Auren arches a teasing brow. “He likesyou, doesn’t he?”
“Well, that’s different.” I tip up my chin. “For all you or Vaelen know they could be murderers or thieves.” I gesture in the direction of the other tent Auren set up for them. “Thalric’s a Gargoyle. He could kill you and—”
“And you’d be devastated.” He smirks. “Is that what you wanted to tell me?”
“No,” I scoff. “I’d simply be annoyed that I’m lost in the woods without a guide.”
The words sound like a lie, even to my own ears.
“Of course,” he agrees easily.
“You’re ridiculous,” I mutter.
Auren hums, considering me. “Don’t worry, Vivienne. I will be right outside your tent. If anything wants to harm you, it’ll have to go through me.”
He starts to leave, but I call out, “Wait!”
Auren turns back to me.
“I don’t want you to sleep outside, I want you to stay in here tonight.”
I expect some sort of teasing remark about me liking him, but his jaw drops instead.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that,” I huff. “I’m merely being practical. It’s safer for us to stay together.”
His mouth curves into a devastatingly handsome smile that makes my stomach flip. “If you wanted me to sleep with you, my dear wife, all you had to do was ask.”
I stop short of rolling my eyes and toss a pillow at him. “Just don’t hog all the blankets.”
His brows shoot up to his forehead. “You’re letting me share the bed?”
“Don’t make me rethink it,” I grumble, fluffing my pillow aggressively before settling onto the bedroll and turning onto my side.
I hear him removing his armor, stripping down to just his pants. He normally sleeps with his upper half bare. My mind drifts to the memory of his broad shoulders, the thick cords of muscle that wrap around his arms, the hard ridges of his chest…
Closing my eyes briefly, I try to force the images from my mind.
The bedroll dips as he slides beneath the blankets. He’s so close that the warmth of his body radiates to mine, and I can hear the steady sound of his breathing. I glance over my shoulder. He’s lying perfectly still, flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling.
And yet, his presence fills every inch of the tent.
My gaze travels over his bare chest, down his abdomen to theVthat disappears beneath the waistband of his pants.
His eyes sweep to me, and I gasp, realizing I’ve been caught once again. I clear my throat and then turn back to face away from him. “Will you please turn off the light?”
He snaps his fingers and the tent immediately goes dark.
Must be rather handy to have the use of magic at one’s fingertips. If we had children, I wonder if they would—
I force my thoughts to a screeching halt. I amnotthinking about a future with Auren. I simply have to make it past the thirty days and then we’ll part ways.
But that presents its own set of problems. My birthday is in a few months. If I’m not still married to Auren at that point, I’m stuck marrying the Goblin King. On the other hand, once we reach Valethryn, I could seek out the Dark Elf King.
Auren said that he wanted me. Even though I don’t know him, surely he’s a better choice than the king of the Goblins. And… he’d be able to give me an easier life than I’d have as a soldier’s wife.
And yet, as much as I’ve tried to keep him at arm’s length, Auren is… starting to grow on me. When we wed, I didn’t expect to develop any feelings for him, but I cannot deny that I have. I think of how he cares for me, protects me… treats me as if I’m something cherished instead of as a problem to be solved, as my father so often did.
I glance over my shoulder again at my Dark Elf husband. He’s also insufferable, incorrigible, and the most exasperating man I’ve ever met. My mind tries to rationalize that we’re not a good match. That we’re far too different from each other. He’s a warrior and I’m a princess. But as I gaze at him, my heart insists that those things don’t matter.
