A Royal Craving by Elaine White Read Free Book Online

where every story should start. “Parry and I are twins, thus my father devised a potion to determine the best leader for our people. I volunteered to go first; I would be in danger if it did not work and Parry would be spared,” he explained.
    Spencer moved closer and curled up at his side.
    Prosper fashioned a woollen blanket to cover his exposed skin. “In short, the potion set me on fire. My skin began smoking and went up in flames,” he continued, to give him an idea of how frightening it had been. “Where I did not burn, long nails clawed at my skin. A whole chunk of flesh tore from my side,” he confessed, managing to remain impartial because Spencer's soft fingertips moved over his upper arm.
    This sweet child, young and human, was trying to soothe him. He had never known another human like him.
    Prosper lowered the left side of the sheet, to expose his abdomen. He still had a scar from where his vampire DNA had attempted to heal the wound, during his turning. He smiled, as Spencer brushed his finger against it.
    “It must have been terrifying for you,” he admitted, with a troubled frown.
    “Yes. I was fifteen at the time; still with the ability to age,” Prosper admitted, unaware of what this impoverished young man knew about vampires. At sixteen, their bodies naturally transformed into an adult vampire. “Nothing cured the potion. Every few years I get a new scar, a new onset of pain. It lingers and lasts or will disappear after a moment,” he explained, the moment Spencer's eyes were on his lips.
    He wanted to emphasise that his life remained unpredictable. He did not know if he would have the immortality of his people. “My hair and body age at a rate slower than most humans but faster than a vampire. My future is uncertain.”
    “That is how you became King? Your father acknowledged your self-sacrifice as the sign of a true leader?” Spencer guessed, with a smile.
    “No, little one. Parry abdicated,” Prosper corrected his assumption, with curiosity. “He saw what I had suffered and, as you say, deemed my sacrifice worthy of a leader,” he confessed, surprised by Spencer's reaction. “My father could not bear to offer the throne to Sienna and she has never been happy about that,” he said, amused by the way Spencer slid forward and curled up against his chest.
    “I am sorry your family did not understand the immense sacrifice you made,” he apologised. “You were noble, offering yourself to this experiment that has ruined your existence and chance of happiness, to save your brother from harm,” he mused.
    Fascinated by the way his mind worked, Prosper realised that Spencer thought him a hero and Parry's protector. When their eyes met, he smiled in wonder. “You have the most extraordinary mind, little love,” he approved, kissing his forehead.

Chapter 7
     

† Spencer †
     
    F or an hour, Prosper and Spencer lay on his bed, talking and sharing brief, breathless moments of passion.
    Spencer still could not believe that he lay in the King's bed, that he had met him again after five long years, that he had kissed him, that this beautiful man desired him. Finnegan had been right; his childhood friend had always insisted that he would one day live his dreams, as his friend now lived his own.
    As soon as he had a spare moment, he would write a letter to his dear friend, to tell him of the wonderful news. Until then, he wanted to bask in his King.
    Prosper did everything he could to care for him; filling the luxurious bath in the adjoining bathroom, set into the floor. It took up half the room, but the King left him to enjoy the steam and warmth. All because he confessed he felt unclean for such a house, a fine bed and fine man.
    Though Prosper did not understand Spencer's fear of being unclean, he still permitted him the reassurance of a bath. The care and tenderness made Spencer's spine tingle. Of the vampires and humans in the world, why did the King choose him? A scrawny, worthless