Chapter 19 Kieran
CHAPTER NINETEEN
KIERAN
The ultimatum hung in the air. I felt every eye in the council room watching, waiting for my response, but I couldn’t look away from Cyrene.
She’d moved over to stand beside me, and despite being covered in dirt, she was more beautiful than any queen in our history. Her chin remained high. My wife was defiant. Ready to fight.
Fates, I loved that about her.
“Very well,” I said, not breaking eye contact with my wife. “We’ll perform the Shadow Rite at the ball.”
A flicker of surprise crossed Cyrene’s face before she schooled her features. Several nobles exchanged glances, clearly not expecting me to agree so readily.
Rathley recovered first. “Excellent. The ball will be held three nights from now. That should give Lady Cyrene adequate time to prepare.” His emphasis on the last word made his meaning clear. He expected her to fail.
“This meeting is adjourned,” I said.
Lady Aragorn shifted in her chair. “But Your Majesty, there are other matters—”
“I said we’re finished.” If I could fire them all this instant, I would, but that would cause unrest among my people. A king’s power only extended so far.
I held out my hand to Cyrene. “My queen?”
Her fingers were cool on my palm. The touch sent a current of awareness through me, an echo of the magical connection we’d shared in the crypt.
“Lords and ladies,” she said with a graceful nod that countered our ragged appearance.
We left the chamber together, maintaining a dignified silence until we were well out of earshot. As soon as we turned the corner, Cyrene rounded on me.
“The Shadow Rite?” Her voice came out high-pitched. “I don’t know the first thing about vampire dances.”
“I know.” I gently pulled her along beside me.
“Then why did you agree?” Noting she was hurrying to keep pace with my longer strides, I slowed down. “They want to embarrass me in front of your entire court.”
“Yes, they do.”
“And you’re just…fine with that?” Her free hand gestured wildly, nearly dislodging Quandary from her shoulder. “I thought we were in this together.”
I stopped and turned to face her. We stood in a quiet corridor now, sunlight streaming through high windows, highlighting her indignant face. Despite the dust in her hair and the smudge on her cheek, she looked like fire incarnate, both vibrant and fierce.
“We are together in this,” I said. “Which is why I agreed to their demand.”
Her brow furrowed. “I don’t understand.”
“Let’s discuss it somewhere private.” I started walking again, this time toward her tower. “These walls listen. Our rooms and your tower are warded to keep anyone from hearing what we might say.”
She fell into step beside me, her silence tense but trusting.
Inside our chambers, we each bathed and changed our clothing.
Then we climbed the spiral staircase to her workshop. There, I closed the door and cast a small sound-dampening spell to ensure our privacy. Someone had accessed her tower. I didn’t want them finding a way to listen in.
Quandary flew from Cyrene’s shoulder to the windowsill, his scales glinting in the afternoon light.
“I don’t like this plan,” Cyrene said. “Your nobles and advisors are plotting something.”
“I agree.” I leaned against her workbench. “Which is why I’m going to teach you the dance. All of it, every intricate step.”
“But why would you agree to their demand if you’re going to help me succeed?” She perched on a stool, her skirts billowing around her.
My satisfied smile rose. “Because they don’t expect me to teach you. They expect me to protect you from embarrassment by finding a way out of the dance altogether. When we show up prepared, it will throw them off balance.”
Understanding dawned on her face. “They’re trying to force your hand.”
“Exactly. They think I’ll either refuse the dance, which will make our court believe our marriage is a sham, or subject you to humiliation, which would drive a wedge between us. Either way, their goal is to end the alliance, and they’ll succeed.”
Quandary flapped his wings.
“He says he’s going to find out what those sneaky bloodsuckers are really planning,” Cyrene said. She nodded his way. “Be careful.”
The small drake chirped before launching himself out the window, quickly disappearing from view.
Cyrene turned back to me, her eyes serious. “Is this dance difficult?”
“It’s complex. The Shadow Rite dates back centuries. It’s meant to symbolize the binding of two souls, two magics.” I pushed away from the workbench and crossed to her. “But it’s not impossible to learn.”
“In three days?” She was right to sound skeptical.
“It helps that you’re already graceful. And I’m an excellent teacher.”
A hint of pink colored her cheeks as she took my hand. “I’ve never been much of a dancer.”
“Neither was I until my mother insisted I learn.” I guided her to the center of the room where we had space to move. “She said a king who can’t dance is like a sword without an edge, functional but lacking finesse.”
That earned me a smile. “Your mother sounds wise.”
“She was.” I positioned her in front of me, far enough away that our bodies didn’t touch. “The dance begins with distance between the partners, symbolizing their separate lives.”
Cyrene’s expression tightened, and a spark of determination flared in her eyes. “Show me.”
As the late afternoon sun slanted through the windows, I guided her through the opening movements. The Shadow Rite was intricate, with precise footwork and hand positions that told the story of two lives intertwining.
“Like this?” she asked, mirroring my stance with her arms extended, her palms facing upward.
“Almost.” I stepped behind her, adjusting the angle of her elbows. “Your arms should form perfect crescents, like the phases of the moon.”
She adjusted, and I noticed how the sunlight caught her hair, turning the strands to inky jewels.
I cleared my throat and stepped back. “Better. When the music begins, you’ll turn clockwise while I turn counterclockwise. Three steps, then we face each other again.”
She followed my instructions, her movements hesitant at first but growing more confident with each attempt.
“They’ll expect me to fail, won’t they?” she asked as we practiced a turn for the fifth time.
“They’re counting on it. The Shadow Rite is typically performed only by vampire couples who have had specific training. No one outside my people has performed it in living memory.”
A spark lit her eyes, the same one I’d seen when she faced down the blood magic sigil. “Then I’ll practice until it’s so smooth, I can do it as well as a vampire.”
My smile rose. “That’s my stubborn witch.”
Her eyebrows lifted at the possessive phrasing, but she didn’t comment on it. Instead, she asked, “What comes after the turn?”
“We approach each other.” I demonstrated the steps, moving toward her with measured strides. “Right foot crossing over left, then left over right, then right forward.”
She copied the movements, eliminating the distance between us until we stood close together.
“And then?” Her voice had softened, and her eyes were fixed on mine.
“Then we circle.” I placed one hand lightly at the back of her waist, taking her right hand with my left. “Like this.”
I guided her into the circular pattern, our bodies moving in tandem around an invisible center point. Her hand felt small in mine, but there was strength in her grip.
“This part represents the first tentative connection,” I said. “The beginning of two paths merging into one.”
Cyrene’s gaze remained on mine as we moved, her pupils dilating. “And this is just the beginning?”
“The dance grows more complex as it progresses, symbolizing the deepening of the bond.”
We continued through the afternoon, working through each phase of the dance as the sun tracked across the sky.
Cyrene learned quickly, her natural grace compensating for her lack of experience.
By the time the light had turned golden with the approaching sunset, she had mastered the first part of the routine.
“You’re a natural,” I said as we paused to catch our breath.
She laughed, the sound bright in the quiet room. “Liar. But I appreciate the encouragement.”
“I’m serious.” I watched as she pushed a strand of hair from her flushed face. “Most take weeks to learn what you’ve accomplished in hours.”
“You’re an excellent teacher.” She smiled up at me, and something in my chest tightened at the genuine warmth in her expression.
“Ready to continue?” I asked, eager to be moving again, to have the excuse to touch her.
She nodded, taking her position across from me. “What comes next?”
“The most challenging part.” I demonstrated a complex series of steps that involved weaving around each other, our hands brushing but never fully connecting. “This represents the dance of courtship. Approaching and retreating, testing boundaries.”
Her brow tightened as she attempted to follow the pattern. On her third try, she stumbled, bumping into me. My arms went around her, steadying her.
“Sorry,” she muttered, her hands splayed against my chest.
I didn’t release her immediately. “Everyone stumbles.”
She looked up at me, her face a short distance away. “Even you?”
“Especially me.” I let her go reluctantly and stepped back. “Try again?”
We resumed, and this time she managed the sequence without faltering. As we continued to practice, the energy in the room changed. Each time our hands brushed, a small spark of magic passed between us, her joy magic responding to my presence, my vampire magic reaching for hers.
The dance was becoming more than practice; it was becoming an unintentional seduction.
As dusk painted the room in shades of amber and rose, we reached the most intimate part of the dance. I stood behind Cyrene, my chest touching her back, one arm wrapped lightly around her waist.
“Now we move as one,” I said close to her ear, guiding her through the steps. “Side, side, forward, back. Our movements must be perfectly synchronized.”
Her breathing quickened, and her heart beat erratically. My own pulse responded, especially when she leaned back, her body rubbing against mine.
“Like this?” she whispered, executing the steps while maintaining the tantalizing almost-contact between us.
“Exactly like that.” My voice had dropped to a whisper. “Now we turn…”
I guided her into the spin, and when she faced me again, her cheeks were flushed, her eyes bright. Magic crackled in the air between us, visible as faint golden sparkles mixing with the deeper blue of my own power.
“Kieran,” she said, my name a question and an invitation all at once.
I knew I should continue with the lesson. I still had to demonstrate the final sequences, the culmination of the dance where the two partners finally joined completely.
But I couldn’t look away from her lips, slightly parted and impossibly tempting.
“There’s more to learn,” I said, even as I stepped closer to her.
“Show me.” Her gaze dropped to my mouth, then back to my eyes.
Instead of showing her the next steps, I closed the final distance between us. My hands found her waist as hers slid up my chest to my shoulders. For a heartbeat, we stood there, suspended in anticipation.
Then we were kissing, and any pretense of restraint vanished.
I claimed her mouth with hunger, drawing a soft sound from her throat that sent heat coursing through my veins. Her arms wound around my neck, her fingers tangling in my hair as she pressed herself against me.
I backed her toward the wall, needing the support. When her shoulders met the stone, I braced one hand beside her head, the other sliding down to her hip to pull her near.
Her magic flared at my touch, and the sensation was intoxicating. Her essence mingled with mine, light and dark creating something new and beautiful.
“Cyrene,” I breathed against her lips, unable to form a coherent thought.
She responded by deepening the kiss, her tongue meeting mine. Her hands were everywhere. In my hair, tracing my jaw, and sliding down my chest to tug at my shirt.
I broke the kiss to trail my lips down her throat, savoring her soft gasp when I found the sensitive spot below her ear. Her head fell back against the wall, giving me better access to the elegant curve of her neck.
“The dance,” she said breathlessly. “We should finish.”
“Tomorrow,” I whispered against her skin. “Unless you want to stop?”
Her answer was to pull my face back to hers, kissing me with pent-up need. My body responded, and I pressed her harder against the wall. When my thigh slipped between hers, she made a sound that nearly shattered my control.
“Kieran,” she gasped, pulling back enough to look into my eyes. “Let’s make sure there’s no way the fates will ever allow this marriage to be annulled.”
My mind hazy with desire, I wasn’t sure I understood her meaning. “What are you saying?”
Her eyes met mine. “I’m saying I want you. All of you. Now.”
The words sent heat through me so intense I had to close my eyes. When I opened them again, she was watching me, vulnerable but determined.
“Are you certain?” I needed to be sure despite every instinct urging me to take what she offered.
“I’ve never been more sure of anything.” She traced my lower lip with her thumb. “I want this. I want us.”
Without another word, I lifted her into my arms. She wrapped her legs around my waist, her arms going around my neck as I carried her down the spiral staircase. Our chambers lay below her workshop, a sitting room at the base of the tower stairs and our bedroom adjacent.
I shouldered open the bedroom door, reluctant to set her down even for a second. The deep blue light of dusk bathed the room, and the bed waited.
When I lowered her onto the mattress, she kept her arms around me, pulling me down with her. We kissed again, slower this time but no less intense, as if we were memorizing each other’s taste.
I pulled back, needing to see her. “I’ve wanted this forever.”
“Even when I was glaring at you?” she asked, her smile growing.
“Especially then.” I kissed the corner of her mouth. “You were glorious in your defiance.”
Her smile widened. “Even then, you smiled with welcome.”
“While you snarled.”
She hid her face in my neck. “Sorry about that.”
“I understand why, and you’re not snarling now.”
“No, I’m not.” She looked up at me. “Show me what it’s like to belong to the vampire king.”