Page 61 of The Twisted Throne

Visions of her filled his mind’s eye. That brazen grin she always gave him when she was about to say something she shouldn’t. Those muscled legs that went on for ages, scandalous in silken trousers, the fabric clinging to the hard curve of her ass. The way she walked like a cat stalking through the jungle. The softness of her lips beneath his, the feel of her tongue in his mouth. His cock stiffened even as his lungs demanded air, and James broke the surface of the bathwater, gasping for breath and sanity.

“Stop it,” he growled at himself, snatching up a bar of soap. “She’s not for you for more reasons than you can count.”

Not the least of which was that Ahnna would hate him if she learned why he was trying so hard to convince her to go home. Or that if he failed in his attempts, she would be his brother’s wife.

William might hate her, but he’d still do his duty. So would Ahnna. And the thought of them together made his fingers curl into fists, vicious jealousy turning his blood molten. Not the first time he’d felt that way because of his brother, but never in his life had he felt the feeling so intensely.

“She is not yours,” James repeated. “She never was yours and never will be yours.”

Yet as James scrubbed away blood and sweat with the soap, he could not banish visions of Ahnna from his mind.

William can’t handle a woman like her,envy whispered in histhoughts.He’ll destroy everything that makes her perfect. She deserves better.

Like you? The half-Cardiffian bastard who has social standing only on the whim of his father? You are worth nothing, whereas she is the jewel of Ithicana.

James threw the soap at the far end of the tub, resting his elbows on his knees as he tried to will the blood out of his cock and back into his brain so that he might think clearly.

But he wanted her. Wanted that wild, irreverent woman to be his, not to tame, but because she ignited the parts of him that he worked so hard to suppress.

“She is an obstacle,” he said under his breath. “A problem with the capacity to ruin everything you’ve worked for. Think about that instead of her tits, you piece of shit.”

Ahnna was a problem.

Yet instead of her face vanishing from his mind, his thoughts showed her with naked fear in her eyes at the thought of returning to Ithicana. Fear she refused to confess the source of, and James could not help but remember the obvious conflict between Ahnna and her brother. And his father’s suggestion that if Harendell did not keep her, Ahnna’s fate would be very dark indeed. Whatever she feared had to be horrible, because he’d seen her face down man-eaters, assassins, and storms, but the thought of going back to Ithicana seemed to almost break her.

And here he was, trying to push her toward it.

Needing to push her toward it, because Ahnna choosing to remain in Harendell wouldn’t ruin her. It would be the death of her.

James’s eyes went to the clock, the hour late afternoon. The next meeting was not for another week, but that didn’t much matter.

Because if his suspicions were true, he and his uncle needed to have a very difficult conversation.

“They weren’t Amaridian.”

Jor, Bronwyn, and Taryn exchanged looks among one another, and then Jor said, “The Harendellians seem convinced otherwise. Clothing and weapons and poison all speak to Queen Katarina. And given they’ve made two previous attempts to kill James, it makes a lot of sense.”

“They weren’t trying to kill him, they were trying to kill me.” When Jor didn’t look convinced, she added, “I’ve fought my share of Amaridians, Jor. These men fought differently.”

“You’ve fought pirates and common soldiers,” he said. “Katarina’s dark guild is different, and not something you’ve ever faced.”

“They weren’t Amaridian.” She crossed her arms and glared, knowing that being tucked into bed like an invalid ruined the effect. “Would you trust me on something for once, Jor?”

He coughed into his sleeve, but then shrugged. “Then who?”

Ahnna met Bronwyn’s gaze, and her friend made a face before she said, “I don’t know, Ahnna…”

“You think Alexandra was behind this?” Taryn asked, looking between them. “That’s…well, that’s damned bold, given that Edward has made it clear he favors you.”

“Everyone says she ordered the assassination of James’s mother, Edward’s mistress, out of jealousy,” Ahnna said. “So I don’t think we should put this past her. She clearly dotes on William, and mothers have done madder things for the sake of their sons.”

“For argument’s sake, let’s say it’s her,” Bronwyn said. “What do you want to do about it? We can’t prove it, because I struggle to believe Alexandra would leave any tracks tying her to those men, and we can’t prevent another attempt.”

“More guards—” Jor started.

But Bronwyn interrupted him. “That will serve against armed attack, but if it’s the queen, poison could come from literally anywhere. Ahnna, you and I have discussed this: You cannot protect yourself from poison unless you control every variable like my father did in his inner sanctum. That’s not possible here. Alexandra will have access to poisons of the highest quality. Odorless and flavorless. Poisons that kill in minutes or in days. Dozens and dozens of options, very few of which you can train your body to tolerate, and trust me when I say it’s not a pleasant process. If she wants you dead, you will die.”

“Then we kill her!” Taryn blurted out. “I’ll do it!”

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