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I nodded to Aisling, “Do what you can. And thank you.”
She rose from the armchair and gave me a small bow, “Thank you, majesty, for not having me beheaded or some other ghastly thing.”
I laughed, “Am I that scary?”
She made a so-so gesture with her hand before bowing again and leaving the room.
“Let her go,” I called down the hall, in case any of my males would try to stop her.
They returned to the parlor with a mixture of raised brows and scowls, waiting for me to explain myself.
No more secrets,I reminded myself, dashing the idea of not telling them every detail from my mind. I told them I believed she wouldn’t share my secret with anyone, and that she would be training me, and it was time I admitted to themallhow I felt about Valin—and the role Aisling would now play in helping me find out the truth about him.
“You did what?”Kade asked, narrowing his eyes at me, “Valin is no traitor. He’s a hero.”
“That was hundreds of years ago. You don’t know him now, no one at court does,” I argued.
“But to have her trick him into telling her things by—by using her…” Finn trailed off.
I laughed at the discomfort coloring his features, “She’s very beautiful. I don’t doubt she could have almost any male eating from the palm of her hand.”
“Yeah, or buried beneath her skirts,” Kade chaffed.
I rolled my eyes, “Look, I don’t like him. And I think he’s lying. I could be wrong, but until I’m proved otherwise, I do not—and will not trust him. And I don’t think you should either.” I met the steady gazes of each of my males, surprised to find Tiernan smiling with something like pride gleaming in his features.
Alaric ran a fist through his hair, “I think we’ve all had enough excitement for one evening. I’ll take the first—”
“Finn will take the first watch,” I corrected him, having noticed Finn seemed the most lively of the four, “You’re no good to me dead on your feet. Get some sleep. I promise I’ll still be here when you wake up.” I winked at him, already walking away.
“Stubborn as a stallion,” he groaned, but didn’t argue. “Wake me if—”
“Yes, sir,” Finn said, following me to my bedchamber. “I will.”
Chapter Ten
Iawoke from a dreamless sleep to a sky brooding with gray clouds and the sounds of raised voices in the other room. Tiernan sat in the armchair next to my bed, having relieved Finn from his watch sometime in the night.
“What are they arguing about?” I whined, wanting nothing more than to climb back under the covers and go back to sleep.
Tiernan sighed, “Something about a memorial,” he shrugged, “I’m not sure.”
Ugh.We sat in silence for a while before I gave up hoping they would shut up and leave. I hauled my tired bones from the bed, hissing when my feet met the cold tile.
Tiernan’s intake of breath had me snapping my head up. He was staring at me—well, at my breasts to be more precise. The chill had hardened my nipples and the thin clingy material of my night clothes did little to hide them.
I smirked at him and he bit the inside of his cheek—to keep from saying what, I wasn’t sure. “Come here,” I beckoned him, watching as he rose to his full height and licked his plump lips.
Perhaps it wasn’t wise, and not the time for such things, but I wanted to taste him. Of all my men, Tiernan was the most foreign, with his sun-kissed skin and golden hair. It turns out, foreign is very sexy, and I had yet to feel the pressure of his lips against my own.
Just a kiss. That’s all. It wasn’t safe to do more—not yet.
I met his haughty stare with one of my own. There was something I had been wondering, and now seemed like the perfect opportunity to ask, “You agree with me, don’t you? About trusting Valin so easily.”
“I do,” he said, catching his lower lip between his teeth as I ran a hand over the leather armor covering his chest.
I nodded, “I thought so. I’m glad at least one of you does—agree with me that is.”
He pushed the unruly silver hair back from my chest and marveled at the silhouette of my body underneath my night clothes. “I think you’ll find we see eye to eye on more than one thing, Liana.”
