AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My mouth twitched in amusement, but I continued pacing. “Even your sister Mariana is here, Ren, and Onn is a lot further away than Delzerce.”
“Nat,” Ren said, slipping his arms around my waist and pulling me close. “Valeri will be here for the wedding.”
“It’stomorrow,” I hissed. Pressure settled in my chest, making it hard to breathe. “What if he doesn’t intend to come? What if he can’t accept me marrying you after all? What if-”
“Hush,” my lover said, holding me tighter. But my restless energy chafed against my very skin. “Your brother will be here. If not, we’ll defer until he is, even if I have to send El to kidnap him from his castle.”
“Defer the wedding?” I was horrified. “Ren, wecan’t. There’s the food, and the flowers, and-”
“I’m a king,” he reminded me, kissing my neck now. “If I need to order the food to preserve itself and the flowers to remain fresh, they’ll fucking well listen.” I felt his shrug from where he was pressed against me. “Or I’ll have it all thrown out and replace the lot. Who cares?”
I sagged in his arms.
“Your Majesty?” Luis was back, out of breath from the fifteen flights of stairs he’d scaled. “Prince Velichkov isn’t…he hasn’t arrived.”
“Of course he has,” Ren said. “I saw him walk through the gate myself. You must have returned up here too early.”
“Apologies, my king. I’ll go back to greet him.”
“You do that,” he agreed, and I glanced over my shoulder as Luis disappeared through the balcony door once more, the three gold bands on his collar flashing in the sunlight.
But my eyes were drawn to my husband-to-be and the white slash nestled among his ink black hair. Ren’s mouth quirked into a grin.
“Finally, he notices.”
I flushed. “Sorry.” I plucked the white lock of hair away from Ren’s head and stroked my thumb over it reverently. “How...?”
“Camila. She dyed it for me with some kind of soap they use to keep the linens white.”
“That doesn’t sound healthy for your hair,” I admonished.
“Who cares about healthy?” Ren asked, rolling his eyes. “It’spretty.”
I tried to give him an exasperated look but it quickly softened into a smile. I leaned in to press my lips against the lock of hair wrapped around my fingers, before using it to tug Ren closer. “It’s gorgeous.”
He preened.
“Your…Majesty. He still…wasn’t there.” Luis was nearly bent double this time, wheezing out the words.
“You’re right, Luis,” Ren said seriously. “That wasn’t Valeri at all. I must have been mistaken. I’m terribly sorry for making you…oh, what’s that?”
The guard squinted past us. “What?”
“That’s him after all! What are the chances? Go and greet him at the gates, Luis.”
“I don’t see…”
“You wouldn’t be questioning your king, would you?” Ren asked, injecting a note of hurt into his voice. “Because Prince Valeri is dismounting his horse as we speak, and if he thinks I don’t respect him enough to send my best man to meet him…”
Luis snapped to attention. “On my way, sire.”
I tried to shake my head in reprimand, only to find the king of Quareh plastered to my side, nosing his face into my cheek.
“Come,” Ren murmured, running his tongue along the edge of my ear. “I wish to distract you.”
I sighed. “That’s not going to work.”
He flicked my nose. “Shush. I only have one more night to ravish and ruin you before your husband gets his respectable hands on you, and I won’t have you waste it with your surliness.”
