Jade stared at her hands as she gripped them together in her lap, hearing Nicolas’s slow footsteps cross the room. She didn’t realize how close he was until her chin was lifted up, held between his thumb and forefinger. His face was inches from hers, and she locked onto his dark-as-night eyes that watched her with an unexpected ferocity.
“No, it won’t.”
He released her and stepped back, continuing to pace, and Jade’s body was overcome with a shiver. She held her chin aloft for a moment more as though reaching out to him, craving his touch. But the absolute thundering of her heart brought her back to herself, and she suppressed a gasp, goosebumps crawling over her skin even under her jacket.
What kind of power did he have over her that he could so strongly control her emotions and desires with a single touch? It went against everything she knew—to allow someone such influence over her with no true authority. Yet she found herself welcoming it. Shewantedto do what he commanded and earn his favor.
“I believe Lord Grannam is the one behind the murders,” she finally said, finding her voice again. “I overheard him speaking to someone about following through with something. But more than that”—Jade waited as Nicolas turned to face her—“I have reason to believe the king’s illness is not natural but caused by a failed assassination attempt, and Grannam orchestrated it so he could take the throne.”
Nicolas stopped in his tracks and angled his head, his eyebrows pinched in curiosity. He spoke calmly and evenly as he asked, “What makes you think so?”
Jade swallowed past a dry throat, Nicolas’s piercing gaze burning into her very soul. She recalled how he’d said he’d failed the king as a personal guard—could this be how? “I met with Alanna and Marguerite two days ago. Marguerite told me Lord Grannam has held a grudge ever since learning his father was passed over for his birthright of inheriting the throne.” She shrugged as Nicolas strode toward her again. “The pieces started fitting together: buying poison, the murders, his secret meetings with Lady Arabella, the king’s sudden ‘illness.’”
Nicolas’s lips parted, and he released a breath that almost sounded like a laugh. “You truly are something special, Jade Ni’ihm. Your talent lies not only in the work you do but in the way your mind works as well.”
Pride swelled within Jade, but she schooled her features into neutrality, stemming the rising emotions before they showed on her face. Nicolas didn’t need to see her reaction to his praise. “It’s only a theory, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.”
Nicolas sat next to her on the sofa, settling into the corner where its back and arm met and extending his arms along the edges. “And what exactlyare you planning to do with that information?” he asked with a tilt of his head.
Jade’s shoulders rounded with defeat. “With the way things have come to a standstill within the military lately, there’s nothing I can do. I’m not authorized for any missions right now, unless I’m invited to another event with the royal family.”
“And you’re going to let that stop you?” Nicolas’s question was a challenge.
If the answer had been yes, she wouldn’t have even been there. “No.” She dropped her gaze, something like shame rippling through her as she tried to form her response. “But I don’t have any leads to follow. I don’t have any new information. I need...”
“You need what?”
Jade brought her eyes up to Nicolas, her heart hammering. “I need you.”
A slow smile crept across Nicolas’s face. His voice was a deep murmur as he said, “That is music to my ears.”
Tension released from Jade’s body as though all her muscles gave a collective sigh. It wasn’t just what Nicolas had said but how he said it, his voice carrying through her like a song. His response reassured her that they were on the same team, calming her mind and quelling her fears. They would work together to find evidence against Grannam and stop him. With him out of the picture, the murders would cease, and the way would be clear for Prince Reynauld to take the throne. Well, there was still Arabella to contend with, but when it came down to it, the crown would pass to Reynauld, no matter how popular Arabella was or how much she wanted to rule. Her time would come.
“What do you need me to do?” Jade didn’t expect the drop in her voice, the almost reverent way she posed the question.
Nicolas leaned forward, moving closer to her on the sofa. “What are you willing to do?”
Jade inhaled through her nose before releasing a shaky exhale. There was no going back now. Only one thing would cement her promotions, her future. “I’ll do whatever it takes to bring an end to this conflict.”
He reached out and ran his knuckles along her jawline down to her chin. “Now that’s what I like to hear.”
A chill raced over Jade’s skin in the wake of Nicolas’s touch. Her heart skipped, forgetting how to beat, and she sat stock-still on the sofa as Nicolas hovered in front of her. His intoxicating scent of sun and leather floated in the air between them. Jade was transported back to the ballroom of Evenshold Palace, where that same scent had overwhelmed her as she danced with him. She remembered the pressure of his fingers against her waist as he had pulled her closer to him and found herself longing for the same touch again.
But he didn’t touch her. Instead, he shifted his body to face her and planted his feet on the floor, gripping the sofa’s back and arm on either side of her, essentially pinning her in. He brought his face down over hers again, so close the warmth of his breath caressed her skin.
“I need you too, Jade,” he said in a murmur as delicate as silk. “That’s what makes this a partnership. Are you going to do what I say this time?”
Jade held Nicolas’s gaze, her heart pounding traitorously against her ribcage. What would he do if she closed the space between them? If she brushed her lips against his? If she grabbed him by his jacket and pulled him toward her?
Her chest heaved, but she did none of those things. She didn’t move at all, this time stuck in place because of her own nerves and uncertainties about what might follow. If he noticed the rise and fall of her chest or the beat of her heart through the fabric of her jacket, he didn’t act like it. His beautiful, mystifying eyes never left hers, waiting.
She gave it to him in a whisper as she exhaled. “Yes.”
The corners of his mouth curled into the slightest smile. “Good.”
He pushed off the sofa and stepped away from her, and Jade fought the desire to release her tension with a loud exhale. She worked on slowing her heartbeat as Nicolas paced away from her again.
“You didn’t bring back what I asked for, but I’ll accept your new theory about Grannam in its place. Which is why I’ll share this information with you.” He stopped and looked at Jade over his shoulder before turning his body around fully, hands clasped again behind his back. “One of the contenders for the throne is being targeted next, with plans for his death to happen tomorrow night.”
