Page 92 of Fearless

Paedyn nods, again and again. Her voice is a choked sound as she blinks back a wave of emotions. “Don’t leave me. Please. Especially not now, but please not ever.”

“Never,” I whisper, tipping my forehead against hers.

Her breath hitches. “You can’t leave me. I don’t have enough room in my heart for the both of you.”

I let go of her wrist to cup the face above it instead. “Death himself couldn’t drag me from you.”

The morning light on my face tells me it’s time to make my escape.

I blink groggily while attempting to carefully slip my arm from beneath Pae’s head. She stirs when the heat of me slides away, though I quickly replace it with a blanket around her bare shoulders. This seems to satisfy, her breath slowing and body relaxing.

A strange sensation tugs on the corners of my consciousness, though I ignore it for the distraction lying beside me. I reach for a stray strand of silver hair and—

Someone clears their throat.

My hand is suddenly beneath the pillow, gripping the hilt of Paedyn’s dagger before I’ve even turned toward the sound. But when my eyescrash into a dazzling green pair, I’m startled enough to stop and stare.

The queen sits stoically in one of the plushy seats beside the stone fireplace, her gaze gleaming with amusement. Focusing on her pristine features, I feel that strange sensation grow beneath my skin, as though something stirs at the mere sight of her. A teacup sits delicately in her palm, its rim stained the deep red of her lips. “Sorry to interrupt,” she muses evenly.

My eyes dart to the still-sleeping Paedyn beside me before flicking back to the expectant queen. I clear my throat. “You’re not interrupting.”

“No?” She clicks her tongue at me. “I figured you would be a better liar, Enforcer.”

“May I ask why you’re here, Your Majesty?” This is said with as much respect as I can muster.

“You may.” She shrugs an eerily smooth shoulder. “But I may not give you an answer.”

“Of course,” I murmur between my teeth. “Well, as you can see, Paedyn is sleeping so—”

“I like her, you know,” she cuts in dryly. “Perhaps due to the fact that she killed your father. Because, well, let’s face it.” Her long nails click against the porcelain teacup. “He was a dick. Though, I’m a bit jealous I didn’t get to finish him off myself.”

I stare at her, uncertain how she expects me to respond to that. Nearly every person outside Ilya would say the same about Edric Azer, though I have a strange sense that her hatred runs deeper than the isolation of her kingdom.

Conscious of my shirtless body and disheveled appearance, I run a hand through my hair. “I can’t say I was too torn up about his death either.”

“Hmm.” She taps a finger to those full lips. I study her for a moment, taking in the near ethereal glow she exudes. It’s startling. “Yes, I figuredyou might feel the same. Considering the whispers I’ve heard of what he did to you.”

This has my eyes narrowing in a slight show of surprise. I hadn’t expected the tales of my torturous childhood to reach her ears across the Shallows. But her sigh of indifference cuts through my thoughts. “So, does your brother know?”

I stare at her. “Know what?”

She takes a slow sip of her tea, flicking a finger between my body and the one sleeping beside it. “Take a guess.”

Heat flushes my body, but I keep my voice steady. “I’m her Enforcer.”

“Oh, I know.” She laughs dryly. “I just didn’t think this was part of the job description.”

“This is the best way for me to protect her,” I manage. “She is the future queen of Ilya, after all.”

She nods in a slow, mocking way. “Right. Right.” Another sip of tea. “So you’re in love with your brother’s betrothed?”

“I…”

“Sorry,” she says innocently. “That’s just what I’m gathering from this little interaction.”

I stand from the mattress and pull a shirt over my head. “I’m just doing my duty.”

“Well”—she sets the teacup down on the small table beside her—“in my experience, there is love. And there is duty. But there is never both.”

---