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For the rest of the evening, we moved in separate circles and barely cast one another glances. That lasted until midnight when the castle bell tolled, and the candelabras had melted to their bases. I rose from my chair and tipped a chalice to my lips, about to take a final sip before retiring.
That’s when I felt his approach. The Court Jester stalked my way amid the crowded hall.
As he passed behind me, his silken voice brushed my ear. “Leave your chamber unlocked tonight.”
His finger grazed the edge of my crown before he vanished through the room like smoke. The chalice trembled in my fingers, about to crash to the ground. At the last moment, I tightened my grip on the stem.
Hours later, I shut the door to my suite, whirled toward the facade, and pressed my forehead to the panel. Flames crackled from the tall mouth of the fireplace, its heat stroking my back. Because the maid always prepared my rooms, marigold light from a dozen candles trickled through the space. Though these small comforts did nothing to alleviate the tension, nor to relax my fingers as they choked the doorknob.
I shouldn’t let him in. I couldn’t.
My behavior tonight had been indiscreet. If I knew better, I would not run rampant like that again.
This wasn’t a game. This court wasn’t our playground.
Wanting him was treasonous. Touching him was calamitous.
Sooner rather than later, the consequences would catch up to us.
My body slumped toward the door. A desperate flurry of air blew from my lips—then froze at the rustle of movement that resounded in the space.
From behind, a masculine timbre slid through the darkness. “Come here.”
26
Briar
I whipped around. Beyond the antechamber, the Court Jester rose from a chair in the corner of my bedroom, his figure partially cloaked in firelight and candlelight. The black diamond slashed through his left eye, and his body was still clad in that dark costume, the trimmed jacket slung open and his leather pants clinging to his hips.
My heart did its worse, ramming into my breast like a caged raptor. The jester was in my room, looking as if he belonged here.
This was getting out of hand. I had nudged, and he’d nudged back, but it could not go on this way. Inevitably, we would find ourselves in fatal trouble.
I released the knob but pressed my spine against the door. “What are we doing?” I asked, helpless. “What’s happening between us? Are we fools?”
Poet halted beside the restless blaze, his pupils reflecting a single slash of flame. “Aye.” After another second, he pushed the words out. “But how much does it matter?”
At this point, very little. Yet I couldn’t admit that. Not that I needed to with this man, when everything always felt as candid and exposed as a wound.
I took tentative steps forward. “You’re dismantling all my assumptions.”
“Aye,” he agreed again, prowling my way. “And you’re ruining all my plans.”
“Breaking down the walls.”
“Burning them to cinders.”
The jester paused once more and watched the emotions trail across my face. Then he curled his fingers, softened his voice, and repeated, “Come. Here. Briar.”
I did notcome here. I lunged.
I kicked off my heels, hurled off my crown, dashed across the room, and flung myself at him. Poet grabbed the backs of my thighs and lifted, hefting me off the ground. I strapped my limbs around his waist. One of his hands braced my buttocks, and the other clasped the back of my skull, holding my head in place as his mouth tore into mine.
I moaned into his lips, which clamped onto me and flexed in, drawing me into the deepest kiss I’d ever known. Seasons help me, he tasted of wine and chocolate. His tongue caught my own, hooking and retreating, each lick dissolving my doubts. The sensuous force of his mouth brought out the ambitious in me, so that I clutched my lips with his and fought him for dominance, putting my whole being into it.
Poet groaned into my mouth. The sound emboldened me, encouraged me to nip his upper lip and enjoy his muffled growl.
Releasing sharp gales of air, our lips surged together once more. His mouth rocked against mine, grinding us into an even deeper kiss.
