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“I’m not old. And stop changing the subject,” I say. Gah, she’s hard to pin down when she wants to be.

“How about we talk about the fact that the Thief of Souls wants to bone you?”

“Let’snot.” I can feel a shudder coming on.

“I mean, you could just give in and knock boots with the baddie.”

“Temper.”Seriously?

“Yeah, you’re right,” she says. “That’s too evil.”

“Also, I’m married—and mated—and in love,” I say slowly. “Let’s not forget that either.”

“Right, right, right.” She takes another swig of the fae wine. A laugh slips out of her, and that’s about when I realize she’s teasing me.

I release my breath. “You’re theworst.”

“Suck it, Lillis. I’m the best and everyone knows it.”

The air wavers in front of us, and then Des is there, an eyebrow raised as he stares down at us. “So this is why there’s a pastry shortage in the kitchen.”

I inconspicuously dust crumbs off my chest. Temper, meanwhile, licks her fingers.

“Not my fault your kitchen’s understocked,” she says, the sass thick in her throat.

Des’s eyes flick to her. “Malaki is looking for you.”

“Is he now?” Temper says, her interest piqued. She gets up, grabbing the tray of pastries, the bottle of wine still in her clutches. “Then I better go find him … Peace out, Callie.” She salutes me with the peace sign, then heads off down the hall, her heels clicking.

Des turns his attention to me. “Wife.” His eyes are burning. “We have some unfinished business.”

Chapter 30

“This is nothow I expected to spend the day after my wedding.” The two of us walk through the castle’s halls. I assume we’re heading back to Des’s chambers to, you know,finish business, but the Bargainer leads me past the halls that wind towards his suite.

“I think that’s the point,” Des says. “I doubt the Thief wants us to enjoy our time together.”

Was that the Thief’s entire reason behind that show at the gates? He’d told me in a dream before that he wanted me to enjoy my time with Des. So it doesn’t make sense.

“Where were you this morning?” I ask.

“About.”

Ugh, why can’t fairies ever be straightforward?

“Your guards couldn’t find you. Were you even in the palace?”

Des disappears, only to reappear a few feet away at the end of the hallway. He hooks his hands on the archway above him and leans forward, blocking my way.

“Cherub, it’s precious that you should be peeved at me whenyouwere the one daring the Thief to break my wards and snatch you away.”

Even as he speaks, shadows begin to thicken and coil at his feet. He sounds casual enough, but obviously this is a sore spot.

“Nuh-uh. That’s not how this works. You don’t get to be mad at me for how I handled the situation when you left me to do it alone,” I say.

Not entirely true—he was there to witness me playing chicken with a psychopathic monster—but he wasn’t there when the news reached me and Malaki.

He drops his hands and vanishes again, reappearing directly in front of me. Stepping in close, he says, “You’re right.” The shadows around him clear. “You were a queen this morning. I saw it, my people saw it, and the Thief saw it.”