I stood in stunned silence.
He waited. Patient. Or as patiently as he could.
“Um…” I shook my head slowly and tried to comprehend the magnitude of what he wanted and what it would mean. He would not be an easy lover. He already wasn’t. There was no doubt about that. But, damn, did he ring my belljust right. My black brows puckered. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“And it would go both ways?”
“Yes.”
I swallowed hard. Was I really going to do this?
My blink was as slow as the dawning of a new day.
I mumbled, “All right.” This would be interesting.
He lifted his right hand and ran his knuckles gently over my cheek. Sweet and soft. “If you touch Lord Pippin again—with affection—I’ll kill him right there. And no one will ever say a word.”
Definitely not an easy lover.
I raised my brows. “I told the truth. I don’t want him that way.”
“That doesn’t change the outcome.”
I was sure it wouldn’t.
I tipped my head to the front of the plane. “We should probably go. If we take any longer, they’ll be wondering what’s going on in here.”
“True enough.” He stepped back and peered down to button his suit jacket. His eyes trained on his working fingers. “You’re wearing the necklace I gave you?”
“Yes.”
Lord Belshazzar grabbed his own winter jacket, and his blue eyes touched mine. “Good. Let’s go.”
* * *
The forty minute drive from Qikiqtarjuaq to Cape Argent was quiet.
Except for Devin and Ysander.
Inside our limousine, Master Niallan’s best friends tossed files at him left and right, struggling to catch him up on the most important business he’d missed while being away. They were my entertainment. I watched their interaction with the Original druid and tried to decide which one he was going to kill during his final Challenge. The Overlords never confirmedTERMINATEwas an actual Challenge for a King Novitiate, as it had been for the Queen Novitiate, but it was.
I kept a firm grip on my delight the entire drive.
One of them would be dead soon.
I’d have sweet dreams that night.
Master Niallan knocked his knuckles on the thin barrier separating us from the chauffeur. “This is it. Stop here, please.”
The human driver’s eyes flashed in the rearview mirror, squinting in confusion. “Are you sure? There’s nothing here.”
“I’m sure. Stop the car.”
The limo slowly rolled to a stop, and the driver opened our door. A gust of freezing wind rushed inside, and the scent of fresh snow tickled my nose. Fat, freezing white flakes swirled into the interior of the vehicle like they were rushing to us for their quick death.
I shivered inside my thick jacket.
