Rhyan’s jaw tightened. “I saw. I saw that fucking kiss,” he growled, his emerald eyes blazing. His hands made fists at his sides. “And that Godsdamned dress.” His chest heaved, and his eyes searched mine for a long moment. And then, just as he sometimes did, when he looked like he was deliberating, carefully weighing his options, he beckoned me even closer. “Come here. Come here to me.”
I did. And he reached for my cheeks, his palms sliding down my neck. A shiver ran down my spine, and then his lips were on mine. Soft, and gentle, kissing only the corner of my mouth. It was barely a kiss at first, and then it was more. So much more.
But I pulled back. So much had happened tonight, I’d been able to ignore the sickening feeling in my stomach, and the disgust I felt from Kane’s lips on mine. My survival instincts had kept me safe, just as they had all month. But here, while we were in stasis, while everything was uncertain, I suddenly could feel his mouth on mine again. Feel his hands on my body. His unwanted eyes on my dress.
“Wait,” I said suddenly, shaking out of his hold.
Rhyan shook his head. “What? Why?”
“I feel disgusting.” I wiped at my lips. “I still feel him. Feel him there.” I looked away. “You shouldn’t have to—shouldn’t have to kiss me. Not after him.”
“Lyr, let me,” Rhyan said. “Let me kiss you. Let me kiss his touch away. I’ll kiss every place he touched you. Everyplace he looked at you. I’ll kiss you, and kiss you, until you forget. Kiss you, until you only know my mouth again.” His eyes heated.
“That’s a lot of kissing,” I said, my voice sounding defeated.
“Well,” Rhyan’s good eyebrow lifted, “It’s quite a hardship.” He winked. “But I think I’m up for the job. If you want me.”
The sound of boots marching down the hall sounded, and my throat tightened, the moment gone. Rhyan stilled, prepared to go back out the window if anyone entered, but the footsteps faded.
“If the Emperor does die,” I said quietly, “we could be dealing with your father in charge. Or, we could be facing an Emperor who chooses a new Imperator for the North. Any access we have right now to Jules could be taken away.”
“We haven’t lost yet,” he said. “It’s just that our original plan might not happen tomorrow.”
My heart sank. “It might not happen at all.” I squeezed his hands. “Imperator Kormac knows. He knows you’re vorakh.”
Rhyan paled. “What? He told you that?”
I sighed. “He’s holding it over me. Nothing we did the past month—at least nothing I did—fucking matters. Kormac wants me to end the engagement. He says if I go back to Viktor, you’ll be safe.”
“And you believe him? Gryphon-shit.” He pushed his fingers through his hair. “Gods! How many fucking suitors can they force on you?”
I laughed bitterly. “He was worried,” I said. “It’s not just that he wants to use me to get to Bamaria. He’s worried that Brockton told us about Jules. I think he knows we know.”
“Fuck. I never thought about that. But if that’s true,” he ran his fingers through his hair again, “Then he’s never been more dangerous.”
“Maybe I should take his offer,” I said.
“What?” Rhyan shouted. “Lyr, no! I won’t let you do that. You are not risking your life for mine.”
“What other choice do I have?”
“Not that one. You are not handing yourself over to those Godsdamned wolves! Just give me a chance to think. Let me handle it.”
“Just like you’ve been handling everything else behind my back?” My voice had come out with far more bitterness than I’d realized I was carrying.
His eyes darkened. “What the hell does that mean?”
“I saw Mercurial,” I said, my voice cold. “He told me aboutRakashonim.He told me you’ve known for a month. You knew that first day we were in Seathorne, and you said nothing to me. Nothing. We had that night to talk, and you could have told me, warned me, shared your concerns, but you didn’t tell me.” I shook my head, my chest tightening. All at once, I felt like I was coming undone. I’d been so worried for Rhyan, so concerned and upset about our distance, I hadn’t had room to fully be angry. To be upset at the secrets he’d kept. But I was. And I couldn’t hide it any longer, because all the buried feelings, were now rushing to the surface.
Rhyan paled. “Lyr, I couldn’t. You know I couldn’t with the restrictions we’ve had in place.”
“Before those!” I shouted. “Maybe you didn’t get a chance to tell me about theRakashonimthat night.But what about Kenna? Or what happened with Garrett?” I sucked in a breath. “What about Amalthea?” I couldn’t stop. Every secret I knew he was keeping was pouring out of me.
Rhyan’s jaw was working, his breath heavy. He was silent for a long moment, his aura almost unreadable as it shifted, growing colder and colder, and then seemingly vanishing all at once.
“Who told you about Amalthea?” His voice had hardened, every word he spoke clipped and harsh.
“Your father,” I spat. “Who else?”
