Page 74 of Between Wrath and Mercy

“You two jump, boost morale.” She peered at Dewalt and Rainier. “Besides, you’re already wet.” I felt a grin spread over my face. She had soaked his shirt. Rainier threw back his head and laughed, the sight making my stomach twist. The fact I yearned for him when he’d completely blown my trust frustrated me to no end. I’d mostly ridden between him and Dewalt since we left my home, and the three of us had eventually fallen into an easy chatter. But I continued to hold my reservations. I hadn’t planned on talking to Rainier at all, only focusing on the conversation with Dewalt, but he made it impossible, always drawing Rainier into our talks. I was sure now it was on purpose. The meddlesome prat. Though, itwaseasier to talk that way with him, stowing my anger away. I still didn’t know what his intentions were going forward. He’d said it was only me, would only ever be me, but I couldn’t give him the Nythyrian alliance. After our conversation about politics, I never thought it would have been an issue. He had already accepted a betrothal when we’d had that conversation, so his actions and words had scrambled my thoughts. I wasn’t sure how to feel about anything.

“I’ll do it if Ven does.” Dewalt smirked. Lavenia and Mairin had both walked up when Thyra approached.

“No, sir. I’m not climbing naked up the mountain.”

“I’ll make a rift for you, Ven.” Rainier piped up from the other side of Dewalt, a devastating smile on his face as he glanced past me to his sister.

“I’ll do it.” Mairin surprised me, and I whirled to face her. “I don’t want to climb naked up the mountain either, though. Do I get a rift?”

She stripped before she got an answer. My gaze moved to Rainier despite myself, and I gave him a bewildered smile. He raised a brow and smiled back.

“Are you serious?” Lavenia was gaping at Mairin, who seemed to be blissfully unbothered by the fact she stood naked in front of people she had just met. Her long, curly hair hung in front of her, covering her body a fair amount, but I couldn’t help but smile over her bare skin, even paler than my own, where no sun-touched freckles were present.

“Yes, do it with me. Or are you scared?” Her smile was a challenge.

“Oh, don’t do that to me.” Lavenia groaned. Dewalt gave her a look that said,well, are you? “Fine. Dewalt strip, you said you’d do it if I did.”

The next thing I knew, all of my friends were naked in front of me, except Rainier, who, while not naked, had taken off his wet shirt. His body was a lodestone, and I struggled to pull my iron gaze away from him. He turned his back to his naked friends and rubbed his hands together to form a rift. It was surreal, being able to see down into the lake from where we stood next to it. I glanced up at the top of the cliff and saw a faint shimmer in the air, the only indication there was a rift there.

The three of them stepped through, perilously balanced on the edge of the outcropping. I snorted at the clear delineation on Dewalt’s lower back, where the sun-bronzed skin met the much lighter skin of his backside. Rainier glanced over at me when I made the sound and raised a brow as he saw where my gaze landed. I grinned at him before I turned to the cliffs to watch our friends jump. Mairin dove in, graceful. I would have expected nothing less from a merrow. She came up out of the water and shouted.

“It’s not even that cold!” I shook my head; I was not going to be tricked.

“The prince needs to jump, too.” Thyra bumped her hip into his.

“I’ll jump if Highclere jumps with me.” He turned, an easy smile on his face.

“Definite no.” I was not remotely interested in jumping, nor was I interested in letting him think I wasn’t still mad at him. With the buffer of Dewalt gone, I was uncertain how to speak to him. Part of me was embarrassed because of the other night as well. I’d gone into it thinking I could handle it as only a distraction when clearly it meant more to me than I thought it would. When his lips burned into mine, it felt like more. Knowing he was betrothed made me feel stupid and small, and I wasn’t ready to forgive him for it, nor did I know if he deserved forgiveness.

We both looked back as Dewalt and Lavenia jumped in together. They both yelled the whole way down. All three were laughing as they swam back to the edge of the lake.

“Your turn, Rainier!” Lavenia called from the water.

He shook his head at her, stepping a bit closer to the rift. I didn’t know what came over me, but I felt spectacularly roguish for a moment. I caught Thyra’s eye and gestured at Rainier, and she nodded enthusiastically.

He didn’t see it coming when I shoved him through the rift straight off the cliff. It closed behind him as I watched Rainier fall into the water, arms pinwheeling as he let out a yell. Honestly, I felt a bit of my anger lift from me. He had embarrassed me, and this was a start at making him feel how I felt. There was still plenty of hurt radiating from me, but this felt like a step in the right direction. And, there was the added reward of hilarity in watching him.

Thyra howled with laughter, and many of the soldiers watching did too. Lavenia was standing in waist-deep water, and she threw her head back and laughed, the sun glinting off the golden beads in her hair. The biggest smile split my face watching his disgraceful descent. I watched as Rainier resurfaced, flipping his head up, sending water flying from his hair. His eyes locked onto me as he gave me a predatory grin, taut muscles pulling him through the water with a graceful ease. I felt my eyes bug as Thyra stared at me, a warning and a smile on her face.

“Oh, shit.” I turned around and sprinted off, listening to the renewed peals of laughter from Thyra.

As I ran, boulders of dirt erupted out of the ground in front of me, almost every step I took. I easily ran past them at first until I took a chance and glanced over my shoulder. He was out of the water now, stampeding toward me like some sort of beast. One hand was outstretched as he ran, flicking his wrist to help direct his divinity. I looked back in front of me, and I screeched, running past a boulder much closer than the others had been. A moment later, I slammed into another with my hip as I tried to turn past it, the dirt breaking apart and falling as I hit it, not nearly as painful as it could have been. I should have expected he wouldn’t fight fair, as I hadn’t. I finally slammed into one and started to fall backward when he wrapped both arms around my waist, pressing his cold, wet body against my back. I shrieked, kicking my legs, as he picked me off my feet, dragging me back toward the lake. I was surprised he was able to pick me up with the same ease he used to, as if I weighed nothing, like I hadn’t grown thicker at my hips and thighs. I didn’t make it easy for him either, kicking and flailing to get out of his grip.

“You didn’t think you’d actually get away with that, did you?” He laughed into my ear. I wasn’t sure if it was the cold from the water or the heat from his breath that made me shudder, but he pulled me tighter as it rippled through me. We passed Thyra, who was still laughing.

“Help me, Thyra!” I cried out, a broad smile across my face.

“I hope the viper knows how to swim!” She called out while she watched.

“At least let me take my pants off! I need to wear them again!” He knew it was a ploy to get free. That’s why, when we passed Lavenia wrapped in her cloak, he kept me locked in his arms.

“Help her with her pants, sis.” Lavenia cackled and yanked them off along with my boots and socks. I worried for a moment she’d see my scars, but Rainier continued toward the lake. I kept kicking as he dragged me to the edge of the water and threw me in. It was relatively shallow, so I didn’t fully go under. And Mairin was right, it wasn’t nearly as cold as I expected it to be. I was still soaking wet though. I shot up, ready to get out, when Rainier started marching into the water toward me, a man possessed. The grin he gave me promised he wasn’t close to being done. I shrieked and tried to get past him, but he was taller and faster. He grabbed me by the waist and threw me over his shoulder as he walked deeper into the water, sending a yelp past my lips. I smacked at his back, but he didn’t react, arm tightly wrapped around the backs of my thighs. Finally, when I thought he wouldn’t be able to touch the bottom for much longer, he grabbed me by the waist and pulled me in front of him. He didn’t throw me though, just lowered me a bit. My hands were on his shoulders as he hugged my thighs to his chest. I pushed off him with my arms, trying to wiggle free. He made a tsk sound as he let me slide down through his arms, lowering me into the water with him so we were face to face, his arms wrapped tightly around me again.

“Always fighting the inevitable, aren’t you?”

“So it seems.” I smiled. The water was a bit cold, but Rainier was warm. He pulled me near enough that my thighs were pressed against his. I was glad he held me so close, my shirt likely transparent in the water. He held me there for a while, and we gazed upon each other in silence, drinking each other in. The stubble on his face was thicker, the promise of a beard coming through. The facial hair made him seem more his age. The only signs of age I’d noticed before were the laugh lines and creases next to his eyes, but his strength and vibrancy were the same as I’d remembered. His eyes reflected some of the blue from the lake, looking like a deep pine green. Sunset was in full swing, but I could still see sunlight reflecting in them. I tried not to look at his lips, remembering what they felt like on my skin. Instead, I let my eyes roam to the scar on his brow. I reached up and traced it gently, and he closed his eyes.

“Where did you get this?” My voice was barely above a whisper.

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