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Jonathan’s face twists as if he is having an internal battle about whether to listen or defy the order. He listens and lets go of my wrists. I pull them back to my chest and rub at them, relishing the fact that he is no longer touching me. The scars around my wrists sting from the tight grasp.
I look up to meet warm, golden honey eyes staring at me with an apologetic hint to them.
He is here. This can’t be real.
I freeze, fighting the urge to faint, staring at his handsome face. He pats Jonathan on the shoulder, a silent gesture to move. Jonathan glowers at me with a look that tells me this isn’t over yet and slides off the stool to join the other guards at their table in the back of the tavern.
My guard moves into the vacated spot but doesn’t sit down.
“I’m sorry about that. Are you ok?” He eyes my wrists where I had been rubbing them.
My mouth must have fallen open because it’s dry, and I try to swallow and come up with some kind of response.
“Yes,” I blurt out with an unrequired sense of urgency. My rage, and my king, forgotten.
His cedar scent hits me, and I take a deep breath, inhaling it.
“I’m fine. Not the first time a man has put his hands on me without asking, and I’m sure it won’t be the last,” I say before realizing that it’s probably not the right response.
What am I doing? Gods, this is not going how I dreamed it would.
The look of concern deepens on his handsome tanned face, and the muscles in his jaw flex as he clenches it.
“Well, if anyone else tries to touch you while in Lux, please let me know. I’ll inform them that such behavior is not welcome here.”
This man looks like a god standing before me. He’s gorgeous from a distance, but up close, he’s devastatingly handsome. While the years have changed him physically, I’m glad to see his caring heart is still the same and not turned cold by the evil that lies in this kingdom.
“Thank you for that, Captain Kincaid. What can I get for you?” I ask.
“Theo, please call me Theo,” he says, smiling warmly at me.
“Ok then, Theo, what will it be?” I reply as a slight blush paints my cheeks.
“Your name, for starters,” he replies with a hint of flirtation.
My blush turns from pink to red and I look down to stop it from deepening further.
When I drag my gaze back up, I find captivating pools of honey eyeing me, waiting patiently for an answer. I open my mouth to speak but catch myself before I accidentally spit out my real name. Oh, the disaster that would be.
“Vivienne,” I reply, feeling the large foolish smile on my face.
He doesn’t seem put off because his smile matches mine.
For long moments, we’re lost in each other’s eyes, as if searching for the spark that has set us on fire. A man clearing his throat breaks our trance. Harvey stands at the end of the bar with a handful of dirty mugs ready for washing. We both notice him staring at us.
“I’ll take a mug of the highly talked about chilled ale, please,” Theo says, confirming whatever moment we were sharing is gone.
“Coming right up. Do you want some for your friends as well?” I look over his shoulder at the table of guards who are pretending not to watch us.
“Yes, but not for Jonathan. He can get his own,” he says, eyeing them back.
I laugh harder than I should.
“I can definitely do that. Go take a seat, and I will bring them out to you shortly.”
He nods at me before turning and taking a seat at their table.
I’m walking toward the back to retrieve the ale from the trove chilled box when Amelia walks through the door.
