RYVEN
Blood spotted my new shirt. I should have known better than to go hunting in new gear but I had been too ruffled to actually look through the things I was shoving into my leather bag.
The leather bag that still smelled like Juniper. I hung my head forward and let out a deep breath. What was I doing? I was being a giant child was what I was doing and I needed to get all these festering emotions under control. I leaned forward as I wiped off my soiled blades and rolled my head on my shoulders. I was making a mess out of everything. Killing hadn’t changed much. It gave me an adrenaline rush. It helped me feel alive for a moment, but then everything that was crushing my shoulders came right back. I had to be better and I had to do better or I would get her killed. I couldn’t continue to make the same mistakes.
Maybe I hadn’t killed enough. There were more than enough monsters out there to be slain but if I was being honest with myself—which I definitely wasn’t— I needed to vanquish another foe. One that had been tormenting my nightmares for entirely too long. Revenge wasn’t exactly the word I would use for it either. It was a need to right my wrongs. A craving to give the people the justice they deserved. A lot of this that washappening out in the world was my fault. I was close enough to the Fraud Queen at one point, I could have taken her out. I should have done what I needed to. But I was young and dumb and here we were.
I yanked my now-soiled shirt over my head and stared down at the new foliage coating the bathing chamber. Once again, I was entirely too close to Juniper. I didn’t know if it was her magic in the air or the small fact that she was just a few feet on the other side of the wall but I could smell her. She took over everything that I was.
Gritting my teeth, I cupped steaming water between my hands and splashed my face. The water came back with little flakes of brown and red. I thought for sure I had gotten all of it when I washed up in the stream outside of the keep. There was no point in bringing carnage back into the Keep. The people didn’t deserve that, they’d been through enough already. At least they would have something to look forward to when the ball came around. I didn’t know how I felt about it just yet. I knew it was necessary and needed to keep morale up. We hadn’t done anything fun in as long as I could remember besides the music in the square or seeing others in the pub. But both of those things didn’t give the people something to look forward to, not like this would. I pinched the bridge of my nose as I imagined my role in all of this. I would have to put on a brave face and a bright smile. This was going to be interesting.
CHAPTER SEVEN
JUNIPER
Alric was making arrangements for the solstice, which meant I was back in Ryven’s very capable hands. Though I had to do myself a huge favor and not think about everything those hands were capable of or I would never recover. I simply had to keep myself busy or I would somehow find myself thrown into his arms. Which I couldn’t let happen, not if my plan was going to work and this plan was a long game one. Plus I didn’t exactly want to get rejected either. Even though I had a feeling what he said in the arena wasn’t exactly true, I could risk my poor heart just yet either. There were definitely feelings there, they’d been brewing for a while. I just needed to make sure I went about it in the right way or I’d potentially push him away for good.
Sita wanted me to come by her shop for another dress fitting and Ryven was on my heels like normal. His face was passive but I could see the tension in his shoulders and his gaze. He was still worried about Anya and the priests—rightfully so. The tent flapped open as Sita shoved her way out into the street. She grinned as her gaze perused Ryven sinfully.
“I see your shadow has returned. Has he done naughty shadow things yet?”
My cheeks flamed as I prayed Ryven didn’t hear what she said, but based on his flared nostrils and burning gaze, there was no such luck. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Sita’s look turned absolutely feral. As quickly as I could, I slammed my hand over her mouth. “Nothing. She meant nothing.”
Sita remained quiet as I removed my hand but that didn’t stop her from waggling her eyebrows in a suggestive manner at the poor man. Gods help the man or woman that caught her eye one day. I shoved the vivacious woman through the tent flap and shook my head at her.
“I can’t believe you!” I whisper-shouted.
She shrugged up one shoulder like she had no care in the world. “It’s the long game and we are playing it in the right direction. He won’t be able to stop thinking about what I was insinuating and if it had something to do with him.”
I pressed my hands into my heated face. “I’m pretty sure he knew you were speaking about him.”
She giggled as she pulled iridescent material out of a leather trunk in the corner. “Good, it’ll keep him up tonight and I know the perfect thing to help.”
The black boxtied off with a ribbon felt like a bomb between my hands. Ryven insisted on carrying it for me but there was no way I could allow that, not with what was inside of it. I couldn’t believe I agreed to this crazy, harebrained scheme but here we were. I didn’t exactly have to go through with the insane plan but I knew I would. If I didn’t, I would always wonder and I needed to know if following through with the rest of the plan was silly. It was the long game but I needed to drop lots of breadcrumbs and have him following me like a lovesick puppy. I didn’t know how on earth I was going to make that a thing but I knew the way helooked at me when he didn’t think I was watching. The way his eyes followed my body in the arena.
Now I had a slinky black, see-through nightgown that was apparently going to shoot his socks off, as Sita insisted it would. I didn’t know how I was going to muster up the courage to even put the thing on. If only Reva was here. She would’ve helped me get over myself.
Ryven was quiet like usual. He didn’t even ask me what Sita meant with the shadow comment and I was grateful but his eyes tracked my every move. My hands wouldn’t stop twitching on the ribbon and it was almost as if he knew what was in the box. I wouldn’t be surprised if he did, if he could hear through the tent walls and was pretending to not know what was going on. With those thoughts, I could feel my cheeks starting to heat up again. I needed to think about anything else but him and him potentially knowing our plan. Where in the seven hells was Alric when I needed him? This could have all been avoided.
When we finally got back to Ryven’s home, I practically ran to the bathing chamber. “I need a bath!”
“I need a cold shower,” I barely registered as I fled the room and sunk to the green floor. Alric, somehow, formed a type of barricade to prevent anyone from coming into the bathing chamber from my previous home so he nor Ryven needed to scope out the space every time I needed to bathe or pee. Which was a relief. With shaking hands, I placed the box on the wooden stool in front of the corner vanity. Very carefully, I pulled the ribbon free and the box slid open gracefully. Placed in the center was a black, see-through, sparkling masterpiece. This wasn’t what we’d been fitting me for for the last few days, but it was a prize I was a little nervous to have. I knew what she wanted me to do. I knew what I needed to do but could I actually go through with this?
I left the box and the nightgown on the stool and stripped down before plunging headfirst into the small pool. The grass in the bathing chamber immediately soaked up the excess water and the steam quickly began to curl around my face. I leaned back against the rocky edge and closed my eyes. Along with the grass, a thick moss took root along the edge of the water and was the perfect place to rest my head.
The sound of steel meeting steel meant it was my time to shine. If I waited any longer, I would lose my nerve.
CHAPTER EIGHT
RYVEN
The only way to get my mind off of what the dressmaker said was to sharpen my blades. While Juniper bathed and got ready for the night, I had to keep my thoughts busy and what better way to do that than to sharpen my swords? If I didn’t remain focused I could lose a finger so my mind, for the most part, stayed right on track.
But everything went out the window as Juniper emerged from the bathing chamber. Every thought, all focus, was gone in the blink of an eye. The sword I was so focused on no longer mattered and the sound of it clattering to the ground was a distant sound. A black slip of material was all that covered her body and covered was an understatement. Every curve and dip I imagined of her body was on display with very little concealed. My mouth went dry as I tried to think of something to say, anything really. Her lips curled at the edges as she pushed her hair over her shoulder and I was met with even more skin on display. My breath caught in my throat and for whatever reason I began to shake my head.
“What are you doing?” My words were breathy and not my own. Her teeth tucked her bottom lip between them and the blood in my body rushed right down where it didn’t belong.
