Zaddock had been his savior those first few years—had shown Loche what true loyalty was. But Lessia… Lessia was the one to open his eyes—to his people, yes—but also to something he’d been missing all along.
Love.
Not just in the romantic sense. The love he’d refused to let himself feel for his people, for his friends… for anyone. He’d thought he knew it all before he met her, but he’d been a smug idiot.
Yes, it was lonely at the top.
Yes, he had to sacrifice for his people.
But he loved this. He loved being regent. He loved that he could make a difference. He loved it all. And now… now there was a possibility for love behind the damp wooden door before him—with someone who cared for this nation, this duty, and the sacrifices as much as he did.
It might not be love yet.
It might never be love. But if he didn’t give it a chance?
A low laugh left him as he heard Lessia scold him in his mind.
Love means being brave enough to risk it all.
Loche had seen it in her when she let Merrick in. He’d seen it in the silver-haired Fae warrior as he fought for his life to do what was right for Lessia, and Lessia only. He’d seen it in Raine when he looked at Frelina—when the warrior had finally given in to the light he didn’t believe he deserved. He’d seen it in Zaddock, who’d thrown away his pride to melt Amalise’s walls of ice.
If they could…
If they dared…
Then so would Loche.
And wasn’t it what he and Iviry were asking of their people? Being brave enough to care for a people they might not know—that they might even fear, for their differences—but dare to love without restraint so that they could change the world?
Loche rapped his knuckles against the door before he could second-guess himself.
As the handle twisted—as if Iviry had been right behind the door—he told himself that tonight, though… tonight he’d be a friend. A shoulder for Iviry to lean on. A distraction. An enemy if she needed to get some frustrations out, although he did prefer to keep his sight…
Her blue eyes were puffy when the door flew open, and Loche’s muscles coiled, his arms wanting to pull her against him, but as his hands twitched, she moved backward—just subtly but enough for him to know that wasn’t what she needed.
She didn’t say anything. Her eyes moved slowly over his face, then down to the bottle he still held. His lips drew into a crooked smile as he waved the liquor loosely in the air. “Come on.”
“I don’t?—”
“No.” Loche jerked his head. “It’s been a… it’s been a day. I think we deserve to get a little drunk and have some fun. Some non-leader fun. Some throw-our-responsibilities-in-the-ocean fun. Some we’ll-regret-this-tomorrow fun.”
“Loche…” Iviry peeked over his shoulder, but he’d made sure none of their guards had followed him here—had given Zaddock strict orders to keep them occupied so he and Iviry could be alone.
“Iviry,” Loche teased, using the same scolding tone she had. “I’ll have to drink this all myself if you don’t join me, and while I don’t back down from a challenge, I tend to get quite reckless when I’ve had a few… so you might end up ruling this realm alone even before the war has begun. And honestly…” He dragged his gaze from her bare feet, up the leathers she wore, over the dark tunic, andfinally across her face. “You’re far too beautiful to be a grieving widow.”
A not especially elegant snort had bubbles form at her nostrils, and for reasons unbeknownst to himself, Loche thought it was the cutest thing he’d ever seen. His grin hiked higher, until Iviry finally gave a weak smile in return.
“Come on.” Loche reached out with the hand not holding the bottle. “Let’s go, wife.”
She rolled her eyes at that, just like he had known she would, but after a long sigh she thankfully took his hand. His eyes dropped to her feet—seriously, how were they so damned perfect?—and to not give her any time to back out, Loche kicked off his own boots.
When Iviry frowned at him, he raised his brows. “It’s easier to sneak around without.”
He didn’t wait for a response. Instead, Loche firmed his grip on the beautiful Fae leader and almost dragged her up the stairs and out into the cool night.
When voices sounded around the bend of the ship, he quickly pulled them into a dark alcove, and they remained there, hidden behind a few barrels and the shade of a folded sail until the noise quieted.
Loche was about to get moving again when he noticed how close they were.
