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“I don’t think you need me to tell you this, but your child only grows stronger every day and you’re glowing because of it .”
His comment makes me shift uncomfortably, and I don’t know what to say in response so I take the low hanging fruit, so to speak. I snort. “Pretty sure that’s just the sweat from exerting myself, but I’ll take it.”
“Xavier, what Daphne and I were saying before…” Essos reaches out and grabs his brother’s shoulder.
“No, you’re absolutely right. I was a shit ruler and now we all have to fix it. Maybe eventually we can even figure out how. I just wanted to do this one thing for my niece.” There is a tone of finality in his voice. Xavier pulls out of his brother’s touch, but I rush forward, grabbing him.
“Xavier, you’re going to be around plenty for your niece. She needs a stubborn, pain-in-the-ass uncle who will help embarrass her in front of her dates.” I know he promised to help train Nightwalker, but something about his tone doesn’t sit well with me.
“Let’s clean up this mess first, and then we can talk about what I’ll be around for.” Xavier less outs a shrill whistle and Nightwalker comes bounding to him, screeching to a halt at his shins.
“Brother, we’re going to come out of this. That’s a promise you can take to the bank. I should know, I’m the bank.”
I try to choke my laugh at the seriousness of Essos’s words. Part of me can’t help but wonder how long he’s been waiting to say that.
“Do you two think I’m making some sort of suicide proclamation?” Xavier steps away from us, studying our faces with amusement.
“I, well, yes,” I stutter, glancing at Essos. When his blue eyes meet mine, his shoulder lifts just the barest amount.
“You’re both out of your minds. I’m not suicidal. I’m regretful. Gods, you two need to get out more. I have every intention of seducing Catalina and making her my queen.”
If I wasn’t secretly shipping the two of them together, I might have more of a problem with this proclamation. His inclusion that he also wants to make her his queen helps to save him from my wrath.
“If she doesn’t want you, you can’t push her. She’s learning this world, this realm, her powers, all new. If I hear that she said no, and you didn’t listen, I’ll cut off your manly pieces and feed them to Nightwalker.”
Xavier’s whole face darkens as he purposefully utilizes his height to look down on me. “If you think I’m capable of something like that, then you don’t know me very well at all.” He looks away to the little gryphon. “I’ll take Nightwalker back to the stables.”
Xavier is gone before I even have a chance to form my objection. Of course, I don’t think he’s like that, but doesn’t he understand that she’s my best friend. I may not have trapped her in the endless loop her life was stuck in, but I was the reason she died. It was me, and only me, that can be blamed for her latest death.
The idea tumbles through my mind, but Essos distracts me when he pulls the collar of his shirt to the side, showing off all the tiny scrapes from Nightwalker’s claws.
“She got you good,” I tell him with a laugh. I press to the tips of my toes to get a better look, but rather than let me tend to him, Essos captures my mouth in a kiss.
“My brother was right, you are glowing, and it’s getting harder and harder for me to keep my hands off you.”
I laugh, looping my arm in with his, dragging him closer to the surf so we can walk with our feet in the sand.
“Good thing I’m amenable to letting you have me whenever and wherever you want.”
“Even right here, on this beach?” he teases, drawing me closer to him.
“No, there will be no sex on the beach right now. I am not interested in getting sand all over my everything and then not being able to…just…no.”
Essos lets out a hearty laugh. Even though we’ve been under such tremendous amounts of stress as of late, I’ve noticed that he’s been getting lighter with each passing day, like being by my side every day has started to ease some of his pain. It may not ever leave him completely, but my presence is going a long way to fixing that hurt.
“I’ll gladly clean wherever you want,” Essos says before buying his head in my neck, laughing. It tickles me, causing me to laugh too. Between us, the baby kicks.
“Okay, you guys are actually mega gross,” Helene says as she steps out of the surf.
I turn to look at her. She’s dressed for her court, with pearls woven into her hair and a white Grecian-style dress draped around her.
“Now you know how it felt being around you and Kai during the Trials,” I tease, nestling closer to Essos.
“Yes, well, that sounds like a personal problem, but I am here for legitimate reasons. Dion and Bria filled me in about the God Killer blade and its magical properties.”
All mirth leaves Essos’s from and he stands up straighter, crossing his arms. “I’m listening.” Even his tone is harder.
“Kai and I decided to try to appeal to Posey ruler-to-ruler.”
