Page 23 of The Raven Queen

“Drink with me?” I asked Garath, turning partway to look at him.

Garath stood in front of the door in his usual guard stance, no sign of standing down.

“Macy and Zion are out there,” I said, pointing toward the door behind him with my chin. “You trust them to guard me when I’m asleep. Drinking is no different.”

Garath studied me for a long moment. “Alastor might return tonight.”

I snorted derisively. “I don’t want to drink with Alastor.”

“Del...” Garath’s broad shoulders and stiff posture relaxed some, enough that I knew I had won. “You know what I mean.”

Standing beside the table, I grabbed one of the bottles and twisted the corkscrew into the cork. “I’ll command you if I have to. My first official order as queen could be to make you drink with me.”

The corner of Garath’s mouth twitched. “You haven’t been crowned yet.”

“Touché.” I raised my eyebrows as I leveraged the cork free. “Maybe I’ll beg you, then.” I lowered my chin, smiling coyly. “I bet you’d like that.Me,begging you.”

Garath clenched his jaw, his expression going cold. “I know you’re hurting right now, so I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that.”

My cheeks heated, and my chin trembled. Tears welled and spilled over the brims of my eyelids in record time, and I set the wine bottle down on the table. “I’m sorry,” I said, my chest convulsing with barely suppressed sobs. “I’m so sorry.” I covered my face with my hands, hiding from him.

Garath’s heavy steps marked his passage across the room—not toward me but the wine cabinet. I heard the clink of crystal and peeked through my fingers to see him approaching with two wine goblets. “I will drink with you, but I will not get drunk with you.” Standing beside me, he set the crystal down on the table and filled each glass about three-quarters of the way full with deep-red wine. “Not whenhecould walk through that door at any moment.”

Slowly, I lowered my hands and leaned back against the edge of the table, accepting the goblet of wine when Garath offered it to me. I took a sip, then another, reinforcing my confidence with the alcohol.

“I’m going to ask you to do something,” I said, taking one more drink before setting the goblet beside me on the table. For a long time, I stared down into the wine’s gleaming surface, such a deep crimson that it looked like blood in the dim light. Finally, I raised my gaze, meeting Garath’s. “And this time Iwillbeg you if I have to.”

His throat bobbed. “You need only ask,” he said, his voice softer than usual.

I licked my lips, then cleared my throat, hating myself for what I was about to ask of him. “As you and Hills are aware,” I said, barely above a whisper, “the Ferals plan will take some time to set up effectively.” I took a deep breath, bolstering my courage before barreling onward. “If King Eduart isn’t invested enough in fighting the Ferals for us to dispatch Alastor before Liam’s testing—” My voice faltered, my chest constricting as fear for my child’s life threatened to suffocate me.

“I would never let that cretin lay a hand on Liam,” Garath swore. He would kill Alastor first. That much was clear.

“I know,” I said, swallowing roughly and nodding. “I know that; I do, but—” I sighed. “But then we would have to run, and the kingdom would be lost.” I reclaimed my goblet and gulped enough wine to nearly choke. “There would be a way, however, to appease Alastor,” I said, my voice strained. I cleared my throat. “A way to redirect his focus away from Liam, so we wouldn’thaveto dispatch him quite so early in the timeline.” I stared down at my goblet. “We would redirect his focusawayfrom Liam, andontoanother child.”

I risked a peek at Garath’s face, but his shadowed expression gave nothing away.

“I know I can’t give you everything you need,” I said in a rush. “I know I can’tbeeverything you want, but you’re my best friend, Garath. You’re the only person I can trust with this.”

“What exactly are you asking of me?” Garath said, finally speaking. “To father a child with you and then hand it over to Alastor? Because that is something I cannot do.”

“No!” I said, shaking my head frantically. “We wouldtake care of himbefore the child was born. I will swear that to you. But Liam’s birthday is barely six months away, and if Alastor doesn’t have proof of his viability as an heir to the Sierra throne by then...”

Garath drew in a slow, deep breath, then held it in his lungs long enough to drag my gaze back to his face. To his burning amber eyes. He set his wine goblet on the table, then took mine and set it down as well. He sidestepped to stand in front of me and raised one hand, tilting my face upward with gentle fingertips. His eyes searched mine.

“You know I could never refuse you anything,” he said, dipping his head lower until his breath caressed my lips. “But if this is what you need from me, I have a price.”

My heart was suddenly galloping. “What price?” I asked.

The corner of his mouth lifted, and his eyes sparkled with promise. “That you let me remind you that pleasure can be found in another’s touch, not just pain.”

My belly gave a little flip-flop. An ember of desire sparked to life within me, something I thought impossible after being with Alastor for so long. “You drive a hard bargain,” I said, my voice breathy.

Garath smirked. “You have no idea,princess.” His mouth touched mine in the softest, tenderest of kisses.

I parted my lips, surprised to find I wanted him to deepen the kiss. That spark of desire ignited hope within me that maybe, one day, Icouldgrow to love Garath in the way he deserved.

But he pulled back instead. “Let me know when it’s time, and—”

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