“We are,” he said.
“Kiss me,” she said softly.
He took her face in his hands and kissed her. “We’ll figure things out.”
“There is one other way. We could marry and live apart and only see each other occasionally. I think I could accept that you had a human pet if I never knew anything about her and could pretend she didn’t exist.”
He laughed softly and shook his head. “Do you still not understand the way things are? The king has been relentless with questions about how you’re adjusting and when the wedding date will be set. We can’t live apart.”
“But after the wedding, I could—”
“No, Brandese. Not after. Not ever.”
“You could convince him later, if you wanted to.”
“Maybe, but I don’t actually believe that would be prudent. Without me around to stop you, you’d get into trouble. Besides, I don’t want to let you go. I want you in Calex castle.”
She frowned, pulling away. “You’re not being fair.”
“I’m not beingunfair.”
“So how do you see this game between us playing out, Evston?”
“With you belonging to me completely.”
She folded her arms over her chest.
“You shouldn’t have told me it was jealousy rather than disgust that made you retreat.”
She took a step back. “Ev, I’m not going to get into a semantic debate. The point is that we both know I’m not suited to life as a pet.”
“I don’t know that. Neither do you.”
She stared at him. “What do you intend?”
“To train you and see.”
