Chapter 46
LEON
Izadella and I arrive back to her rooms, that soft yellow bed a welcome sight.
Her rose and lemon scent is everywhere, and I breathe deeply.
I truly thought I would never be back here, never again hold her in my arms, tangled in the sheets she laid alone in for years, dreaming of me the same way I dreamt about her.
She takes off the traveling cloak and shirt, reaching for the tie of the temple robe. I place my hand over hers and she allows me to undo the knot.
“Do we need to return this to the temple?” I ask, sliding the silk fabric off her rounded shoulders, bending down to kiss each one. She is bare before me, and I stare down at her exquisite body. Exhilaration rolls through me, and she laughs, wrapping her arms around me.
I find the spot on her neck I know she loves and take the skin there into my mouth, earning a breathy moan, the tantalizing sound shooting straight to my throbbing cock.
She whispers, “No, we will need them for our Zemra celebration.”
Zemra celebration?
I pull back. “When is that?”
“Well, had our journey to the temple been planned, it would have been immediately after the temple visit.” She gives me a playful slap on my chest. “Which would have been explained had you not whisked me away to your kingdom, Your Highness.”
It’s meant to be a tease, I know that, but it cuts deep, as it should. It seems I’ve taken yet another thing from her. When I try to step out of her embrace, guilt enveloping me, she only pulls me closer.
“Forgive me,” I rasp.
She shakes her head, her copper curls swaying around her. “I may not like your choices, but I understand why you made them.” Her smile is soft and comforting. Too gracious for the hurt I have caused.
“I would still like to celebrate, if you would.” I try to keep the pleading from my voice.
“Of course. We will plan something together.”
Her soft lips find mine, her love in the bond fighting against the remorse of my transgressions. She undoes each of my buttons as we kiss, breaking apart so I can toss my clothing to the floor.
We are tired from the long day, but our slow kisses and soft touches continue after we have pulled the sheets over ourselves. She spreads her legs wide in invitation. Her desire is a sweetness in the air and a longing in the heart she has given to me.
Tonight is not for the greedy grinding and frantic obsession of earlier, but tender and graceful.
I slowly slide into her, pouring devotion out of me. Her velvety whimpers with each long thrust are its own kind of magic. Her cry of pleasure brings my own. Sated and safe in my arms, my love and adoration drift out of me as she falls asleep. I need endless nights like this one.
* * *
Icy fear grips my chest, pain shooting through me. It’s disorienting, and for a moment I grab for my sword before I realize the agony is coming from our bond, from Izadella.
She is asleep, tossing and turning, sweat glistening in the moonlight down her face, moaning in her sleep. Her beautiful face twisted in terror. “No…no…no.”
Her fear is so palpable, nausea churns in me. I hold her face in my hand, slowly stroking her cheek. “Wake up, my love. Please wake up.”
Glossy, terrified eyes jolt open, and she tries to quickly move away from me, her fear bursting open. I let her go even though it’s the last thing I wish to do. She frantically looks around the room, taking in her surroundings, confusion gripping her, and it guts me.
“You’re safe in your bedroom in the Ellovian palace,” I reassure her in a gentle tone. “You are here with your Zemra. Everything is all right. Grayden and Everrett are dead.”
My own panic and guilt that she is upset mix with her dread.
I fear that our pain coming together in the bond will make it all worse, but instead, it soothes us both. A reminder that she and I are one, our souls tied together.
She blinks at me, tears falling, but the pain within her fades when she recognizes she is truly safe. Peace spreads over us at whatever that damn nightmare had brought, calming us both. My Zemra nods, moving towards me, letting me wrap my arms around her and pull her close.
I give her space to process whatever was going on in her mind while she lies on my chest. I get impressions and feelings, but I will never know exactly what she went through. She does not want my guilt, but unfortunately, I do not believe it will ever truly leave me.
She had every right to run from me. I had chosen the worst moment to reveal myself to her. Yes, it was Everett who had taken her, but I opened the door for that bastard, and for that I will never forgive myself, even if she has.
“What were you dreaming of?” I ask. “If you’d like to speak of it, I would like to listen.”
She is quiet for a moment but slowly she tilts her head up to me.
“I was back in that horrible water dungeon. Everett was there, just waiting for me to drown. Cyanna was there in the water with me, but she didn’t have the lochkiss and she fell below the waves.
I didn’t see her come up.” She pulls me tighter to her. The memory is still so fresh.
I gently rub rhythmic circles on her back, my other hand in her hair. “I’m—”
“Don’t. Don’t say you’re sorry,” she grumbles into my chest.
I pause at her request, but it will not be the last she hears of it. Instead, I think of everything I love about her and let that flood our bond.
We lie there in the dark, the night breeze a caress over our skin. I want her to share her burdens with me, to let me carry her anguish in my own heart so it is lighter for her. I will not have her suffering in silence or let evil men steal her peace.
“I thought I was going to die there.”
Her haunting words hang in the air.
“You were incredibly brave. You didn’t deserve even a moment of your time there.
You stayed strong. Lyrora sent a letter the morning of your wedding.
” I growl the final word. “It said you had a plan to kill Grayden and to meet you at the forge. That’s how we found out where you were.
Pride doesn’t begin to express how I felt.
You did what you needed to do so you could return to Ellova.
You didn’t let those bastards break you. ”
“I thought of you often. I thought everything about you was a lie, but I remembered those two years when we were both lying to each other every night at the bazaar. I had nothing and was no one there, but you saw me.”
Seeing her was the only thing keeping me going towards the end. I despised every moment I was there, and she was not. The urge to return home in shame without the crown seemed easier than staying, but then she would return to sell jewels, and I could make it another month.
Even with the lies, even with the distance.
I swirl a piece of her hair around my finger.
“Yes, our souls called to each other from that first greeting. The crown was only an object that brought us back together. It was never yours and never truly mine. But if you hadn’t put it on, we would never have found each other again.
I’m exceedingly sorry for what you endured, but I will be eternally grateful for another chance at a life with you.
I only wish I could have been the one to kill Everett instead of his own foolishness. ”
Alarm fills me when her chest rises quickly, and for a moment, I think she might be crying but when she lifts her head again, her smile is bright.
“You should have seen the look on his face when I could breathe underwater. He was so certain he was about to get the crown, and there I was, very much alive. I even blew him a little kiss. It just enraged him.”
The image she paints is a delight and I laugh with her under the moonlight, midnight tears forgotten.