or three.” Annie took the brush and ran it through her hair. When it fell down her back in a long silken mass, Annie handed Beya the brush. “I need to feed Abra and then I’ll go to dinner.”
“I will care for your creature.” Beya gestured toward the door. “Go to the king now, before you are late.”
“Okay.” Annie took a deep breath and left the chambers. She walked down the sweeping staircase, feeling as if she were walking to her doom.
CHAPTER TEN
MORNING LIGHT MADE IT THROUGH THE WINDOW as Annie sat cross-legged on her bed. The light wasn’t quite as murky as it had been since she’d arrived, but was somewhat depressing, still. San Francisco may have mostly days without sunshine or partially sunny days, but she never found it dreary like this.
Last night Karn had refused to talk during dinner. Annie had tried to engage him in conversation, but he hadn’t done more than grunt and eat. She attempted once again to get him to tell her more about her cousins, but he only glared at her. She finally gave up and concentrated on her meal.
She buried her face in her palms, her elbows on her knees. She didn’t know how much more she could take of this. Being trapped in a strange world, not being able to contact her cousins or her aunt, not having anyone to talk with but the times Beya popped in and out. And then there was the barbarian who barely spoke to her, but considered her to be his possession.
That truly was unacceptable. But what could she do about it?
She opened her eyes, tipped back her head, and stared at the canopy over the bed. Well, at least she had the art room. Today she would clean it until it was spotless. Tomorrow she would paint.
Creating something from nothing gave her feelings of lightness and joy, setting her heart free, and thinking about it at this moment was no different. Simply imagining herself with a palette in one hand, and a brush in her other, chased away some of the dreariness. She pictured herself painting something bright, sunny, and airy like the castle on one of Queen Elinara’s beautiful masterpieces.
Memories of Alice and Alexi came to Annie, and she wondered when she would see them again. She smiled as she thought about how big Alice had been on social media, and how she’d been telling Annie over and over to at least get a Facebook account.
Annie had never felt like she had enough to say publicly to warrant getting caught up in everything Alice was into. Annie kept to herself and she couldn’t think of any kids she’d gone to school with that she wanted to track down and “friend”. She had never been popular, always on the shy side, and self-conscious about her weight and her looks. She wondered now what it would have been like if she’d accepted herself as she was. Would others have accepted her, too?
A rough knock caused her to jump and she shot her gaze at the door. That had definitely been a man’s knock, not a woman’s.
Not knowing what else to do, she said, “Come in.”
The knob turned and the door swung open. Annie straightened her posture and caught her breath when she saw it was Karn. He had on a sleeveless black shirt that exposed his muscular arms, and he wore black pants that stretched across his powerful thighs. She ran her tongue along her lower lip. She’d seen everything beneath his clothing up close and personal.
He looked at her for a long time, and she could see that he was absorbing her appearance in the baby doll nightie. His gaze lingered on her large breasts, probably noticing her cleavage and her dark nipples that the sheer white nightie didn’t hide. For some reason she didn’t feel embarrassed. Maybe it was because he had seen her naked, and then some.
His dark eyes met hers. “Dress and I will take you on a tour of the mansion.”
She blinked at him. He hadn’t said two words last night and now he’d actually said a whole sentence. Not only that, but he wanted to take her on a tour.
“Do not make me wait.” His voice was gruff as he spoke again.
Make that two whole sentences.
“Okay.” She slipped out of bed and his eyes seemed to burn with fire as he took all of her in.
He clenched his hands into fists, as if restraining himself from going to her and—doing what?
She had a pretty good idea, and that thought did make her flush with heat.
He turned to the wardrobe and the doors swung open without him touching them. He went to the row of dresses, ran his finger along the tops of some of them until he came to a red one.
She bit her lower lip as he pulled out a silky red dress that would reach her upper thighs and a V neckline that would show her beyond generous cleavage. If she had anything she knew men loved, it was her breasts. Large and firm, with big nipples and dark areolas. Even with Karn’s big hands, her breasts were more than a handful for him.
He strode to where she waited and handed her the slip of silk. “Do not make me wait.”
“Yes, Sire,” she muttered under her breath as he strode through the doorway.
He paused and looked over his shoulder, his hand on the doorknob, as if gauging whether or not her response had been sarcastic or if she had meant it.
Her voice wavered as she decided to appease him. “Be right there, Sire.”
He said nothing and closed the door behind him.
She plopped on the bed, letting her breath out in a rush. She immediately got to her feet again. If she didn’t hurry, he’d likely come back, rip her clothes off, and make her walk around naked for the rest of the day.
That thought had her scrambling to get out of the nighty and into the dress. Yep, the dress accented her cleavage and showed most of her legs. She had been unhappy with her body for so long, but Karn seemed to be pleased with her appearance. She looked at her legs for a moment. Maybe they weren’t so bad after all.
“Hurry,” she reminded herself. She was halfway to the door before she remembered her cat. “Bye, Abra.”
Abra was still on the bed, only now she sat on the pillow like a princess on her throne. She narrowed her eyes.
“Sorry.” Annie let herself out of the room, knowing that once she returned, Abra would likely give her the silent treatment.
Annie turned and slammed into Karn. He caught her before she could stumble and gripped her close to him. “You took far too long.”
His words were firm but his eyes showed arousal, and she felt his hard erection against her belly. A surprising feeling of power rushed through her veins. She had the power to make this man want her. She’d never felt anything like it before. She hadn’t believed it possible to arouse any man, much less one like Karn. He was amaz
ingly good looking in a hard, dangerous way. She still didn’t understand what he found attractive in her.
“You have earned a punishment.” He didn’t release her. “For making me wait.”
“I did hurry.” She dropped her jaw. “And I didn’t know I would be punished.”
“Whenever you do not follow my instructions, you will be.” He trailed one finger along the collar he had put on her. “You belong to me and you will obey every command I give you.”
“You don’t even have clocks, so I have no idea how long is too long.” Anger flared in her as if flame had erupted from hot coals. “I’m getting tired of this.” She put her hands on her hips, her Southern accent growing stronger. “I am not your possession.”
He moved to her again, his body flush against hers. She started to take a step back, but he grabbed a handful of her hair and kept her still. He didn’t hurt her, but fear shot through her.
“Do not test me, Annie.” His voice was a low growl. “You will not win this battle. Do you understand that you will be punished for disobeying your Master?”
She swallowed, knowing she had no choice but to do as he told her. “Yes, Sire.”
He gave her one long last look as he released her hair. “Come.” He turned left and her heart jumped, wondering if he was going to take her to the art room. If he did, would he be upset if he knew she’d been in there? Beya seemed to think so.
She walked beside him as he kept his stride at a pace she could keep up with. He held his hands behind his back, staring straight ahead as if focused on some intense thought. The silk hem of the dress slid along her thighs and the material caressed her bare ass. Her breasts bounced as she walked. She was used to wearing a bra and panties, and it felt strange being naked beneath the dress.
“This is the guest wing.” They reached the corner and stopped on the side that was clean, not stepping onto the dirty side. He gestured to the doors at the end of the hallway. “You are not to go into this wing.” He looked down at her. “Do you understand?”
Even with the harsh instruction, her inquisitive mind still had to ask the question. “Why not?”
He glared at her. “No one is allowed.”
It wasn’t an answer to her question, and she had a feeling she wasn’t going to get one. She also didn’t plan on listening to him. As long as she was stuck here, she would go to the art room, clean it up, and paint as often as she could. Of course she’d wait to make sure he was busy. Beya would probably warn her if Karn was coming anywhere near the room.
He pivoted and they went back the way they had come. He clearly had only taken her to the abandoned—and haunted—hallway to give her that one instruction, not give her a tour of the wing.
One thought gave her pause. She would be disobeying him by returning to the art room. What kind of punishment would that call for if he found out?
The funny thing was, she didn’t care. All she cared about was her art.
When they stood in front of her chambers, close to the top of the staircase, he gestured to the opposite wing. “Only additional guest bedrooms are upstairs, nothing more.”
She wanted to shrug. So why the tour of the upstairs? “It’s a big place for one guy.”
He gave her a sharp look. “I am not the only individual in this mansion.”
“You have servants.” She felt somewhat perplexed. “Does that count?”
He started toward the stairs. “I will have my mate and our cubs as well to fill my home.”
Her skin felt suddenly too tight for her body. Was she jealous that he intended to marry someone and have children with that woman?
Annie tried to shake off the tenseness in her shoulders. What would he do to her as his possession? Did he intend to keep her as a sort of mistress or a pet? The queasiness that went through her belly caught her off guard. His statement was not settling well with her at all, and she wanted to lash out at him.
She had a Southern woman’s gentleness, but she also had temper to match. Southern women tended to say things that meant the exact opposite of what they meant. She could just hear her mother, who was the queen of Southernisms.
“Bless your heart. Let me know how that’s workin’ for you.”
Annie said nothing as she concentrated on walking beside Karn without looking at him.
Downstairs, the first thing he took her to was a study with a desk and a large table with chairs around it. Portraits claimed one wall, a huge fireplace was in the middle of the wall next to the first, while shelf after shelf of books took up the other two walls. Cubbies filled with scrolls were along the far left of one row of shelves.
“May I look?” She glanced at Karn and gestured to the scrolls. “I’d love to see one.”
He gave a nod, watching her with a gaze she couldn’t read.
She went to a cubby and pulled out a scroll before laying it on the desk and unrolling it. The scroll was clearly old and she took great care with it. She jumped a little when Karn placed his fingers at the top of the scroll, holding it for her.
“It’s beautiful.” She traced her finger along the parchment without touching the scrollwork painted in red, black, and gold leaf. “It looks so old.”
“All of the scrolls are ancient,” he said.
She wondered if she should have unrolled something that was so old. Since he’d allowed it, he clearly didn’t mind. She studied the fine detail of the scrollwork around the small printing that reminded her of what was known as a runic alphabet in Germanic languages that were used before the Latin alphabet was adopted. She could read Latin, but definitely not this. She had a gift for reading in various languages even though she’d never mastered speaking them. She wondered if she could learn to read these runes.
“What does it say?” She looked at Karn.
“It is a proclamation that is no longer in use.” His gaze drifted over the words. “Many of our proclamations were outdated and have been abolished.” He began rolling up the scroll and she moved her hands out of the way.
She moved to the shelves and ran her finger along the spines of several old books. Of course, she couldn’t read a word of the runes stamped on the spines in gold, but she liked looking at them. She wondered again about her ability to understand and speak with Karn, even though they were from different worlds. He’d said she’d meet a sorceress named Kalina who would explain things to her. She hoped that would be soon.
“What kinds of books do you have?” Her finger came to rest on a tall book with a well-worn emerald green spine. She looked over her shoulder at Karn. “Books about Tarok history and subjects like biographies? Do you have fairytales and fiction?”
“We have many stories, both truth and tales.” His voice sounded so much less harsh than it had earlier. He came up beside her and reached for the book her finger rested on and she moved her hand away. He pulled the book off the dust free shelf and set it on the desk. “Many tales are in this.”
“What kinds of tales?” She was amazed he was talking, and she didn’t want him to stop.
“Stories we were told as cubs.” He opened the front cover. Words written in an ornate handwriting were on the inside, but in a script she couldn’t read. “Our mother gave each of my brothers, our sister, and me a copy of tales from a collection of five different volumes. She inscribed each.”
“Her handwriting is beautiful.” Annie wanted to run her finger over the design, as if she could absorb the essence of his mother. For a moment she wondered why she had been able to recognize “Q.E.” for Queen Elinara on the paintings, yet couldn’t read the runes. “You said she was an artist.”
He gave a nod as he turned the page. A colorful illustration was on the left page, a rabbit and a black-striped white tiger that looked like Karn when he was a tiger. Magical-looking plants and flowers surrounded the creatures.
His expression seemed lighter as he pointed to the runes. “This is a story of a woman from a strange land who came to our world. It is much like how your cousin, Alice, arrived.”
It looked as if he was lost in a memory. “But this tale is a story of fantasy and much magic while hers is truth with little magic.”
“I miss Alice.” Annie wanted to hear more about her cousin. “Can you tell me her story?”
He shrugged. “In time.”
Annie sighed and looked at the book. She could barely keep her hands to herself. She wanted to pick up the book and go through each page. “I wish I could read the language.”
He turned pages filled with lines of runes until he came to a second brightly illustrated page. This one had small folk who reminded her of Beya.
“A tale of the Munchfolk from Lord Kir’s realm,” Karn said. “They are a kind and helpful people, but can be quite vicious if need be.”
He showed Annie more illustrations, giving brief synopses of each tale, until he reached the halfway point in the book. The artwork was darker, with a stone arch overgrown with plants, as if the young woman in the picture was alone in abandoned ruins.
“Mikaela’s favorite story.” His voice went from low and almost soft to hard. His jaw tightened and he slammed the book shut. Anger gave him a dangerous appearance.
Annie hurried to find something else to distract him. “What are those?” She gestured to a credenza of sorts with a chalice, a painted wood bird with peeling paint, and an assortment of small wooden toys. In addition was a ball, clearly worn from years of use.
Karn dismissed them with a wave of his hand. “Belongings from my youth.”
Her gaze drifted over six portraits—one was of an older man and woman, and four were of young men. One of the men was Karn, who looked hard and unyielding in the portrait.
But the sixth portrait—it was the same young woman who had been in the painting Annie had seen in the art room. Only in this one, she seemed almost delicate, not like the cold woman in the other painting. Yet her eyes were still haunted.
Annie shook off tingling sensations that rolled down her spine. She went up to the portrait of the young woman. “Is this your sister? Mikaela?”
Bound by Desire: King of Diamonds (Wonderland Book 3) Page 11