A raindrop lands on her cheek.
Not her. I’mnotthinking of her.
My power thrums inside me as I lie to myself. I need to temper it before thunder rumbles and alerts her to my roiling emotions.
“There’d be a perpetual storm over my head. But I wouldn’t begrudge her something that happened before she was mine. I’d hope she wouldn’t begrudge me the same.”
I stoke the crackling flames with a branch, avoiding her depthless blue gaze. “And it wouldn’t be anyone’s business but mine and hers. I don’t see the need to parade the knowledge of her alleged ‘purity’ before anyone else.”
“Does Faramir share your sentiments?”
I stiffen as soon as my brother’s name passes her lips.
“No. He’ll insist on the purity test.” The thought of someone—a stranger—seeing her undressed,touchingher, has my jaw clenching until my teeth ache.
“And has he remained ‘pure’?”
I shake my head. My gut churns at the idea of Mayah with my psychotic brother. He’ll—
She snorts. “That’s awfully hypocritical.”
I’m inclined to agree, though I remain silent.
A question lingers in my mind—did she mention the purity test because she’s worried about passing? I sensed that the insufferable captain of the royal guard knew her … intimately.He must have, to flaunt his possessiveness like a badge. Bile rises in my throat the thought of them together. The princess and her guard. Did they—
No.
It’s none of my business.
She’s not my betrothed. If she made that decision, she’ll face the consequences in Arbinj.
And it would be entirely unethical to ask—she doesn’t know that, even if she chooses to lie, I’d know anyway. I’d rob her of her decision. I’d be stealing the truth. I can’t ask, I—
“Are you … worried about passing the purity test?”
I despise myself.
Her cheeks flame red, and Skies damn me for the indecent thoughts that flit through my mind.
“No,” she finally says. “The purity test will be uncomfortable, to say the least. I’d rather slit my wrists than let some stranger prod around, um,me. But I’m not worried about passing. It’s just … I don’t relish the idea of marrying a man who holds me to a different standard. I’d want him to see me as his equal.”
My head snaps toward her—equal. Is she referencing what I said earlier about wanting my wife to be my equal?
I’ve been a mindless fool since she slapped me. When I first set eyes on her in the throne room, I’d thought her beautiful—but it was her defiance that appealed to me, even then. Her fierceness, her sharp tongue, her stubbornness. That, and the fact that she hasn’t told a single lie so far … I can’t deny that I’m drawn to her.
Is there any possibility she feels the same?
She breaks my gaze, bolting to her feet and holding a hand over her heart. “I—I’m still going to marry your brother, of course. Archaic traditions or not.”
“Of course.” My voice is flat.
Her lips press into a nervous smile. My gaze drops to her mouth even as my heart plummets into my stomach.
Of course, she doesn’t feel the same way. How could she? I’m the loathed Dark Commander that’s haunted her kingdom for years.
She doesn’t care for me in the least. Never will.
And it’s for the best. There’s no future where I end up with her. I can only curse the Skies for pairing her with Faramir.
