Page 33 of A Tongue so Sweet and Deadly

Still no answer, only that unnerving stare.

He must have followed her.

But where she lived wasn’t a secret—his men had been at her home at least once a month since she’d bought her first tavern—and there was no way he’d spotted the children. They were allowed out only on the balcony that faced the sea, and its railings were so high it was impossible to see anything from the path behind the house.

“Well, I should head back.” Grimacing to herself, Lessia stepped around him, forcing her legs to take long strides to return to the castle as fast as possible.

She was going to be late for this dinner, and Merrick would not be happy.

Not that he ever was.

Her sensitive ears picked up on Loche following her, but not close enough that it seemed he’d bother speaking with her, so she ignored him, keeping her gaze on the metal gates enclosing the castle grounds.

More voices, drunken singing, and laughs echoed between the buildings to her left, and she pulled up her hood not to risk another run-in with angry townsfolk.

As the sounds rang closer, a large hand wrapped around her arm, dragging her into a dark alley. Loche slammed her into the freezing stone wall of the building, his back molding with her body as he covered her.

“What are you doing?” she hissed. “Get off me!”

“Be quiet,” he growled as he strained his neck to see how close the people were.

The laughter was louder now, and Loche swore quietly under his breath as he pressed her harder against the wall.

Lessia’s chest heaved against his back, her breaths quickening as she tried to shove him off. But Loche pushed six foot four and seemed to be made up of pure muscle.

He didn’t move an inch when she tried to shift him.

“Get off me. I don’t need you to protect me from anyone,” she snarled against his back.

She had her hood pulled up; they wouldn’t even recognize her.

Spinning around so he faced her, Loche covered her mouth with his hand, his gray eyes nearly black as he glared at her. “I said be quiet. I can’t have anyone see me with you.”

She couldn’t stop her eyes from dropping, her hands falling limp to her sides.

Of course he wasn’t protecting her.

He just couldn’t risk his reputation if anyone saw them walking together.

His brows snapped together for a moment, but the voices were right beside them now, and the hardness returned as his eyes warned her not to say another word.

Loche’s heart thundered against her chest, his breaths fanning over her cheeks as he glowered at her until the voices were muffled, the people heading farther into Asker.

He didn’t remove his hand until the road beside them was entirely silent, only the snow softly blowing across the ground whispering in the dark.

When he finally took a step back, his eyes remained on hers as she brushed off the snow and ice that stuck to her cloak, wincing at the soreness of her limbs. Tiredness seeped into her bones under his scrutiny, and she averted her gaze and pulled the hood more snugly around her face.

How fast the sense of home evaporated under his loathing glare.

“I’ll wait here for a moment so you don’t risk anyone seeing us together again,” she said quietly.

Leaning back against the wall once more, she kept her eyes on her boots, but when she didn’t hear him leave, she slowly lifted them.

His searing gaze still lingered on her, and a jolt shot through her at the flicker of…

Curiosity?

Surprise?

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