Page 157 of Vicious Is My Throne

I snorted. Difficult.

More like a deadly gauntlet where our unbeatable nemesis waited at the end filled with enough power to crush this world to dust.

I sat on the chair arm, the frame groaning ominously. “Let me see your leg. I want to make sure you’re healed before we leave.”

“Raz already inspected it twice. And Tavion.” Her brittle smile faltered as she pulled back the blanket. “But yes, you should take a look, too, Tristan.”

I slid down into the chair and pulled her into my lap, her pale leg draped across my knees. “There’s not even a mark.” I banded my fingers around her ankle, running my thumb over the soft, smooth skin that only hours ago had been a gaping wound. “So witch magic truly destroys Corvus’s magic completely?”

“Seems like it does. I suppose we’ll find out for sure once we face Corvus.” Her quiet voice was fragile, making my heart crumble a little more.

“How about you?” She peered up at me, the fire turning her green eyes gold. “Are you okay? I’m sorry I hesitated before. I was afraid to touch you; my hands were covered in blight and I didn’t want to infect you too. If I hadn’t tried using the new magic, if Raz hadn’t gotten here when he did…you’d be dead, Tristan.”

She shivered against me, and I began combing my fingers through her hair, desperate to keep touching her. “But you did figure it out. You healed us both.”

“But what if I hadn’t?” she asked softly. “What if I go up against Corvus and I make a mistake, or…Gods, I don’t know what I’m doing. I pretend, but I don’t really know.”

“If it’s any consolation, none of us do.” I hugged her tighter. “Not even me, with six hundred years of experience. Not even Zor and Raz, with a hundred battles behind them. And not even Corvus, with eons of experience, knows what’s going to happen next.” I breathed in her scent, letting the floral aroma fill me up. “Over everyone else, I trust your judgment. You weigh the problem from every angle. You see things the rest of us miss.”

My hand wrapped around her delicate jaw, holding her gently, my thumb brushing across the frantic pulse beating in her throat. “I will follow you to the very end, Anaria. And if that means into another lifetime, then so be it. I found you this time, and I will find you again.”

Her eyes fluttered closed as she leaned into the cradle of my palm, and I brushed my lips across hers, basking in her irresistible scent as our mouths moved together, my tongue delving deep as I held her still, and when she moaned, I devoured that sound too.

This close, tangled in each other, I could hardly tell where I ended and she began. Anaria melted against me, burning like a white-hot flame in my hands.

I sensed that well of power simmering inside her. Ever since she’d touched the knife and sent that pulse of power roaring through us, we’d been connected on some soul-deep level, that tug beneath my heart turning more and more demanding.

Her fingers stroked up my chest to wrap around the nape of my neck, pulling me closer.

I took my time plundering her mouth, exploring every dark, wet corner until her scent grew deeper, muskier, until I worked my fingers between her thighs and found her soaking wet. One long stroke through her folds and she arched into me with a moan, my thumb stroking her clit until she panted into my mouth.

“Tristan.”

“Yes, princess?” I loved when she was like this. Soft and needy and aching. I was desperate to get inside her, to feel her wet heat clamp around me while I…

“Sorry.” Bexley was frozen in the doorway as I dragged my gaze over him, teeth bared. “I can, uh, come back later. Much, much later.”

“Bex is here for my lesson.” She eyed the mage with a cool smile, no trace of her usual warmth. “I’ll be out in a minute. Meet you by the fountain, right?” When he nodded, Anaria dipped her head, her eyes never leaving him. “I’ll get changed into something more comfortable.”

“Of course,” he squeaked, then he was gone.

“Sorry. Duty calls,” she apologized, but she made no move to rise, settling against me, soft, curvy warmth I wanted nothing more than to hold onto for the rest of my life. I’d never been like this with anyone. Never felt this sense of absolute safety and trust.

Never allowed myself to fall this deeply in love.

But with Anaria, the falling part had been easy.

“For what it’s worth, I’d like nothing more than to close that door and spend the day in here with you.” Her voice was thick with regret. “But that’s not on today’s agenda, I’m afraid.”

Right.

Back to this fucking war we had to win, or there would never be another moment like this between us.

“Raz and Zor are devising a way to get us close to the cave,” I murmured, her fingers plucking at the edge of the blanket when I’d much rather they were wrapped around me. “They expect Corvus has more protections around his lair than just the blight.”

I pressed my lips to the top of her head, curling myself back around her. “I would do a flyover, but I’ve been grounded. Zor doesn’t want to give him a heads-up we’re coming. And I need to conserve my magic.”

She was quiet, tensing when I said, “I heard what the Oracle said about the keystone and Bexley. She called the stone her heart.” I closed my eyes, drinking in Anaria’s warm, sweet scent. “What did she mean?”

---