“That hasn’t changed,” I said, words tentative, testing the waters.
“I left Radaan with clear intentions. Your father knows exactly why I came.” His jaw flexed, hands tightening at his sides. “But I need to know whatyouwant.”
His stare never wavered. It felt like he expected me to shatter. To back away. As if bracing for rejection.
“Before you answer,” he added, raising a finger when I parted my lips, “remember a few things. I’m twice your age. I’ll die before you.”
“Kallias!”
“You’ll get your turn.” He lifted a brow, hand raised to silence me. “But let me speak first. Understand?”
I leaned back and crossed my arms, raising a brow of my own in challenge.
He grunted, half-pleased. “I’ve been married. As much as I wish I could erase that part of my life, Elohios knows you deserve more than someone’s leftovers.”
I drummed my fingers against my arm, letting him go on about all the ways he thought he fell short.
“Tallon will never accept us. I could exile him to the Valley Beneath, but even then, the people might still resist you. And with him stirring unrest, this won’t be easy.
“I say all this to make sure you understand the gravity of what I’m going to ask. You’re not just a young woman in love with a boy, but a princess who had an affair with a king. I’m asking you if you want to be my queen.”
Sorrow wrapped around my chest, constricting painfully. He thought he had so little to offer, and that hurt.
“My turn?” I asked, voice sharper than intended.
He nodded once, rolled his shoulders, arms folding again as if bracing for a blow. A line creased his brow. I wished Eldeiade still lived, just so I could claw her eyes out for what she did to him.
“Then I shall answer you as a princess destined to one day rule.” My tone was flat, the confidence and authority my mother had schooled into me straightening my spine. “As a ruler, I will not run and hide from conflict. Let Tallon throw his fits—I won’t tolerate him any longer.”
I rose, prowling toward him.
“As a queen, Iexpect my future husband to face dragonfire for me. If enemies scorched the gates, I want him beside me. I would walk into his kingdom andearnhis people’s love. Honor his name.”
He flinched—barely—when I stopped in front of him.
“And to be blunt, I wish I’d met your late wife. Just once. Long enough to slap her for the damage she did.”
At that, his brow tightened. But I wasn’t finished.
“Your age doesn’t scare me. It suits you. Makes you sharper, steadier. And you’ve proven you can command a court. I won’t have to wait for you to grow into the role. You’re loyal, and your people know it.”
I reached for the button at his waistband and gave it a gentle tug.
“And now you ask if I want to be your queen?” I scoffed, voice softening. “I’d be honored if you’d choose me.”
A flicker of pleasure danced in his eyes, and the lines on his brow began to fade.
My touch brushed along something sticky.
I lowered my gaze and rubbed the dark smear between my fingers. “Abyss, you never saw a healer?” The question bit through my teeth.
“Between being torched by a dragon and your father rifling through my head, no—not much time.” He exhaled hard and dragged his palms down the bareVof skin above his waistband. Blood smeared across his abdomen with a grunt.
“Kallias.” Guilt coiled tight in my throat as I reached for the buckles of his jacket. “I’m sorry.”
His fingers lifted my chin, drawing my eyes up. The forgiveness in his face hollowed my chest. I had ordered Kalepsi to flame him. I had delivered the command that nearly killed him. Every wound and scar—my doing. My passion. My recklessness.
“Any regrets?” he asked, brushing a thumb across my lips—rough, calloused, tender.
