Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Auraelia
My star.
It’d been so long since she’d heard him call her that it was as if all cognitive abilities had flown out the window. Her brain? Empty.
No thoughts, let alone words, circulated through her mind.
While she stared at him, trying to find something to say, a cocky smile tilted up his lips. That one little uptick of his mouth had her thoughts whirling once more.
“I’ve missed that,” she admitted shyly, heat rushing to her face as she broke eye contact.
Daemon gently brushed his fingers across her cheek and down to her chin, tilting it back up so that she would look at him. “So have I.”
Her heart pounded in her chest at his words, and butterflies took flight in her stomach as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
Never in all her life would Auraelia believe that two little words would be able to set her world spinning in the right direction.
To push it back on its axis from where it had been rotating on its side.
And yet, there they were. Nestling into her heart and soul, filling the cracks in one fell swoop.
My star.
When Daemon pulled away, she could feel the heat coloring her cheeks. But when she realized that she was, in fact, still naked, she could only imagine that she looked like a freshly picked strawberry in spring.
Hastily pulling the sheets over her head, Auraelia groaned.
“What?” he asked with a chuckle that gently shook the bed.
“I’m naked.”
Daemon attempted to lift the sheets from her face, but Auraelia tightened her grip, causing him to laugh as he spoke. “Trust me, I’m quite aware.”
Peaking one eye out from under the covers, Auraelia gave him a skeptical look as he continued. “You fell asleep shortly after your head touched the pillow, and I didn’t want to wake you just to put on a nightdress. But I promise, I have been the perfect gentleman.”
Letting her gaze roam down his frame, she noticed that he was clothed and lying on top of her covers.
The sight was both comforting and not, all at the same time.
She knew he would never do anything without her consent—and goddess knows she was exhausted to the point of delirium, so she wouldn’t have been able to give it even if she wanted to—but she also loved the way his body felt curled around her own.
It made her feel safe. Comforted…and not so alone.
It was all so confusing, these emotions spinning around in her head. She wanted nothing more than to pull him close and never let him go, but in the same breath, she felt the need to push him away.
To protect not only her heart but his as well.
Slipping the sheets away from her face and tucking them under her arms, Auraelia sat up. “What time is it?” she asked, glancing toward the windows.
The sky was painted in a wash of colors that an artist could only dream of capturing on canvas. Rich oranges and soft purples melded together, creating a beautiful ending to an otherwise horrendous day.
“It’s nearly time for dinner,” Daemon replied, his voice laden with exhaustion.
Had he not slept while she did?
With her eyes still trained on the window, she felt him stir beside her.
His warmth and scent wrapped around her as he moved to sit at her back, followed by his fingers gently running the length of her spine, leaving pebbled flesh in their wake.
“I can ask someone to bring you something from the kitchen if you’d like? ”
His soft and soothing voice matched his languid movements along her back.
Taking a deep breath, she turned toward him. “No, that’s alright. I need to check on my people. Make sure that they have everything that they need for the night.”
A singular brow rose on Daemon’s gorgeous face. “You want to go back into the city? Tonight?”
Shaking her head, Auraelia explained further. “We offered the castle as a safe haven for those in need. Not many accepted, but there were some—most of them mothers with small children.”
Daemon’s gaze softened as he gently stroked her cheek and nodded. “Then let’s get you dressed, and then we’ll head down together.”
“You…you want to come with me?”
Smiling, he pressed a gentle kiss to her lips and then rested his forehead against hers.
When his hands cupped her cheeks, heat filled her body as the magic coursing through her veins seemed to melt beneath his touch.
“My beautiful, shining star. I want to be wherever you are. Doing whatever it is that you need me to do. If that’s passing out blankets and plates of hot food or reading children stories to give their tired mothers a break, then that’s where I will be. ”
Auraelia’s heart swelled in her chest, hammering against the cage that held it captive.
Love.
Goddess, did she love him.
More than she had ever let herself believe.
More than she ever thought possible, for fear of crumbling into a heap of devastation.
Relief washed through her when she finally let herself acknowledge the extent of her feelings for him.
And yet, there was still that tiny voice in the back of her mind that kept whispering… not yet.
Every wall of the throne room was lined with cots. Rows upon rows of grieving families with tear-streaked faces and soot-covered clothes.
Overwhelming grief slammed into Auraelia as she stepped into that room, the air heavy with the despair of her people. “This…this isn’t enough. They need more,” she said in a hushed whisper—more to herself than to Daemon, but he’d heard her anyway.
“What more can you do?”
His question was genuine, and when she turned to where he stood at her side, his brow was furrowed as he scanned the room around them.
Looking around her once more, she took note of what had already been provided and what could still be offered.
“They need clean clothes and the ability to bathe if they choose to. I need to make sure they all have blankets and pillows. Chef Liza is no doubt exhausted from cooking all day; perhaps we could take over?”
From the corner of her eye, she could see the quizzical look on Daemon’s face and turned toward him with one of her own.
“You want to cook? Do you know how to cook?”
“That’s not what I meant,” she said with a roll of her eyes.
“I merely meant that we could take over passing out plates, refilling water, and the like. But for your information, Prince, I do know how to cook a few things. I actually spend as much time in the kitchens as I can.” Auraelia shrugged, watching as his eyes widened in surprise before shifting to a softer gaze.
One of awe and adoration. One that sent her pulse racing for no reason other than the fact that she could see love shining in the moss green of his eyes.
Love for her and everything that she was.
“The more I learn about you, my star, the more in awe I am of you,” he whispered as he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, causing heat to rise to her cheeks.
She held his gaze for a moment before turning back toward the rest of the room. No one even seemed to notice she was standing there until she took a few steps, the heels of her boots echoing through the space.
Despite the amount of people that crowded the room, it was nearly silent, save for the quiet whimpers from children that were still barely audible in the silence.
Slowly, she made her way through the lines of beds, making sure she took the time to stop at every one and see to the needs of whoever needed her.
Whether it was organizing showers, additional blankets, or simply a shoulder to cry on, she made sure she took on their grief as her own, hoping to leave each of them with a little more hope than they’d had before she moved on to the next.
Daemon was by her side as she visited with each and every person.
Was there to aid the elderly when they needed assistance rising from their place or lying down.
And when they had finished with the last family, he’d done exactly as he’d suggested in her room.
Gathering the children in a far corner, he sat them down and told them tales of his adventures on the sea, his crew, and of Kalmeera.
Auraelia stood off to the side for a while—soaking in the way the children’s faces lit up with every story and holding onto every gasp of excitement—before she slipped away to help pass out dinner to everyone.
The serving station had been set up inside the throne room doors, with trays of freshly baked rolls, bowls of roasted potatoes and garden vegetables, and platters piled high with roasted boar and chicken.
She’d never seen so much food, even during solstice celebrations and balls, and she had never been more grateful for the people who resided in her court.
For the way they all pulled together in a time of crisis, making sure that their own were taken care of before they took the time to care for themselves.
Despite the horrid day that was coming to an end and the long way that she and her people still had to go to overcome what had happened—and what was surely to come—Auraelia smiled.
For the first time since the crown had been placed on her head, she was happy that she was queen.
Because she was the queen of people who cared. Who loved beyond themselves.
As she stepped behind the banquet table, Liza raised her brows in Auraelia’s direction and crossed her arms. “What do you think you’re doing, Your Majesty?”