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“What about?” she asks.
I glance over my shoulder down the hall and movement catches my attention. The guests from the coronation are leaving, and it’s only a matter of time before they catch up with us.
“Not here,” I say, scanning the corridor around us.
This conversation needs to take place somewhere private, but I hardly feel like waiting until we’re in my bedchamber. The garden is on the opposite end of the castle, and my patience can’t wait that long either.
“Come,” I say, dragging her along beside me.
We dip into one of the rooms on the right, an unused bedroom with dark furniture, and make our way across it to a window-paned door. It leads to a tiny balcony overlooking the west end of the kingdom, and it’s just the right amount of privacy for what I have to say. I nudge the door closed behind us and find Irissa staring up at me, her eyebrows knitting together in curiosity.
“What’s this all about?” she asks.
I hesitate, trying to ready myself for whatever answer awaits me, but I know that prolonging things won’t make it hurt any less if her answer is no. As much as I would love to take back the entire truce and force her to stay with me forever, I can’t. I care for her too much to make her do anything she doesn’t want to do, and if she doesn’t want to stay here with me, I have to let her go.
“I promised I would uphold my end of the truce,” I say, slipping a hand behind her back and pulling her firmly against me.
“You did.” Her eyes light up when she smiles, and a twinge of fear clings to my spine. I should be prepared for this moment after the months it took to get here, but I’m far from ready. If she decides to leave Ulleh, I don’t know what I’ll do. I don’t know if I’ll be able to stand it.
“And I’ll keep my word,” I promise, “but I hope you’ll stay as long as you want.”
She pauses, and every second she takes to respond makes my pulse race faster. I swallow hard as her hand dances up my arm and lands on my bicep. I’ve gotten so used to being this close to her. What will I do if I’m never able to hold her like this again?
“As long as I want?”
I dip my horns, holding my breath.
“What about forever?” she asks, her smile widening.
An invisible weight slips off my shoulders at her words, and I exhale shakily. There’s nothing but absolute conviction in her blue eyes as I stare down into them, and I know she’s serious.
“Are you sure?” I ask, wanting to make sure before I celebrate prematurely. My heart is already skipping erratic beats in my chest, and a hazy image of what our future might look like fades into my mind’s eye.
“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” she says, grabbing both sides of my ceremonial scarf and pulling me down toward her.
I stop myself just before I catch her lips with mine and drown myself in her blue eyes a final time. As long as I live, I swear I’ll never get tired of this.
“Forever, then.”
