Samantha wiped her hands on a dishtowel.“Good.Marcus is too arrogant.You know yesterday he had the gall to tell me I didn’t dress ‘as befits a Storm Lord’s queen?’”she mimicked his haughtiness.“That’s a direct quote.”
Knowing better than to agree with Marcus in front of my affai, I said nothing.Personally, I planned on buying her more extravagant gowns and silks when we journeyed to Tanselm.Hopefully sooner than later.Jeans and tee-shirts were fine for me here, but on her they were seriously wasted.
“I think it’s great a woman is giving Marcus a run for his money,” she continued, her eyes full of fire, sparking with my red.No one could see that and deny our bond.
“I agree.”
She beamed at me, and I knew I wouldn’t have to wait long until we burned up the bedsheets this evening.No one could accuse me of being the dim Storm Lord.What made my affai happy made me happy, and if I agreed with her, so much the better.
I cleared my throat, trying not to act so besotted.“Anyway, with Cadmus at the bar, Marcus at work, and Aerolus holed up somewhere practicing the mystical arts—whatever the heck that means—it’s just you and me for dinner.”
She blew me a kiss.“Too bad.I wanted to talk to Cadmus again about how he controls his visions.I’m starting to get the hang of them.”
Thanks to Cadmus’s instruction, Samantha had been strengthening her inborn gift.She’d been more than happy to resume using her extrasensory ability, having learned about Cadmus’s role in our rescue that fateful night near Golden Gardens.
Through one of my brother’s visions, he and Marcus had known to arrive in time to save us from death and worse at the hands of the wraiths.
Thoughts of what might have happened still pained me.
“I love you.”I reminded her of that at least once a day and never failed to bask in the glow of her warm smile.
She sent me a mental image, a scorching impression of bed-play that had me even harder than I’d been.Hmm.Did we have to eat dinner?Maybe we could save it for later and feast on each other now…
A disgusted sigh sounded behind me.
Samantha gasped.I whirled around to find Arim shaking his head.
“Can’t you think of anything else, Darius?”
I didn’t care for his mocking tone.“Ever think of knocking,Uncle?” Love had tapered my anger with my uncle, but it hadn’t extinguished it entirely.I was enraptured with Samantha, and for that reason only, I let him feel only a hint of my displeasure.
Darius,Samantha growled in my mind.Respect your family.
I sighed.“We bid you welcome, Arim.”
A pleased look appeared on the sorcerer’s face.“She’s made a true prince out of you.”Arim paused.“Now it’s time to go.”
I blinked.He couldn’t mean…“Tanselm?”
“Well, I’m not here to whisk you off to Disneyland.”Arim turned to Samantha.“You’re ready?”
She nodded.“I packed yesterday when Aerolus told me you’d be coming.”
I stared at her in shock.“You failed to mention any of that to me.”Anger stirred.“Neither did Aerolus.”When I found that gray-eyed traitor, I’d pound some sense into him.
Arim sighed.“It was too good to hope she might have permanently disabled that streak of rage within you.”He walked away.
I followed, and Samantha joined us in the living room, worming her way under my arm.
She smiled at my uncle.“Now why would I try to get rid of his rages, Arim?After all, it’s that spark of impatience that lights his fire.”Her eyes sparkled.“We wouldn’t want that fire to go out now, would we?”She kissed me with enough force to make me consider the merits of lovemaking on the couch, regardless of our present company.
“Save it,” Arim grumbled, a hint of humor curling his mouth.“I’ve already informed your brothers of your departure.It’s best you leave now, while they attend to their affai.”
Samantha and I turned as one to stare at my uncle.
I was the first to regain my tongue.“You’re telling me they’ve each met their affai?”
“Yes.”
