She gives me a small smile, then fluffs the quilt over me. I wonder if they’re all awake because they’re cold, or if it’s really that they’re afraid of the king of Incendar. I doubt Charlotte is afraid, though. She mightbe very simple, but she never seems to flinch from anything. Not even my brother.
A new thought suddenly occurs to me: maybe they’re all awake from fear of whatI’lldo.
“I’m going to say yes,” I say, even as the words twist in my gut. “Please tell my ladies that no one needs to be afraid of...of repercussions.”
Her eyes meet mine, and her hands go still. After a brief hesitation, she smooths the last bit of the quilt and nods. “I’ll tell the others,” she whispers.
With a quick curtsy, she’s gone. My heart is pounding again.
I hold my breath, my eyes searching the darkness for Asher. When he drops off a beam and lands right in front of me, I nearly have a heart attack. His hood is fully up now, cloaking his face in darkness.
I want to punch him again. “Stopdoingthat!” I hiss.
“She hardly gave me any warning.” He pulls at my quilts until he finds the cookie. He blows some lint off the edge, then holds it up in front of my face. “Are you going to eat this?”
“I cannot believe you’re worried about food at a time like this.”
“So...that’s a no?” His eyes are gleaming at me from under the hood. I would give anything to see him in the sunshine again.
This time I lean forward and take a bite, right from his hand.
Something in his gaze tightens, a spark of heat flickering in his eyes. The sugar dissolves on my tongue, and my gaze flicks to his mouth. I have to lick the crumbs off my lips.
He inhales, and a note of desire in his breath makes my belly clench. I think of the way he was just pawing at the blankets, how I’m wearing nothing more than a thin sleeping shift under these quilts. I’m suddenly warm, the cold hearth forgotten.
But he doesn’t move. His throat jerks as he swallows.
We’ve found this point before. If I push, he’ll pull away. I know from experience.
“I wishyouwere stealing me away,” I whisper.
He scoffs. “Please. If I kidnapped the princess, I’d never keep my head.”
“I was going to beg you to help me escape.”
“Escape.” He frowns. “Where would you go, Jory? You don’t even know what life is like outside the palace.”
“That doesn’t matter. I’d be with you.”
He goes very still.
“It could be like when we were younger,” I say. “I’d find a maid’s uniform and slip out of the palace to meet you by the stables.”
His eyes are intent on mine. “Would you?”
He says this so earnestly it’s like the prelude to an offer. As if I could sayyesand he’d tell me to lace up my boots right now.
The very thought makes my heart race again, because I desperately want to. I could be dressed and ready in minutes. He’s right—I have no idea what my life would be like outside the palace. But I’d be away from the political machinations of mybrother. I wouldn’t be forced into marriage.
And I’d be with Asher. Just like when I was young; that alone is tempting.
But I’m not fifteen anymore. If what Dane said is true, the entire countryisat risk. If I disappear, Father’s magic will eventually be gone, and everyone within our borders could be slaughtered by soldiers from Draegonis.
And it would all be my fault.
I stare into Asher’s eyes, and it takes everything I have to shake my head. “I can’t.”
“I know.” He draws a rough breath and looks down. “I shouldn’t have come. It would have been easier. For both of us.”
