Until this empress.
This strong-willed, sharp-tongued, secretly vulnerable woman whose heart was twice the size of anyone I’d ever met.
I’d known she was beautiful since the moment I saw her. I wasn’t a stranger to beautiful women, and I didn’t go throwing myself at the feet of every one I came across. But something aboutherhad me on my knees twice now without even thinking.
I kept telling myself she and Galen would be married soon, and then she’d go back to her empire, living her life away from us. The diamond on her finger that kept catching the light of the fire and glittering back at me was proof enough of that.
This was a momentary attraction. It would pass. And everything would go back to the way it was supposed to be.
She sighed. “I’m fine, but I don’t really want to talk about it. I just want to forget all of it for a few hours.” She lifted the cup to her lips once more, and I forced myself not to watch the slender column of her throat move up and down as she drank.
“You know, I wasn’t kidding about the wine.”
“Please. You should see the stuff we have back in Veridia City.” She took another sip and met my stare. Everything was a challenge to this woman.
It made heat burst through me.
She’s marrying your best friend.
“There’s a green wine called Luxe, which is stronger than any normal wine,” she went on. “Lowers your inhibitions faster than you can blink. And a gray one, Grimlock, makes you incapable of lying.”
“Well, I’m glad we don’t have that here.”
Cocking her head at me with that devilish look I’d seen several times, she asked, “And what truths do you have to hide, Lord Reaux?”
She was definitely flirting with me.
I met her stare for a beat before turning back to the fire. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
And perhaps I was flirting back.
We stared at the flickering flames in silence until she said, “You know, you’re not who I thought you were.”
That took me by surprise. I let out a soft snort. “Yes, I seem to remember you calling me a—what was it? A man who’s used to charming his way into anything he wants with a nice smile and pretty words,” I said, recalling her accusation from the night in the Silenus gardens. I was teasing, but truthfully, her words stung more painfully than I’d expected.
Probably because, once upon a time, they were true.
She winced as she swirled her cup. “It sounds so much worse when you say it like that.”
“Well, it didn’t exactly soundnicethe first time, either.” I smirked at her. I didn’t blame her. I knew she’d had a difficult few days when she’d said those things, and I certainly hadn’t made her time any easier. I loved getting under her skin too much. And I knew what kind of front I put on. It was all too easy to pretend to slip back into the man I used to be, especially when it kept things light.
“You’re none of those things, Thorne. And I’m sorry I judged you so harshly.” She sighed and took another long sip, then stepped closer to me. Close enough that I could smell her, sweetlike lemons and crisp like pine needles on a forest floor, with a hint of the strong wine I was sure she’d had too much of.
“You’re a good friend to Galen,” she continued. “Even when he doesn’t always deserve it. And…you’re a good friend to me.”
“Ah, so we’re friends now, Empress?” I replied. She was too close, my heart too open, the foot of space between us too charged. It made me retreat into my mask of charm and quick wit, afraid of what would happen if I let myself be as vulnerable as her.
“Don’t interrupt,” she snapped playfully. “This is probably the nicest I’ll ever be to you.” A hint of her crooked smile glowed up at me. I chuckled until her next words made the grin fade from my face.
“You’re a good father, Thorne. I can’t imagine how difficult it’s been to raise Marigold on your own, but she seems sohappy. So protected and loved. She’s beautiful and full of life, and I know we haven’t known each other very long, but I think…I think that comes from you.”
I didn’t know how to respond. I hadn’t expected her to say anything like that, and it clenched around my heart like a vise.
“Thank you,” I said after a moment. “That’s all I want for her, you know. To be kind and happy. To know how loved she is.” I wasn’t sure what made the words spill out of me, but now that they started, I couldn’t stop them. “We’ve been fortunate to have so many people support us and dote on her since her mother died, but a part of me feels compelled to love her enough forbothof us. That me by myself wouldn’t be enough, and she’d always be missing something if I didn’t fill that hole. Nothing can truly fill it, of course, but it doesn’t stop me from trying. And often failing.”
Clarissa’s brow furrowed, the flower crown resting on her head casting shadows onto her cheeks and the tip of her nose. “The only way you could ever fail her is by not being there. I was watching you today at the tournament—that little girl looks at you like you’re her entire world. I don’t think you have to make up for anything. She just needsyou.” She tucked a loose strand of hairbehind her ear. “Trust me, as someone who lost her father sixteen years ago, she’s lucky to have you in her life the way that you are.”
“I’m sorry about your father,” I said. “If I may ask…what happened to him?”
