He ducked his head and sipped wine, avoiding my gaze.
“What did you do with Tullus’s fortune?” He set down his glass. “I would’ve thought you’d buy a mountain of cheese.”
“I blew it all on fine ale and cheap men.”
He gave me a crooked smile. “I know you’re a better liar than that.”
I picked at a piece of bread, my appetite waning. We’d had a heart-to-heart yesterday, but I didn’t want to make a habit of confiding in him. He held too much power over me already.
“My mother was sick. I spent the money on a cure.”
I gulped down wine to stop myself from saying any more. He didn’t need to know about the long, agonizing year where she’d wasted away in front of my eyes, how none of the remedies I’d tried had made the slightest difference. I didn’t want to talk about the apathy and disdain I’d gotten during my search for help, how everyone thought she’d deserved what she’d got because of her profession.
Then, after months of chasing rumors and whispers, I’d found it: a remote abbey in the mountains built around a spring with healing properties. Treatment would take three months and cost a small fortune.
So I’d stolen one.
“She’s lucky to have you,” Valen said.
“But she doesn’t have me.” I scowled at him. “She’s old and weak and struggling to survive on her own, and I can’t get to her for another month thanks to you.”
“But our arrangement helps both of you.” He shifted closer to me, his gaze intent. “Five hundred gold coins once the job is complete, remember? Don’t pretend you weren’t planning another heist to get money to care for her.”
I glared at him—because he was right.
“See? I’ve given you what you wanted. You’d be doing this anyway, just with a higher risk to yourself and less fancy cheese.”
God and Goddess, he was so damned smug. I leaned closer. Anyone strolling by would assume we were sharing tender whispers, but I wanted to get in his face to snarl at him.
“But you didn’t give me a choice.”
“I did. I offered you a deal.”
“You showed up in full armor with a sword. You threatened to hand me over to the guards if I refused. You were trying to intimidate me—admit it.”
He looked away for a moment. “I couldn’t risk you refusing.”
“Yeah, then you couldn’t steal a shiny jewel to go with the fifty other shiny jewels in your house. What sorrow.”
He pressed his lips together as if he were biting back the words he wanted to say. Because he couldn’t just tell me why he wanted the Selenian Jewel. That would mean trusting me, and he was a secretive bastard.
A secretive bastard with sensuously perfect-looking lips.
“I want us to be partners, Emmeline,” he said. He even sounded like he meant it.
“Well, we can’t always get what we want.”
His eyes widened ever so slightly. And then he kissed me.
I let out a muffled squeak. My brain couldn’t make sense of what was happening. Valen putting manacles on my wrists? That was normal. Forcing me to practice fifty variations of a curtsy? Perfectly standard. But kissing me? What the hell?
I should push him away. I should punch him in the face. But I didn’t. Not because I was afraid to, but because despite everything I’d told myself about not trusting him, despite everything he’d done to me, the kiss was… kind of nice.
No, it was more than nice. It was exquisite. He kissed me urgently, like the world would fall apart if I didn’t kiss back. His right hand clasped the back of my head, tangling in my hair. His left snaked around my waist, pulling me closer. God and Goddess, I wanted to be as close to him as possible.
I put a hand on his shoulder to steady myself. His chest felt firm and warm against mine, and his lips… Oh, his lips. They were scorching, brazen, exhilarating. I could taste the wine he’d been drinking, but his kiss was intoxicating me more than any alcohol.
How could someone so devious be so incredibly stupid? He hadn’t needed to threaten me with the city guard to get my help. If he’d brought me here, offered cheese and wine, and kissed me like this, I would’ve agreed to do anything he wanted.
