He let her go, and she scrambled off his lap and took several steps away from him for good measure.
Her heart still thundered, and she felt the warmth of a blush on her cheeks.
They were kissing in a public place where anyone could’ve walked by. She glanced around furtively.
“Don’t worry, Princess. Everyone is probably enjoying the play at the temple,” said Veer, intuiting her thoughts. His eyesreflected a jubilant satisfaction as he lifted a finger to his own lips, as if recalling the intimacy of their kiss. She stared at his finger and felt the blush flare hotter.
“Aren’t you going to rebuke me for breaking your vow of not touching you until you give permission?” he asked, brows raised.
Chandra wished she could wipe the smug look off his face. But honesty compelled her to admit that he wasn’t at fault.
“You didn’t break any promises. I…I wished for it.”
Incredulity, and some other difficult-to-discern emotion, lit his eyes. Something she suspected was triumph. “You are honest to a fault, Princess,” he said as he got up lazily and stretched, the play of long muscles on his torso drawing her eye, making heat rush into her face once again.
He was doing this deliberately, if the look in his eye was anything to go by. She didn’t have the experience to hide her reactions, and he took advantage of that to make her acknowledge her weakness. This was nothing more than a game to him.
Chandra watched warily as he came closer. She wanted to flee, to leave this man’s disturbing presence, but she made herself stand her ground.
What kind of woman was she, that she was all right with kissing a man who professed to hate her? Where was her self-respect?
“That was too short for my satisfaction, Princess,” he said, reaching for her hand and placing the anklet in her palm. “The next time we do this, I’ll make sure we aren’t disturbed for a long time.”
“There won’t be a next time.” She curled her fingers into a fist around the anklet, wanting to stomp her foot, but stopped herself with difficulty, knowing how childish it would look.
“Are you sure about that?”
Chandra grew frustrated. He seemed to reduce their encounters to satisfying a physical need while she wanted so much more. “I want to be seen as a person, not a possession to be attained. It’s why I made you promise me those vows.”
“What does that have to do with plain old lust? I’ve wanted you since the day I saw you, Chandra, and that hasn’t changed.”
“And love, respect, trust…none of these matter to you?”
“Not for what I’ve in mind for you,” he said, his words flippant.
It was those words that strengthened her resolve to keep him at a distance. That showed her plainly how little he thought of their relationship. Admittedly, they didn’t have a conventional marriage. Lies, deceit, and broken promises lay between them like hurdles. But his words made a mockery of the tangle of emotions she felt toward him, reducing them to simple base impulses.
She was aware that she needed to gather the courage to lay the past all out in the open. Or reconcile to the fact that this was all their relationship could hope to be.
Chapter 30: Fight or Flee?
Chandra was back in travel clothes, a dark shirt under leather armor and adhotithat allowed for greater freedom of movement. Sturdy slippers covered her feet and leather gauntlets adorned her forearms instead of bangles. They had decided to depart from the temple city that evening.
Chandra realized with a pang that they were leaving without at least a thanks to their hosts, but informing them of their departure would raise more questions.
Veer entered their hut.
“I’m ready—” She stopped when she saw his expression. “What’s wrong?”
“There are intruders inside the city. They have broken in through the city gates,” Veer announced grimly and beckoned her to follow him.
“How do you know this?” she asked, following him outside where the rest of their group of friends waited.Shota and Billadev, too, were in their travel clothes, sporting weapons and armor.
“I sent Vihari scouting to make sure the way was clear when I spotted them. They seemed well organized.”
“Maruthi tells me it is not one of the brigands of the Borderlands. There has been no talk recently about invading the temple city. What do you want us to do, Veer?” Shota asked.
“What do you mean? We should obviously alert the temple guards. They need to know they are under attack.” Chandra’s gaze moved from Veer to Shota, incredulous that there could be another option.
