With that, she hobbled out the door, leaving the newlyweds alone.
“That was morbid,” Evander said.
Valenna tried to shrug, but her shoulders were too tight to make it convincing. “She’s very old. She knew my mother, it seems.”
Evander raised his eyebrows.
“She thinks I’m the Botania.”
“Ah,” Evander said, setting the tray on the bed and taking a bite of toast. “You’d think we would get better treatment if you are.”
“How is your head this morning?” Valenna asked, lounging beside him and plucking a grape from the tray of food.
“Oh, fine,” Evander replied, but he hesitated just enough to make Valenna uneasy.
“It hurts, doesn’t it?”
“No more than usual.”
“How long is the longest you’ve gone without your potion?”
He chewed thoughtfully, then said, “Two weeks.”
“And what happened?”
“Nothing, really.”
She glared at him, and he sighed.
“You were there,” he said. “I fell from my dragon.” He wrapped his arms around her waist. “We could stay in bed all day. For my health.”
Smiling, Valenna slipped out of his arms. “Come on, we need to find the spice and oil consortium as soon as possible.”
He sighed. “A tragedy.”
“You’ll need a shirt.”
He threw his head back and groaned. “The tragedies abound.”
He got up and pulled the green shirt over his head, mussing his hair. Valenna watched him, admiring the way the muscles in his shoulders flexed. He caught her staring.
“What?” he asked, his eyes sparkling.
“You’re nice to look at,” she said.
“Oh?”
She bit her lip. “You are … absolutely maddening to look at.”
“You sure you want to go to the spice consortium right now?” he asked. “We could put it off an hour.”
“Ha!” She stood and started resolutely toward the door, grabbing his arm as she passed him and tugginghim after her. He smiled.
She’d never seen him smile so much, and it warmed her from the tips of her toes to the crown of her head.
Glancing in the mirror as she walked past, Valenna admired her glowing complexion and pink flush. She was the prettiest she’d ever been in her life.
Evander, breathtaking on a good day, looked stronger, his eyes brighter. She couldn’t tear her gaze from him. He stopped before they stepped through the door, and he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
