I lean in and press my finger to his mouth. The expression on his face instantly shifts into somethinghungry. He takes my hand, tilts his head sideways, and brushes his lips across the center of my palm. An intoxicating heat curls between my thighs.
I shudder, for an entirely different reason than before.
And instead of pulling back, I scoot closer. “It was for both of us, Taliesin. As long as I had that talisman, I would never be free from the Order.”
His thumb strokes once across my waist, almost absentmindedly, but the touch feels unbearably tender after everything that just happened.
“Hmm. Are we still talking about that? Because all I can think about is tasting your perfect little mouth.”
My breath hitches.
And then, much to my dismay, he slowly grips my waist and eases me off his lap, a tortured expression twisting his features.
“The ceremony is about to start.” He stands, but moves so slowly, like it’s a struggle to force his body to obey him. Like his mind is still here in this bed. With me. For a moment, I consider pulling him back. Just to see if he would follow through on what he said.
Then his words register. The ceremony. Stars, I forgot all about that the moment I stepped through his door.
Gently, he helps me to my feet, and his eyes dip to the bodice of my dress.
“I want nothing more to stay here,” he murmurs. “But I’ve waited a decade for you. I can wait a little longer.”
The way he says it sends a strange ache through me, like some lost part of me remembers waiting, too.
34
On the way to the ceremony, Taliesin and I take a short detour along the battlements overlooking the sea. We stand side-by-side, wind whipping across us beneath a blackened sky. I clutch my fur-lined cloak tighter around myself, the green fabric of my dress fluttering beneath it. As we stand there, I become intensely aware of him beside me. His steady presence, his calming strength.
He remains silent as I lift the talisman before me, then hurl it into the abyss.
A second later, it’s nothing more than a speck against the dark. And a second after that, it’s gone.
For the first time since leaving Caer Draen, I feel an absolute certainty about my choice. It was the right thing to do. If I kept it, it would be nothing but a haunting specter of my past. Destroying it means there’s no going back. The Order is my enemy now.
They always have been.
After a long moment of stillness, Taliesin asks, “Would you like to say a few words?”
I gift him a wicked smile. “Fuck the Order. Fuck the king. Fuck every single person who has hoarded power at the expense of everyone else. It’s time for their reign to end.”
He grins back, his eyes sparkling. “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”
As he extends his arm, I slide my hand into the crook of his elbow.Even through the layers of his cloak, the contact sends a flicker of warmth through me.And together, we descend the stairwell into the celebration itself.
A bonfire rages in the center of the courtyard, casting dancing shadows across the looming stone walls and sending plumes of smoke dashing into the air. Ribbons and vines loop from one side of the courtyard to the next, while swirls of red and orange paint decorate the wooden huts, rising and falling like cresting waves. All the rebels are out. At least a hundred weave past one another, all bearing smiles and…hope.
Taliesin leans down to speak quietly into my ear. “How are you feeling about this?”
“Rhian seems certain it will work,” I say.
One corner of his lips tilts upward. “I didn’t ask what Rhian thinks. What doyouthink, Angharad?”
“I think…” I glance toward the firelight illuminating the gathered rebels. “I don’t want the harp destroyed. But I understand why it must be done.”
“And the return of the stars?” He searches my gaze, reading me in a way only he seems capable of. “You don’t seem as excited as I thought you’d be.”
“If it works, I’ll scream as loud as anyone else here,” I say with a sigh. “I just…it feels like we’re missing something, Taliesin. This all feels too easy.”
He chuckles. “Easy? I hunted for that scroll for what feels like centuries. I examined every piece of rock on that stars-damned ridge. And there was nothing. Until you.”
