Page 70 of The Dark Lord's Guide to Dating

Kazimir swirled his wine leisurely. “I’ll provide enchanted tokens for up to twenty of your people to trade with Skyspire, and a trade portal for your goods, if you choose to be cooperative.”

I wasn’t surprised at the concession. He’d mentioned that with Arvoryn wedged between a pair of hostile realms, they’d been struggling for provisions. It was simply another element of the Dark Lord’s strategy to make her reliant on his support.

“The tokens would be... useful,” Edmund ventured, looking nervously between his wife and Kazimir.

Morana shot him a look that could have frozen fire, but he didn’t flinch. Perhaps there was more to Edmund than I’d initially thought.

She folded her arms, trying to appear less unsettled. “I want at least thirty tokens.”

“Twenty-five,” Kazimir countered. “And I’ll give you the diagrams for a receiving portal platform. Your enchanters can build it themselves—though they can’t access my network without my permission.”

A tense silence took root, finally broken by Morana’s clipped acceptance. “Fine. Thorne has the documents, I assume?”

Right on cue, Thorne strode in carrying a worn leather folder, placing it before her. She scanned the pages with an unreadable frown, then signed with a flourish that resembled a dagger slash.

“Done.” Morana shoved the parchments back, standing so rigidly that it looked like she was physically holding herself together.

Kazimir rose. “We have pressing business elsewhere. Thank you for your hospitality.”

Her gaze slid to me, that cold, seething challenge in her posture. “Lady Blackrose. Enjoy your accelerated education at your husband’s citadel.”

I matched her stare with practiced grace. “You’ve been most enlightening, Viscountess Morana.”

Edmund, somehow remembering his manners, escorted us to the courtyard with jittery small talk about the harvest and the stable’s new horses. Watching him left me torn between pity and contempt; he deserved better, yet he seemed locked in his own quiet hell.

Kazimir paused in the courtyard, peering at his horse’s foreleg. “It seems my horse is lame,” he stated.

I glanced at the animal, which appeared perfectly fine. Kazimir shot me a devilish grin. “No time to saddle a spare. We’ll have to ride double,” he announced with a casual shrug.

My annoyance flared. “Our agreement?—”

He didn’t wait. In one swift motion, he had me on my mare’s back before sliding in behind me. The warm press of his chestcaught me off guard. As he took the reins, I felt the air shift with a crackle of energy.

“Surely,” he whispered in my ear, “you wouldn’t have me walk all the way back?”

I recognized the game—no doubt Morana had a perfect view from some high window. “You’re impossible,” I muttered, cheeks heating.

Kazimir’s only response was a low chuckle as we set off, Thorne and the guards forming a protective circle around us. A brisk wind whipped down from the mountains.

When we were a safe distance from the manor, I muttered, “You could have told me ahead of time you wanted a dramatic exit.”

“Would you have agreed?”

“Probably not,” I admitted.

He lowered his face closer to mine. “Exactly.”

Despite my frustration, I settled into his hold, genuinely relieved for the added warmth. “We’re out of Morana’s sight now,” I pointed out. “You can stop clutching me.”

He didn’t loosen the arm around my waist. “I’ve grown quite fond of this arrangement.”

I snorted, refusing to feed his smugness with a direct retort. But after a while, the rhythm of the horse’s gait relaxed the tension in my limbs. I caught myself leaning back against him and quickly straightened, ignoring the sudden flutter in my chest.

Kazimir’s voice dropped, the teasing note returning. “You better be careful. If you get too comfortable, you might start to like me.”

“Doubtful,” I replied primly.

“Keep telling yourself that.” Amusement laced his tone, but I sensed a thread of genuine yearning beneath it. For all his lethal bravado, he sought acceptance from me. It made me uneasybecause, in some twisted corner of my mind, I wanted to give it to him.

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