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As though sensing her unease, Wilder put an arm around her shoulders and tugged her to his side. Just the sheer presence of him was enough to settle the urge to run.

Noting the Warsword’s movement, Kipp exchanged a glance with Cal. ‘That’s still taking some getting used to.’

Torj snorted. ‘I thought walking in on them mid-fuck might have shocked it out of you already.’

Thea groaned, reaching for the flask she knew Wilder kept in his pocket. ‘It wasn’t —’

‘Must we have this conversation?’ Wren exclaimed.

‘Too vulgar for your delicate sensibilities, Your Highness?’ Torj teased.

Thea could practically feel her sister’s temper spike.

‘Keep your voice down,’ Wren hissed. ‘And for your information, Warsword, I can talk about fucking as much as the next person —’

Thea nearly sent a spray of fire extract over the table.

‘But she’s mysister. And judging from the sounds we heard echoing down the halls last night, we’ve all got a pretty clear picture of what’s going on between them.’ She whirled to Kipp and Cal, who shrank back. ‘They’re together. Deal with it.’

To Thea’s surprise, a deep laugh bellowed from Wilder, his whole body shaking as he tried to get a hold on himself.

‘In all my years of knowing Elderbrock, I’ve never seen him look so shocked. And I was there when he got the name Bear Slayer.’ He wiped his eyes. ‘Thank you, Elwren.’

Wren’s brows shot up and she folded her arms over her chest. ‘I didn’t say I approved.’

Thea stared at her sister, recognising the storm in her gaze.

But Wilder just shook his head, laughter still in his eyes. ‘Noted.’

* * *

The rest of the day passed in a similar fashion, and before Thea knew it, the sun was dipping and Tver was on the horizon. They sat on deck, their belongings packed and their horses ready, as the evening breeze billowed in the sails above.

A pang of regret curdled in her gut. She’d liked being out at sea, and there was no way she and Wilder had made the most of having their own private cabin. As she glanced across at him now, desire flared. His shirtsleeves were rolled to the elbow, revealing those tanned, muscular forearms. His hair was swept back in a knot, his beard trimmed to follow the sharp line of his jaw. He looked as fierce and as beautiful as ever, the wind catching in the back of his shirt, making it billow slightly. She had half a mind to drag him down to the cabin, the others be damned.

‘How long would it have taken us to get here if we’d gone over land?’ Wren asked the group.

Kipp, who seemed to know far more than Thea had realised about the midrealms, hummed for a moment. ‘Hard to say exactly, but I’d say three to five days just to cross the border, then there’s a long stretch of Tverrian territory before we’d even be close to Notos.’

‘And now?’ Thea chimed in.

‘Depending on where we dock, and on the weather and the horses?’

‘That’s a lot of variables…’

‘That’s life, Highness.’

Thea smacked his arm. ‘Alright, depending on all those things, how long?’

‘Well, depending on —’

She punched his arm. ‘For fuck’s sake, Kipp!’

‘You’ll make an awful princess. Mouth like a sailor,violentand —’

‘It’s a wonder no one’s thrown you overboard yet,’ Torj commented drily from nearby.

‘I’m about to,’ Thea said.