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“Atlas is no rival of mine. Only Levi.”
Cleo begins to crack a knowing smile before wrapping her arms around my neck.
“Then I guess you have exactly one month to make her forget he even exists. Are you up for such a challenge?”
“I was born for it.”
Chapter 28
Katrina
“There it is. That’s Braaka,” Levi snarls at my back, pointing to a large city just beyond a huge hill.
But it’s not the city that has me frozen still.
It’s the men waiting on horseback below that same hill, with the golden sunflower crest stitched to their vests and flags, that causes me unease.
“And there is Teodoro, I presume,” I mutter, leaning my back even closer to Levi’s chest.
Levi lets out a gruff exhale, before he snakes his arm around my waist, pulling me tighter to him.
I tilt my body carefully to the side and crane my head to look at his face.
Everything I ever wanted to tell him feels like it’s trapped in my throat, suffocating me if I don’t let it out.
“Fuck, Kat,” Levi groans, his eyes closing for the briefest of seconds. “Stop looking at me like that, or the only place you’re going is back home with me. Fuck whatever word you gave to that bastard.”
A small smile plays on my lips, but I’m too sad for it even to come out.
“Home? Is the east my home now?” I ask, running the tips of my fingers over his stubbled square jaw.
“Your home is where you want it to be. Just know that wherever that is, I’ll be right there at your side.”
“Promise?” I choke, starting to feel too many emotions at once to keep myself collected.
Levi growls like he’s about to kill something, but instead of murder, he kisses his temple to mine and breathes me in.
“The gods, woman, but you have ruined me.”
“And you’ve ruined me,” I confess on a soft sob.
“Please don’t cry, Kat. My heart is breaking as it is. I won’t survive if you cry,” he whispers huskily, running the pad of his thumb across my cheek and wiping the tear that escaped dry. He then sucks it into his mouth and leans in to kiss me.
I wrap my arms around his neck and give in to his kiss willingly, uncaring if Teo sees it or not. This kiss tells him everything I can’t. How much I love him. How he’s given new meaning to my life. How before he entered it, my life had been a cold, hollow existence. And in turn, with his kiss, he shows me how I have his heart. How it will refuse to beat until I return to him.
I let out another sob when he breaks our kiss, not ready to face what lies ahead.
Levi looks as if he’s in agony, as he presses another tender kiss to my forehead.
Before he has a chance to change his mind, he sits up straight, tightens his hold on my waist, and pulls at the reins, giving our horse the silent command to trot toward the borderline where east meets south.
With each gallop, my sorrow for leaving Levi is just as fierce as my apprehension in reuniting with Teo. I repeat in a loop all the reasons why I have to go through with this when it’s blatantly obvious that if I have to marry someone, it will be Levi. Then suddenly, another thought crosses my mind. If Teo did see me kiss Levi just now, then he might retaliate andmisplacehis shipments to the north again. This plan I concocted was so that these kings would be too preoccupied in fighting for my hand to try to plot against me. If they realize that the prize has already been given to another, then they might go back to their initial plans of rebellion.
Stupid, stupid, Kat.
No matter.
I’ll think of something.
