Chapter Nine
I had been to parties and celebrations at the palace in Troas. But nothing that they had ever done came close to this.
Bouquets and garlands of fresh flowers seemed to cover nearly every surface. An artificial pond had been constructed in the middle of the room. I could see from here that there were beautiful, golden fish swimming in it and black swans gliding along the surface.
Sheets of gold silk hung from every wall and across the ceiling that soared above us. It almost felt like being inside a jewelry box.
Every woman in the room was covered in silks and precious gemstones so that they reflected light in every direction. The silverware, the plates, the goblets, all made out of gold.
A servant approached with a tray, offering us a pair of gold goblets. I shook my head. I did not want to be sick tomorrow for the first event.
Zain did not seem to share my concern and threw his drink back in one gulp.
“How many of those have you stolen?” I asked.
“Drinks?”
“Goblets.”
“Tonight? Zero so far. Other nights? That would be impossible to keep track of,” he said, setting the goblet down on a table encircled by roses. Another servant came by and he grabbed an additional goblet and drank that one just as quickly.
“You’re going to be hungover tomorrow,” I warned him.
“If I can’t do what I need to do while hungover, then I don’t deserve my title as king of thieves.”
We fell silent and I again took in all the details in the room.
“It is beautiful in here,” I said.
I felt his gaze on me. “It is.”
When I glanced over at him, he looked away and cleared his throat. “The gods have always despised hubris in mortals and that’s what this entire city is. Hubris.”
His reaction surprised me. I would have thought this would be his favorite place to be, given how wealthy they were. There would be a lot to steal here.
“I think it’s like magic,” I said.
“Have a lot of experience with magic, do you?”
He was teasing me, but I actually did. “The queen of Ilion and her sisters call on their goddess and invoke an aspect. The queen is also the goddess’s savior, so she has some unimaginable powers.”
“What does she do with them?”
“Currently? She protects her nation and keeps the peace.” I paused. “And she uses them to keep her toddler from burning down the palace around them.”
He laughed, and that sound—I could get lost in the silken warmth of that sound. It could become something I craved. “She’s also bonded to an aether dragon, so it is a very good thing you let her husband go after you abducted him.”
“Kept him safe,” he corrected me.
It was then that I saw a red, raised line on his throat. I hadn’t noticed it before because I had been avoiding looking at him directly. Like he was the sun and I might go blind from staring at him.
“I did cut you. Why did you say I didn’t?”
His gaze returned to mine and my stomach fluttered. “I didn’t want you to feel bad.”
“Lying to me makes me feel bad.”
“Noted.” He paused for a moment and then said, “Follow me.”
My mother had often been furious with me when I was a child because I’d had a tendency to be contrary just for the sake of being contrary. I found myself wanting to do that now but instead did as he requested.
He led me outside onto a quiet balcony that overlooked the city. Lights sparkled from various houses and buildings. It was like they had plucked the stars from the sky and scattered them among the city.
“I wish I could draw this,” I said reverently.
“You draw?”
“I used to. I haven’t in a long time. My grandmother thought it was pointless when my time could be better spent training.”
He turned to lean against the half wall. “That’s a shame. You should be able to do the things you enjoy.”
That wasn’t how things worked in a Thracian family. I tried to imagine what my grandmother would have done if I had defied her.
“And speaking of things I enjoy,” he continued, “I think this is the most time I’ve ever spent with a woman without her ending up in my bed. Although tonight you will be adjacent to my bed, so perhaps that counts.”
“It does not,” I told him firmly and he laughed. “Is that how you spend your time? Trying to seduce everyone you come across?”
“Something like that. And it’s not trying and it is fairly easy.”
“It is? Show me.”
His eyes sparkled in the low light and he straightened up. “On you?”
Goddess, no. I wasn’t sure I’d survive the attempt. “Not on me.”
Disappointment flashed across his face. “You pick the woman, then.”
Were we really doing this? It seemed so strange. And I only had myself to blame. I looked out over the room filled with people. I spotted a woman I assumed was more to his liking—tiny, waifish, gleaming dark hair.
She was also surrounded by a gaggle of men. If we were going to do this, I was going to make it as difficult as I could. I pointed her out. “That one.”
“Fine.”
“Will I have to wait all night?” I asked.
“It’ll only take a few minutes. And to make things interesting, I won’t even speak to her.”
I laughed as he walked into the room. There was no way for him to accomplish his task.
He walked over to a food table, his back turned to the woman I’d picked out. He didn’t look her direction. Didn’t make eye contact.
I watched as she stopped speaking. Her gaze landed on him once, twice, three times. The men surrounding her were trying to get her attention but she only had eyes for Zain. After a minute she got up and made her way over to him.
How could this be working? He wasn’t even doing anything!
When she approached he turned to smile down at her. I couldn’t hear what she was saying but the rapture on her face was unmistakable. He tapped a finger against his cheek and she reached up to kiss it. I was both appalled and mesmerized.
Appalled because I was worried what I might do if he turned all that charm on me.
She then whispered something in his ear and ran back to her group.
Zain, looking smug, made his way back over to me. “She asked me to meet her later.”
“Are you going to?”
“No. Why would I?” he asked.
I couldn’t help but let out a short laugh. “Why would you want to spend time with a beautiful woman?”
“I already am.”
If my heart pounded any harder, it might actually manage to punch its way through my chest. Hadn’t he just shown me the kind of man he was? One who could seduce women without even speaking to them?
“Besides, if I go off with that woman, I’d be bending over all night in an attempt to kiss her and I’ll probably get a crick in my back. But kissing someone like you . . . you’re almost as tall as me. I can imagine you’d be easy to kiss.”
The smart thing to do would be to walk away. I had made my appearance, people had seen me, and I should leave and go back to my room and to bed.
Not stand here and tempt fate.
As if sensitive to my internal struggle, he changed the subject. “Did you notice anything different today when you arrived in the city?”
“Everything here has been different.” Mostly my reaction to him. A reaction I was determined to suppress.
“Did you hear how quiet it was?”
Now that I thought about it, it had been strangely quiet. “Yes.”
“Sagaris has moved the blacksmiths, all metalworkers, carpenters, and any animal that makes noise, like chickens, out of the main city. The people here prefer to stay up all night drinking and sleep through the day, so the city has to be quiet. They also have wine piped into their homes the same way they do water.”
“What?” I asked, bewildered. I’d never heard of such things. Not to mention that back home I depended on the roosters to wake me up for early-morning training.
“They take their reveling very seriously. The invitation to this celebration went out a year ago so that the women had enough time to decide what to wear. I met a man yesterday who shared that with me, and that he hadn’t seen the sun in twenty years.”
I couldn’t imagine living in a place like this, where everything was devoted to luxury and indulgence. I would get bored.
“You seem to know a lot about Sagaris.”
“I know a lot about everyone and everything. It’s part of my job description. You always have to know what you’re walking into and whether customs or beliefs will in some way interfere with your plans. Like if I were to rob people here, I would do it midmorning when they were all passed out.”
Earlier he’d mentioned adding a fact to his Thracian list when I’d told him we didn’t name our animals. He compiled information about different groups. “You won’t always have those facts before you try to rob someone.”
“That’s true, but I also read people like you do. You can’t steal from them if you don’t understand them,” he said.
Others didn’t generally realize that about me—that I could tell what people wanted and whether they were being deceptive. “How did you know I read people?”
“You are very observant and perceptive. As am I. Another reason we will be such a good match.”
He said it so matter-of-factly, as if it were a foregone conclusion. Destined.
Inevitable.
A thought that should have scared me and didn’t.
This was too much. My strange reactions made me nervous.
And I was never nervous.
Zain said, “You have a leaf in your—”
He reached for my head and muscle memory took over. I grabbed his wrist, twisted it, and held it in place behind his back, immobilizing him. I knew that it hurt but he didn’t cry out.
I was about to let go and apologize when I felt him shaking. Was he . . . crying?
Then I realized that he was shaking like that because he was laughing so hard. He jerked against my hand to free himself, and again, I reacted on instinct. Tightening my grip.
He turned his head to look at me. “What is it your people call this gift?”
“Battle-favored.”
“I was wondering how you thought you were going to win. I knew you wouldn’t be here unless you were sure that you would. And just so you know, I can get out of this.”
“I’d like to see you try.”
Before the last syllable had left my mouth, Zain was on the move. He bent at the waist while rotating his fingers up and out. He freed himself and then lunged at my waist, pushing me back until a wall stopped me.
He was fast. Not as fast as me, but faster than most.
And I had been so surprised by his maneuver that I let him push me. It hadn’t been forceful or rough—he’d been careful. He straightened up, keeping his body flush against mine. My stomach turned somersaults while my heart pumped rapidly in my chest.
“Interesting,” he murmured. “You wouldn’t have permitted me to do this unless you wanted me to.”
His body felt hard and unyielding but warm and inviting all at the same time.
“And I was only trying to remove a leaf that got caught in your hair. May I?” he asked.
“Yes.” I sounded so breathless.
He reached up and I heard the rustle of the leaf coming free from my hair. Once he’d done that, he put his hands flat on the wall on either side of my head.
I should speak. Anything would be better than sitting here staring at him. “That . . . was an interesting move.”
Zain ghosted his nose over mine and it felt like he was touching me. “I have often found that ingenuity beats brawn. I do have brawn, just not as much as you.”
Other men had been bothered by that and had let me know about it.
It didn’t seem to bother him at all.
He exuded this masculine confidence that had more of an effect on me than I would have admitted.
His mouth settled just above mine, his warm breath scented with wine and spices, and more than anything I wanted to lean forward and kiss him. “Just as I thought,” he said. “It’s much better how close you are.”
It would ruin so many things if I kissed him. “I’m . . .” I had to swallow. “I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
“I would risk far more for far less where you’re concerned.”
Such pretty words. I had to remember who and what he was. “How am I supposed to believe anything you say?”
The ends of his mouth curled up. “You probably can’t. I guess you’ll have to watch my actions.”
“Your actions?” Could he hear my heartbeat? “Those of a thief? If you were planning on stealing from me, I’m not sure I have anything worth stealing.”
His smile got bigger. “That’s not true.” His eyes traveled down my body and I wanted it to be his hands instead. “I know that you could stop me if you wanted to. But would you let me steal a kiss?”