Page 59 of Love & Power

twenty-three

Warmth was the first thing I seemed to register since leaving Ralph with Atty. It was almost like I slipped into this void, a place where nothing could touch me. There were no feelings, no thoughts or sensations, just blank space. The instant my brain latched onto the change in temperature, it used that link and pulled me back to the present.

Blinking a few times to clear my vision, I found myself in a tub, cradled against someone’s warm body. I could hear the steady beat of his heart under my ear, confirming that what I was experiencing was real. My brain decided it was the right moment to stop blocking things from me. I groaned in pain, curling my legs up to my chest as my frigid skin throbbed, protesting the warmth of the water.

“Easy, omae, it will pass,” Liu soothed, brushing a hand over my head as he whispered into my hair, “You got a little too cold, and now we’re warming you back up.”

My legs tingled and itched painfully as the circulation returned. It was close to the feeling when your arm fell asleep and started to reawaken, but ten times worse. Liu wrapped his arms around me as he continued to talk me through the worst of it. When the muscles in my legs eventually stopped cramping up, I went limp in Liu’s hold. I saw movement out of the corner of my eye, which had me lifting my head to see Braxton turning on the water.

“I’m just gonna warm this up a little more now that you’ve adjusted,” he explained. “Let me know if it’s too much, and I’ll turn it off.”

Right now, the water covered my legs, but with Liu’s warm body behind me, it kept my top half from getting too cold. As the tub filled, I let out a sigh, relishing the heat as it chased the last of the chill from my body. “That’s much better, thank you,” I murmured.

“Of course, anything for you, Mistress,” Braxton said as he brushed a hand over me. “Your skin feels normal again. It was like a block of ice before.”

When the tub was full of steaming hot water, Brax shut off the faucet and stood. “I’m going to run down and get you some hot tea. Is there anything else I can grab? Are you hungry?”

“No,” I answered, shaking my head. “Tea would be wonderful, though.”

“I know some of the others are in your bedroom so if you need anything, just yell,” Braxton shared as he leaned in to quickly kiss my lips. “I love you, My Queen.”

He didn’t even wait for me to respond before leaving, and I couldn’t tell if it was simply because he didn’t need me to answer or if he was worried I’d think it still wasn’t the right timing. “I love you too,” I replied, needing someone to hear me say it back to him.

Liu nuzzled my neck, offering me his comfort without saying a word, just holding me in his arms. After a few minutes passed, he finally broke the silence. “Omae, tell me what’s going on inside that head of yours.”

I let out a huff of laughter, tilting my head back to rest on his shoulder. “Everything and nothing at all,” I admitted.

“Tell me what happened tonight,” Liu pressed.

“I addressed the Family, completed the oath ceremony, was teased by you, and forced to go to dinner where all hell broke loose,” I listed, trying to keep myself detached from the events, fearing it might send me down a spiral again.

Shifting, Liu sat up, grabbing a washcloth and the bar of soap. “Yes, all those things happened, but I want to know your side of the story. You and Atticus left the head table with Boykov to mingle. That couple… did you approach them, or did they come to you?”

“She approached us,” I recalled, Fiona’s face appearing before me as she stepped into our path.

“Did she give you a name?” Liu urged as he lifted my arm and ran the soapy cloth over my skin.

Nodding, I closed my eyes, focusing on his touch to keep me grounded in the here and now. “She said her name was Fiona and her husband’s name was Simon. They were strange, but not in the sense I was worried about them being a danger. Everything about them screamed brown-noser or teacher’s pet. I could tell she really wanted me to like her but did all the wrong things to make that happen.”

Liu didn’t say anything, just gave an acknowledging hum as he moved to my other arm.

“Fiona seemed to be the boss of their relationship, but that might be because Simon was drunk. She made up some story about him hating to fly so they got him wasted, which is why he was still plastered,” I continued.

“Why do you believe it was made up?” Liu asked.

Frowning, I replayed the whole interaction. “He acted like every drunk man you see on TV or in movies. Everything seemed overplayed, and his speech would be slurred one minute and not the next. Simon also smelled like he’d managed to pour more of his liquor on him than in his mouth.”

“When did things shift?”

Sitting up, I turned to face him. “Something else happened,” I stated. “That’s why Atty has his arm in a sling.”

“Yes, but I want to hear your story first, then I’ll share mine,” Liu countered, bringing his legs together so I could straddle them now that we were face to face. “So tell me, what gave them away?”

“Neither of them had cuts on their arms from the oath ceremony. Also the fact Simon wreaked, no way I would have forgotten that,” I explained. “When I pressed Fiona about it, Simon tried to grab me, but Atticus blocked him. Atty sent the man flying into the table causing everyone to scatter. That’s when Fiona tried to make a move.”

Staring down at my hands under the water’s surface, I remembered the feel of grabbing Fiona’s head and the sound of her neck snapping as I killed her. Rage sparked to life the more I thought about the whole situation. These people had dared to step foot in my domain, pretended to be people I swore to protect, and attempted to fucking kill me. That spark quickly roared to life as fury coursed through my veins now that I fully understood the boldness of their disrespect.

Fingers gently gripped my chin, urging me to lift my gaze until I met Liu’s. “Tell me,” he ordered.