“Did you mean it? I can understand if you didn’t, or were just caught up in the moment, or-” I captured his lips with mine to stop his nervous rambling.
“I meant it. Although, if you ever decide to escort Erina to a ball and then bring her up again in the middle of sex, I’ll castrate you.”
His face was tinged with regret. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. There was just… I was so angry after our fight. I fucked up, Eva.”
I nodded my head in agreement. “You did, and you’re not off the hook yet. This indiscretion will take centuries of groveling to make up for.”
“Does that mean that we have centuries together?” He asked, almost too hopefully. I was allowing myself to open my heart to him, so I nodded again. A smile crossed his lips as he leaned in to kiss me. “You’re mine, Eva.”
I leaned my head against his chest and closed my eyes and said, “I’m yours, Damien.” I just hoped that I didn’t come to regret my decision.
12
EVA
My body ached with the beginning signs of a hangover as I slowly opened my eyes. I guessed it was early afternoon, judging by the sheer brightness of the sun that shone in through the large windows. I groaned inwardly. It was too damn early, even though it was also far too late, but everyone enjoyed a good lie in after a ball. It was practically a rule, and perhaps one of my favorites; you must sleep in the next day. The only people that would be awake were sentries and maids, possibly some healers if someone was inclined to drag themselves out of bed to pay them a visit.
I slowly turned over on my side to face Damien. Gods above, he looked like an angel while he was sleeping. There were always these brief lines of worry creasing his face during the day, but right now? All was calm, and I reveled in these minor victories. I reached out with my hand and gently swept my fingers along his cheeks. My body stilled as he seemed to shift under my touch, but I continued tracing the outlines of his body as he slept.
I kept thinking about last night. Fuck, I’d told him I loved him, and I did. Well, sort of. This whole situation was far too complicated if I was being honest with myself. It wasn’t as simple as everyone told us it would be. Fall in love. Get Married. Have babies. Live happily ever after. That was the equation that everyone thought of when they imagined growing old with someone. I could see that. Damien and I’d have such a good life together, a life that would initially be full of love and laughter. But how long would that last? What would happen when he had to be my consort first, my soldier second, and my loving husband third? Being in a relationship with an heir was taxing, and I wasn’t the coddling type. I couldn’t reassure him and talk about my feelings all the time. This was the way I’d always been.
He would have to realize that I had to put my duty to my people before anything else, before him. I worried he wouldn’t be able to separate my roles when it came to his feelings. Maybe that’s why so many royal relationships were arranged, except for finding a true mate. It was hard to watch the one you love ride into battle and put their lives on the line constantly, to know that they would rather die than allow harm to come to the ones under their protection. I could understand that. Even as we were now, it’s difficult to know that Damien was putting himself in danger when he was on a mission, but my people came first, and I respected him for what he did.
Like I said… It was anextremelycomplicated situation.
His eyes fluttered open, drinking me in and giving me a sleepy smile. Moments like these made me forget all the bullshit I’d just been thinking about. It was perfect, and I wanted a thousand more of them. It was selfish, possibly greedy, but I didn’t care. “Good morning, sleepyhead,” I chimed.
He reached his hand out and pushed a strand of fallen hair behind my ear. His hand stayed on my face as he leaned in tentatively for a light kiss. Under normal circumstances, I would have protested, but nothing could ruin this moment, so I relented, giving him what he wanted most. It helped that he was a damn good kisser. The kiss lingered, but was light and effortless, as if we had been doing this our whole lives. When we were like this, it was easy to be swept up in the grandeur of love. “Good morning, beautiful,” he whispered.
Instead of using words, we let our bodies dominate the conversation. Sweet kisses became torrents of ecstasy, and I lost myself in him. We let out our wants, needs, and desires. Could I do this? Could I love him forever? That was a damn long time.
During passion, I stopped and looked up at him. The sun shone around his body, silhouetting him with a golden glow. “Do you really think you could be happy with me forever? Would you end up hating me?” I cried as I emptied my soul of its worries. I let him see every insecurity I had. He needed to see my doubt, the way I had tormented myself for centuries, thinking I wasn’t good enough for him. Loving him would be a weakness, and I wasn’t sure that’s what I wanted.
“I love you, Eva. Through the darkness and the light, through the good and the bad, I have always loved you and I will continue to love you until the day that I die.” He kissed me softly, cupping my face with both of his hands. “You’re all that I have ever hoped for and ever wanted. I want to explore everything that this life of ours offers. I promise that from this moment on, you’ll never be alone.” He kissed me once more, demanding this time, until we lost ourselves in each other once more.
* * *
We wokeup to a heavy pounding on the door and alarms sounding around the kingdom. Luka rushed in, throwing clothes at us on the bed.
“What the fuck is going on?” Damien snarled, pulling on his trousers before throwing a pair to me.
“Throne room, NOW!” Luka bellowed before slamming the door, taking up his post outside.
My head was reeling from how quickly everything seemed to change. The perfect afternoon that we had experienced crashed down around us, the bitter taste of reality on my tongue. I strode to the balcony and could see that the air was clouded, as if fires were raging somewhere in the distance. I couldn’t find the source, but thank the gods, the sound of screaming wasn’t hanging in the air. One thing was obvious, though. Someone was being attacked, and if they were nearby, then Helia could be next.
Damien and I rushed down the hall hand in hand to the throne room, with Luka guarding us the whole way. I hated to admit it, and we may not get along, but he was a damn fine solider and there wasn’t anyone else that I’d rather have by my side in a fight.
We fought our way through the crowd that was lingering in the throne room. Judging by the amount of people, we had to have been the last to join. A scathing look from Orion confirmed my suspicions. Damien gripped my waist and pulled me closer to him, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. His free hand gripped my wrist to send calming pulses through my body. I hated when he used his powers on me like this, but we both needed a clear head because something was very fucking wrong right now.
Erina stood to the left of my father. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. I wondered if she had known that Damien had snuck off to be with me, and if that had hurt her somehow. She had never shown a genuine interest in anyone before, always shamelessly flirting amongst young lords or generals. Our eyes met as she gave me a subtle nod of acknowledgment. Whether it was just for my presence or if she saw that something between Damien and me had changed, I didn’t know.
“Angoria has been attacked,” my father’s voice boomed throughout the throne room, effortlessly silencing the crowd of sentries that were gathering around. They looked cautiously at each other, and I swore I even saw some people bow down to pray to the gods.
“The extent of the damage is unclear at the moment, but we will ride out as soon as we can in order to offer our aid. We also have no tangible information about who launched the attack but rest assured we will cut off the head of the snake that struck.” Orion rubbed his hands together like a maniac, and my chest tightened at what this meant. War was coming, and we had damn well better be ready when it did.
My father stood tall amidst the crowd, trepidation in his eyes. This attack on Angoria is bound to bring back horrible memories for everyone in this room - remembering that the last time a catastrophe struck at home, we lost our queen, my beloved mother.
Orion stepped up toward my father to take control and divvy up the troops. Commanders and generals received their orders and immediately left to rally their troops, while some were ordered to stay behind and guard Helia in case a secondary force launched an attack. My sister excused herself to make sure that our staff was fully informed of the attacks and assured them of the escape plans in place should the palace fall. Finally, Luka, Damien, and I were the only ones standing with my father and Orion. Both men were studying us intently as Damien and I clung on to one another. We hadn’t moved since we walked in, our bodies remaining entangled with one another.
