“I do.” He nods. “They’re in your room.”
Not the other room. Not the attached apartment.Myroom.
“Would you mind getting them? I don’t want Rewina to know I’m here.”
His eyes narrow slightly, even as a grin arcs his lips. “You certainly are comfortable using a prince as your errand boy.”
I give him my sweetest smile. “And some food, too, please? I don’t think I’ll survive to the other side of the bath without a little something.”
“You’re lucky I find your audacity charming,” Kaelis murmurs, moving for the closet.
The moment he disappears, I pad lightly to the entrance of the closet, fingers already hooked in the laces of my corset. The door to the room isn’t closed completely. I hold my breath and strain my ears, hearing the distant whisper of the main door to his room opening.
I frantically tug the laces loose enough for the golden card to slip free. I snatch it off the floor, then move to the racks of clothing that hide the secret door to the depths. My eyes settle on a formal jacket hanging toward the back. Dust has collected on the dark fabric. He hasn’t worn it in a while, and hopefully he won’t want to anytime in the next few hours.
I slip the card into an inner pocket, my fingers trembling slightly as I smooth the fabric back into place, trying not to shake loose too much of the dust nor leave behind any grime.
Should I just tell him?The thought comes out of nowhere, like a lightning strike on a clear day. Would he understand my skepticism that led to me taking it for myself? Or would he resent me for it? Would it fracture the fragile trust we have? I can’t risk it; I need him to remake the world.
I need him,the thought repeats, softer, more desperate. I press my eyes closed, and behind my lids I see Arina, broken and hollow, deep within the academy. I think of what Ravin has done to her. She deserves a safe place to rest. I don’t want to risk Kaelis kicking us out now for my not trusting him.
I need him,even gentler this time as my fingers linger on the fabric of his clothes. It’s an admission for me alone. A confession that my heart already well knew. I don’t want to risk upsetting him because if I lost him now, I might be lost forever.
I’ll switch it for my forgery when the time is right,I decide. I’ll fix this. He doesn’t have to know. Right as I do make my choice, the bedroom door opens.
Chapter 20
I lunge back to the bathroom.He didn’t see me, did he?I’ve barely started unlacing my boots when Kaelis appears in the doorway, one arm draped with familiar clothing and the other balancing a platter.
“And here I thought you sent me off so I wouldn’t see you naked.” He settles the clothes on the large ottoman in the center of the closet, sets down the platter, and pauses. For a breath, I think he sees the indents of my footprints in the plush carpet that ends at the threshold of the bathroom.
“I have no shame in front of you.” I try to pull his attention back tome.
“You’ve made that perfectly clear.” He leans against the doorframe of the bathroom, not suspicious in the slightest, watching as I peel away layers of grime-stained fabric. Despite the banter, his expression hardens, gaze growing serious—murderous, even—as his eyes trace every bruise and every fresh scar.
I pause for a second, our eyes meet, and neither of us says a word. Yet, it feels like a whole conversation occurs. His anger on my behalf.My indifference. His frustration and helplessness in the face of what I’ve endured. My inability to offer him anything to quell that anger.
It’s nothing compared to Arina,I want to say. But I don’t. Instead, I leave the moment there and ease myself into the bathwater.
Tendrils of dirt unspool off me and I can’t stop a sigh of relief. Kaelis lingers in the doorway, as if waiting to see if I’ll kick him out. When I don’t, he enters and pulls over a small stool to the side of the tub.
“May I?” He gestures toward my hair, and I nod without thinking.
His fingers are gentle as they work through the tangled mess, water cascading over my shoulders as he douses the worst of the grime away. I should protest, should maintain some semblance of independence, but Twenty, it feels good to be doted on. To have someone caring for me amid my worrying for everyone else.
“Your hair is getting long,” he murmurs.
“That is usually a side effect of time on hair.” I close my eyes as he begins to massage soap into my scalp. “Remember the last time you did this?”
“Often.”
I let out a soft laugh. “Often?”
“More than I care to admit.” His fingers work in slow, careful circles, and I can feel the last of my defenses cracking. Confronted with brutality, I’m as immovable as the mountains that surround Eclipse City. But show me a little tender care, and I crumble. “What made you return to me?”
The slight uncertainty in his voice surprises me. But for all his arrogance, his absolute confidence in most things, I can see in the way he holds himself, presented himself, he genuinely wasn’t sure I’d come back.
“Didn’t you know I would?” I tilt my head back to look at him and catch the way his eyes trace the rivulets of soap down my neck, watching as they drip over my breasts to join the bubbly water that leaves just enough to the imagination. “Weren’t you the one to say I’d ‘never be done’ with you?”
