Although she hadn’t expected it to do so because it had worked.
Marcella and Gavril rode at the front as they approached the Desero estate, the trees shading them, but not so thick they couldn’t see the mountains they were right at the foot of. Nikias was right behind them, and Aimilia was hovering toward the back as much as possible.
She’d done her best that morning not to be too close to Nikias, hoping the hours left to travel would give her the space she needed to understand what had happened or had almost happened the night before.
Nikias had almost kissed her.
That… She could make a little sense of. He’d been openly trying to marry her.
What was the problem was the fact that she’d almost let him.
In hindsight, of course her plan to repair things with Nikias would result in him being like himself again—which currently included his determination to marry her. Maybe she’d hopedinstead now that she knew—even if she was able to get him to look her in the eyes—he would still be too wounded to want her.
That, while not ideal, she could handle.
What she hadn’t anticipated was the warm rush when he’d risen above her expectations and complimented her so thoroughly. When his hands had been on her, she’d felt… safe. Like just his presence was enough to protect her from ever being brought so low again.
She’d been trying to level the ground between them to equal it all out, but now she was on a slope, unable to stop stumbling toward him.
All morning she’d been unable to take her eyes off his back. He’d caught her a couple times when he would look over his shoulder, but his expression was unreadable when he did.
What was wrong with her? It wasNikias.
There should be no part of her that felt safe in his arms. There should most certainly be no part of her that wanted him to kiss her. There should be no thrill down her spine that he thought she was beautiful.
As they reached the gates, Aimilia was resolved to push it out of her mind. It had been a fluke. Simply the result of such emotional vulnerability on her end and Nikias being surprisingly gentle and kind in response.
She would have been willing to kiss a tree if she’d also spent so much time baring her soul to it.
It meant nothing. Because nothing had actually happened.
The gates opened. Aimilia watched as Marcella dismounted, immediately rattling off in her first language with the guards, gesturing to their party. Gavril dismounted and Nikias motioned for them all to do the same.
Aimilia swung off her horse, taking the reins and leading it through the gates. The grounds were full of people, the majority of them curly-haired in various tightness and length. Almost allof them were eyeing their group warily. Marcella exchanged a few nods and waves with a couple, but most did nothing but watch.
There were buildings scattered across the landscape, stretching into the distance so that Aimilia couldn’t even see where the estate ended, but it was clear which building served as the main house due to its size and grandeur. While most of the buildings were made of a dark brown wood, this one was made from gray stone. There was no warmth or light in it, a far cry from the marble and warm sandstone Aimilia was surrounded by in Areator. There was also a surprising amount of green. If it wasn’t grass making up the majority of the terrain, there were also trees stretching up into the sky—more than Aimilia had ever seen so close to buildings before— and bushes sprouting flowers and berries weaving between it all.
Soon enough a stable boy was taking Aimilia’s reins from her and she was being shepherded by their guards to where Marcella, Gavril and Nikias were waiting for her before going inside the main house. Commander Calix joined them a moment later, assigning most of their guards to wait in the courtyard for further instructions while the other handful would escort them to Desero’s leaders.
Gavril and Marcella walked at the front with the Desero guards, and Aimilia tried to fall back to walk beside Commander Calix, but Nikias was quicker. He caught her arm, sliding his hand down her forearm until he clasped her hand, his cloak hiding it from sight.
As they entered the main building of the estate, she felt the slight tremor in his hand, so she didn’t pull away. She clasped his hand in return as she fell into step beside him. She could do this at least. It was just because they were about to see Hypatia, and she’d been the one he’d relied on to get him through it last time.
That’s all.
His palm wasn’t warm and solid against hers, anchoring her to the ground just as much as hers was him.
Nikias didn’t even look her way as they walked. He didn’t say anything. He just held her hand like it was the only boulder in a flood.
As they turned down the last hallway, Nikias’ breath hitched. Aimilia gave his hand a squeeze. He closed his eyes and let go, pulling his hand back as he squared his jaw.
The doors opened.
Marcella first. Then Gavril. Then Nikias.
Aimilia was right on his heels.
The room was a war room, with a long table in the middle around which a plethora of people could sit, but the chairs were pushed back and to the side, giving space for someone to circle it easily. On the table was a map focusing in on the north, the clan lands, leading up to the border with the Stonai. Various figures were scattered across it, but what they signified Aimilia could only guess.
