Page 82 of A Reign of Embers

He hurries out.

As the door thumps shut behind him, Marc sags forward. He plants his hands on the edge of the table, his head drooping, his back curved.

My heart lurches. I dart to his side, but as I set my hand on his shoulder, I catch the brightness of his smile.

“You have no idea,” he says hoarsely. “Having to pretend for so long—being looked at like a stranger— I swear, I won’t let this undermineyourposition the slightestbit. But I feel as if I can fully breathe for the first time in…”

Marc straightens and spins toward me to frame my face with his hands, ever so tenderly. “Thank you. I never would have asked—but I didn’t have to. Thank you.”

He kisses me so soundly my head spins with the rush of desire. I clutch the front of his shirt as if I can ride out the wave, but even when he eases back, the sense of need keeps thrumming through my pulse.

I gaze up at the man who’s been reborn out of the embers of his old self, and I can’t come up with one reason not to welcome this hunger.

The words come out unexpectedly husky. “Do you know what I want most right now?”

A matching desire flares in Marc’s eyes. “What’s that, wife?”

“Why don’t you take your turn and conquer me?”

Chapter Thirty

Aurelia

In the wake of my suggestion, the smolder in Marc’s gaze sears hotter. His hands linger by the sides of my face.

His voice drops even lower than mine did. “What sort of a conquering did you have in mind?”

I wet my lips instinctively, feeling him track the movement like a touch across the sensitive skin. “I don’t believe we’ve ever fully consummated this marriage, husband.”

Marc sounds as if he’s tried to stifle a groan. His mouth descends on mine again, the heat of the kiss washing away every other concern.

His hands drop to my hips. In one smooth motion that proves just how much strength his well-built body holds, he lifts me onto the edge of the map table.

As he presses closer against me, my headspins with desire. I wrap one arm behind his neck and kiss him even harder. An embarrassing whine of need is building in the base of my throat, driven by the first traces of friction at my core.

I manage not to cry out in protest when Marc pulls back, but it’s a near thing. He gazes at me, his face flushed and his eyes glittering, like I’m an astonishing treasure he’s just uncovered.

His voice comes out with even more of a rasp than usual. “Gods know I’d like to take you right here on this table, but I don’t trust that no one will come through the door. And I’d like our first proper time together to be more than a hasty rutting.”

The promise in that statement sends a tingle all the way to my toes.

I manage to gather my composure. “Then I’d better retire to my chambers.”

Even though he was the one to pause our encounter, Marc releases me with obvious reluctance. I take a few steadying breaths, willing the flush from my own cheeks, and stride to the door with him stalking a careful distance behind me.

In the hall, my full host of guards shifts into a semi-circle around me. They’ve been following me even more closely since the missing vicerine and marchion proved that even the nobles of my court might become my enemies.

I say nothing until I’ve reached my apartment. At the door, I give the assembled soldiers a grateful smile. “I need to contemplate our next steps. Please see that no one disturbs me until I tell you otherwise.”

The guards offer brisk nods of agreement. After Marc has stepped in to take his usual post inside the room, the door shuts with a heavier click as I slide the lock over.

No one should be able to enter these chambers without my permission.

Marc is already reaching for me. He traces his fingers down my sides to my waist and walks me backward to the bed. “I want to see all of you. I’m going to admire every inch of this terrain I’m conquering.”

A giddy laugh tumbles out of me, but a pang of tension squeezes my heart at the same time. He’s admired me before, but never for long—not with a totally clear head.

As he reaches for the ties on my gown, I stop him. “We should start by removing this.”

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