I didn’t like his evasiveness.
“Is one of them… sexual glamour?”
Pharis coughed as if he’d just choked on thin air.
I knew it.“That’s a yes, isn’t it?”
“No, actually, that’s not one of them,” he said. “It’s just… that’s what I thoughtyourglamour was that night we met atthe Opening Night ball and you were disguised as an Elven noblewoman.”
“Really?” A flurry of nerves tumbled through my belly.
Another memory from our time in Havendor resurfaced—Pharis telling me that he hadn’t kissed or even thought of another woman since that night. I reached down to scratch a non-existent itch on my ankle, just so I wouldn’t have to look at him.
I’d seen where listening to his sweet nothings got me. And now he was essentially coercing me in exchange for keeping my family safe.
I reminded myself not to fall foranythingthat dripped from his honeyed tongue.
“That just proves how little we know each other,” I said in a pert tone.
I’m all for getting better acquainted,he said.
Not happening, My Prince.
He chuckled. “So now we have definitive proof that youarecapable of non-verbal communication. Oh, and feel free to practice with my staff. I already know you’ve been speaking with them out loud.”
I blinked in surprise. “You do?”
“Very little happens around here without my knowledge, Raewyn. As I told you, I have quite a collection of glamours at this point.”
“Please don’t be mad at them—don’t punish them,” I pleaded.
One of his dark brows went up. “These people are like family to me. I wouldn’t harm them for the world. Besides, I don’t want you to be lonely, and I can’t spendallday trading innuendo with you.”
He shot me a dazzling grin. “Though if you’re ever ready to tell me thetruthabout my ‘prowess as a lover,’ I’m all ears.”
I tried again to slap him, but Pharis caught my hand mid-air.
Then he turned it so my wrist was exposed. He bent his head and kissed it, lingering a moment with his hot lips on my sensitive skin.
The unexpected contact was innervating, like a lightning strike to my system. My heart instantly began pounding in my ears. I’d have been shocked if Pharis couldn’t feel the blood racing in the veins beneath the thin skin of my wrist.
He lifted his head, his eyes looking panicked, like he couldn’t quite believe what he’d just done.
That made two of us.
“I must go,” he said curtly. “Do you need me to help you inside or do you think you can get there yourself?”
“I can do it. Just go,” I said, a bit breathless.
It might or might not have been true, but I’d rather have crawled across the lawn on my belly like a worm than accept his help at the moment.
Pharis gave me a little bow and excused himself. “Until tomorrow then, my lady.”
Chapter 10
The Third Floor
Raewyn
