Page 113 of Queen of War and Ruin

Lilias nods. I try to say something, but by the time my mouth remembers how to form words, we’re already shuffling down the hallway and Lilias is frowning at the walls like she’s trying to remember where she left her favorite cloak.

“Stop,” I whisper.

She stops, then turns to me.

“It’s here,” I say. “The door. See the crack in the wainscotting?”

Lilias shakes her head. I reach forward and press on the wall. The hidden entrance to the servants’ passageway springs open. Lilias glances over her shoulder to where Petrys stands in front of the door to my prison.

“I never would have found that,” she whispers.

“Yes, you would,” I say.

Our eyes meet, and my gods, the effort it takes to keep from kissing her almost kills me.

Petrys coughs again. I tear my eyes away from Lilias to glance at my brother. He’s scowling at us and waving his hand like he’s trying to shove us into the servants’ passageway from the other side of the hall.

“Okay, okay,” I mutter.

Lilias pulls me into the narrow passageway. I tug the door shut behind us, wrapping us in darkness.

“Zarek,” she whispers.

I shiver as I turn toward the sound of her voice, the warmth of her body.

And I kiss my wife with everything I have left.

Chapter 58

Zarek

MY PRINCESS

The floor tilts under me as I fall toward her, pressing my mouth to hers, begging her lips to part, her body to let me in. I run my fingers up the rough fabric of her cloak and sink my hand into her dark hair. She opens for me, and our kiss turns hungry as our tongues embrace. I steady myself against the wall and let my hand trail down the curve of her neck, the delicate bridge of her collarbone, the swell of her breasts pushing against her dress.

I pull away, leaving her panting in the dark.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” I growl against the heat of her neck.

Some dim pulse in the back of my mind suggests I have something I need to talk to Lilias about, that the last time I saw her things were left unsaid between us.

But it’s impossible to remember what happened, what I need to say. Hells, it’s impossible to think about anything right now, in the dark, with my body pressed against hers as the hallway spins around me and the heat between us melts that deep chill in the heart of my bones.

I kiss her perfect lips, pressing hard and deep, embracing all of her, and then I let my mouth drop to trace the curve of her neck, drinking her in. My perfect princess. My beautiful wife. She gasps as I run my lips across her collarbone. Her hand tangles in my hair.

“Zarek,” she whispers as I drag my teeth across her skin. “Gods, I missed you.”

Her back arches, and I press my palm against the curve of her breast as I kiss her neck. There’s too much fabric between her body and mine. Far too much. But the dress she’s wearing beneath that heavy cloak feels—complicated. Maybe I could just cut it off.

Except I don’t have a blade. Damn it.

I kiss her again, letting my hips rock against the stiff folds of her ridiculous dress. When I pull away, she makes a soft, strangled sort of moan. Her breath is hot and fast against my neck. My cock aches as it pulses against the lacings of my pants. I start to tug on her skirts, pulling them up.

“Should have fucked you in the carriage,” I whisper, my voice rough and uneven. “Leaving the Planting Festival.”

I have no idea where that came from, but damn, as soon as the words slide from my lips, I realize they’re the truth. And maybe I’m still not entirely in control of my mouth, but fuck it. I did say I’d be honest with her.

“Should have bent you over that tiny seat,” I growl against her neck, “and fucked you hard.”