She felt like a package as she was passed first to Orvyn while Lorne swung onto the black destrier, then handed up to Lorne. He settled her on his lap again, her hip pressing against the pommel in a way that was mildly uncomfortable. But with how shaky her arms were and the fleech dragon curled against her, she didn’t think she would have been able to hang on to Lorne’s waist if she’d sat behind him.
Once the guards settled on their horses, Godwin led the way down the road with Orvyn taking up the rear, placing Lorne and Adeline between them. This time, they rode at a walk, sparing the horses, which had already been pushed hard that day.
The steady rhythm of the horse’s gait and the faint grumbling purr of the fleech dragon in her arms threatened to lull her to sleep again. Adeline rested her head on Lorne’s shoulder, closing her eyes, so very tempted to give in to the pull.
But under the soothing clop of the horses’ hooves on the dirt road, her mind churned through everything.
Lord Sarlon’s grip on her hand that had disguised the prick of his poisoned ring.
Nearly dying.
Lorne’s true identity.
She very much didn’t want to think about the first two. That left addressing the last. Gatheringher courage and a deep breath, she forced out the words. “You’re the crown prince of Lalsacia. Lalsacia’s only heir.”
“Yes.” Lorne’s arms tightened around her. But when she cracked her eyes open and tipped her head enough to peer up at him, his gaze remained focused on the road ahead. Almost fixedly so, as if he couldn’t bring himself to look at her.
“Are we actually married?” Her chest went tight at the question. In her arms, the fleech dragon stirred, raising its head and blinking at her as if it had been awakened by her tension.
“Yes. While I didn’t use my full name, I used enough of it to be legal.” Lorne still didn’t look at her. “I signed my full name, but no one bothered to pay too much attention to the length of the scribble. Since my father is Philip, I go by Lorne with those close to me.”
She shouldn’t have felt this twisting relief in her chest. After all, she had just tried to sever their marriage by giving him the chance to walk away and pretend it never happened. And it would have been far simpler for their kingdoms if they weren’t legally married.
“But…why?” She’d had no idea what she’d done the moment she married him. But he’d known exactly what he was doing and all the ramifications of the sole heir to Lalsacia marrying the only heir to Kelverny. “Why marry me, knowing we are who we are?”
“Because I wanted peace between our kingdoms, and this was the only path I saw to get it.” After a long moment, Lorne finally tipped his headdown to face her, his dark brown eyes searching her face. “And I saw a princess barely clinging to her composure, so desperate that she was proposing marriage to a stranger in her dungeon. I wanted to help her. I couldn’t let her keep fighting her battles alone.”
“Lorne…” She disentangled one of her arms to wrap it around him as she pressed her lips to his.
Dropping the reins, he gathered her up in both arms as he kissed her in return. The horse continued steadily walking forward, following the horse ahead of it. The fleech dragon in her lap gave another grumble and huff. And Orvyn behind them was surely witnessing every moment.
And yet Adeline didn’t care. She found she didn’t even care all that much about her remaining questions, pressing as they were. All she wanted to do was melt into his arms.
But after a moment, he pulled back, his gaze still focused on her face. “I wanted to tell you. At first, I didn’t dare. Then I wasn’t sure how to confess my true identity. I thought I’d have more time, but you negotiated with my father behind my back. I had been about to tell you when you had me sequestered with the guards.”
Right. He hadn’t been the only one keeping secrets. Things probably would have been far simpler if she had let him write a letter to the Lalsacian king. She’d resisted, wanting to control what the king knew. By doing so, she’d only heightened the king’s worry for his son and prevented Lorne from reassuring his father that he was all right.
A chill speared through her. Had she been acting just like her grandfather? By keeping Lorne in the dark and manipulating the situation to control those involved. While control and manipulation were all she had known for five years, she couldn’t let herself fall into those same patterns the moment she held authority.
“I’m sorry. I truly did want to offer you a way to return to your kingdom if you wished. I wanted to set you free.” Adeline fisted her hand in the back of his shirt. Did he still feel trapped, despite his protestations? As the sole heir of Lalsacia, his true duty lay there, not with her.
“Adeline.” Lorne gave a shake of his head, a fond smile on his face. “I choose you. I chose you all the way back there in the dungeon. While I appreciate what you were trying to do—and I understand why offering me the choice of freedom was so important to you—I’m not going anywhere.”
He kissed her again, another sweet and slow kiss that didn’t press for more.
A loud cough came from behind them. “Sir, perhaps it would be best to refrain from engaging in, uh, such things until we have you safely ensconced in a room at the inn.”
Lorne pulled back and gave Adeline a lopsided smile before he glared over his shoulder at Orvyn. “I thought you were all for this developing into a romance.”
“Yes, but not where I have to witness it.” Orvyn scowled in fake annoyance that would have had hergrandfather ordering him thrown back into the dungeon had he seen that look on one of his guards.
“Fine.” Lorne picked up the reins once again, facing forward.
Adeline settled her head on his shoulder once again, closing her eyes. She let herself be lulled into a light doze by the soothing rhythm of the horse and the warmth of Lorne and the fleech dragon.
After what must have been an hour, although Adeline couldn’t have said for certain, Lorne gave her a slight shake. “We’re here.”
She blinked her eyes open, finding herself still in his arms on his horse. But instead of the thick forest around them, they were now riding down the street of a small village. Instead of the wood and thatched roofed homes seen in Kelverny, these buildings were mostly built of stone with clay tiled roofs. Smoke drifted from the various chimneys, filling the air with the scent of burning wood.
