He cast a superior, condemning sneer at Acheron. "You're not worth my time."
With that, he hauled Ryssa out of the room. "Seal his door shut. He can go without food this day."
Acheron leaned back against the wall and shook his head. If his father wanted to control him with food, he should have spent more time with Estes. That bastard had known how to hold food over him.
His gut tightened at the memory of his begging Estes for even a drop of water to slake his thirst.
"You've earned nothing and nothing is what you'll have . . . Now get on your knees and please me, then we'll see if you're worthy of salt."
Squeezing his eyes shut, he forced the images away. He hated begging and crawling. But the only thing that would make it go away was the memory of the goddess who'd claimed him.
"Artemis?" he whispered her name in fear that someone might actually hear him call her. Honestly he expected her to ignore him as everyone else did.
She didn't.
She appeared before him. Acheron's jaw opened ever so slightly in shock. Her long red hair appeared to glisten in the dim light. Her eyes were vibrant and warm and welcoming. There was nothing about her demeanor that condemned or mocked him. "How do you feel?" she asked.
"Better with you here."
A small smile toyed at the edges of her lips. "Really?"
He nodded.
Her smile widened as she approached his bed and crawled across him.
Acheron closed his eyes as the sweet smell of her skin filled his head. He wanted to bury his face in her hair and just inhale it. Straddling his hips, she brushed the hair back from his neck before she fingered the skin she'd bitten.
"You're very strong for a human."
"They trained me for stamina."
Ignoring his comment, she frowned. "You're still not looking at me."
"I see you, Artemis." And he did. He saw every single line of her face, every curve of her luscious body.
She took his face in her hands and turned his chin until he was facing her squarely. Still Acheron kept his gaze on her knees that poked out from underneath her dress. "Look at me."
Acheron wanted to run. He'd spent his entire life never looking directly at anyone except for those times when he wanted them to see his defiance. And any time he dared that, he'd been brutalized for it.
"Acheron . . . Look. At. Me."
Bracing himself for her attack, he obeyed. His heart stilled as every part of his body tensed in expectation of being hurt.
Artemis sat back on his groin with a pleased expression. "There now. That wasn't so hard was it?"
Harder than she could ever imagine, but as each second passed and she didn't slap him for looking at her, he relaxed a bit more.
She smiled. "I like your eyes. They're strange, but very pretty."
Pretty? His eyes? They were disgusting. Everyone, including Ryssa, was afraid of them. "You don't mind my looking at you?"
"Not at all. At least this way I know you're paying attention to me. I don't like the way your eyes dance around the room as if you're distracted."
That was a first for him. "How could anything ever distract me while you're with me? I assure you, whenever you're around, all I see is you."
She beamed in satisfaction. "Now why did you call me?"
"I'm not sure. Truthfully, I didn't think you'd come. I only whispered your name, hoping you might answer."
"You're such a silly human. Are you stuck inside again today?"
He nodded.
"We can't have that. Come." The word had barely left her lips before they were once more in her bedroom.
Acheron was again dressed in red, which was odd given that everything else was white or gold. "Why do you always put me in crimson?"
She bit her lip as she walked around him, dragging her finger over his body. "I like the way you look in it." She paused before him so that she could lift herself on her toes and kiss him.
Acheron gave her what she wanted. It was always in his training to please whoever he was with. To take nothing for himself. His needs never mattered. He was only a tool to be used and then forgotten.
But with Artemis he didn't feel like that. As with Ryssa, she made him feel like he was a person—that he could have his own thoughts and it wasn't wrong. He could look at her and she didn't curse him.
Artemis sighed as Acheron pulled her close. She loved the way he held her. The way his muscles rippled around her body. He was so handsome and strong. So seductive. All she wanted was to be alone with him like this. To feel his heart beating against her breasts.
His breath mixed with hers. She could feel her teeth growing as her hunger for him increased even more . . .
She pulled back and met his gaze so that he could see the real her. He didn't even blink at her fangs. Instead, he tilted his head and offered her what she wanted most. No one had ever been so accommodating before. Normally she fed from her brother or one of her maidens. But they didn't care for it.