“What is?”
“How you can bury something for so long, refuse to acknowledge it, only to have the truth claw its way free, anyway.”
Ryker’s tongue flicked out, tracing the shell of my ear, and an involuntary shudder racked my frame.
He was no longer talking about Callum and Riordan, and we both knew it.
“Don’t,” I warned, stepping away from him.
“Don’t what?” His eyes gleamed in the flickering light, his full lips curving into that infuriating smirk that made my blood simmer. “Speak the truth?”
I rolled my eyes, determined not to give him the satisfaction of seeing how much he affected me. “You wouldn’t know the truth if it stabbed you in the heart.”
Laughter erupted from Ryker’s chest, loud and hearty. It was such a rare sound that I couldn’t stop the grin spreading across my face.
Returning my gaze to Callum, I watched as he backed Riordan against a pillar.
“Your brother has terrible timing,” Ryker observed, sipping from a goblet that had somehow materialized in his hand.
“What do you mean?”
He tipped his head in the direction of the gathering crowd, taking in the spectacle.
“You’re enjoying this chaos, aren’t you?” I narrowed my gaze at him.
“Immensely.” His eyes never left mine as he took another sip. “Though I’d enjoy other things more.”
“Show’s over,” Eamon said, and I glanced back toward my brother, who was storming out of the hall, Riordan right on his heels, a victorious grin splitting his face.
“Well, I hope they sort out whatever their issue is this time,” I said with a huff. “I’m tired of playing the intermediary.”
Ryker chuckled, the sound vibrating through me. “Sure, they’ll sort it out.”
I eyed him for a moment, but decided I wouldn’t take the bait. It would give him power over me, and he had more than enough.
We stood in companionable silence as we watched the courtiers mingle and dance, eagerly exchanging theories about the cause of the confrontation.
“They’re already spinning tales,” I said, nodding toward a cluster of women whose painted faces betrayed nothing while their eyes calculated everything.
“Let them,” Ryker’s shoulder brushed mine as he shifted his weight. “Half the power in this court is perception anyway.”
“And the other half?”
“Desire.”
His eyes traveled the length of my body, his gaze lingering in places that made my skin heat.
Eamon cleared his throat, suddenly very interested in examining the rim of his empty goblet. “I believe I’ll get a refreshment,” he said, moving toward the table set up on the other side of the room, despite the identical one that stood beside us.
“I think we made him uncomfortable.” The corner of Ryker’s mouth lifted, betraying his lack of remorse.
“There is no we,” I said, flicking my finger between us. “That was all you.”
“You look breathtaking tonight, wife.”
The bond flared within me, and I sensed his awe as he drank me in.
“Thank you.” The words were barely a whisper, but I knew he heard them.
