Page 79

CHAPTER SEVENTY-NINE

Ryker

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I wouldn’t have wanted to marry her, but I’m not sure I could have said no to Leo.”

She clasped my cheek with her palm and leaned forward to rest her head against my chest. I clasped her to me and kissed the top of her head.

“But your father said no for you,” she murmured.

“He did.”

“I can’t believe Leo thought he might agree to let you marry her.”

“Neither can I, but Leo always liked to believe the best in everyone, even my asshole of a father. That was his biggest weakness.”

She kissed me before lifting her head. “Why did your father bring her to the earl’s party? Why would he take such a risk?”

“Because he could, and it amused him.”

“But if Ivan discovers who she really is, he’ll kill her and your father.”

“Ivan’s too self-centered to see the truth. I spent a lot of time with Leo and considered him my best friend; I saw the truth about who she was in her eyes. I doubt anyone else would.”

“Ivan was his brother.”

“And they hated each other. Ivan isn’t going to look for any bastard children, and he especially isn’t looking for them to be with my father.”

“Is your father really in love with her?”

“Of course not.”

“But they’re going to marry. That’s… I… I’m not sure what to say.”

“My father can fake love if it helps him get what he wants. That’s how he got my mother.”

“Do you think he’ll actually marry her?”

I rested my head against the wall behind me as I contemplated her question. “If it helps him get the throne, I think he’ll do anything, and he believes she can help him.”

She gawked at me. “Is that what he’s trying to do, claim the throne?”

“If he marries Brianna, he’ll have a stronger claim to the throne than Ivan. Even if she’s a half blood, she is Leo’s daughter and the rightful ruler. Many in this realm wouldn’t want to see her running Tempest, but if she has a powerful, full-blooded amsirah like my father at her side, things might be different. He might get more support than Ivan from the other nobles.”

“He’d be a worse king than Ivan.”

“He would, but I’ll never let that happen.”

“Would he really marry a woman and stay with her forever just to become king?”

“Who says he has to stay with her forever?”

“You think he’ll kill her afterward?”

“Don’t you?”

Ellery briefly pondered this before responding. “Yes, but I don’t think she’s completely innocent in all this.”

“Maybe not, but I have to protect her.”

Ellery gulped, and her eyes were sad when they met mine. “I know.”

“I don’t know how he plans to make the news of who she is public, as she is a weapon, but I suspect that revelation will come after the wedding.”

“Does she love him?”

“I’m not sure, but I think so. My father’s very good at making women believe he loves them when he doesn’t.”

“Like your mother.”

“Yes.”

“Are you going to warn her?”

“No, if she loves him, she won’t believe me, and she’ll tell my father. If she doesn’t and is in on this with him because she also wants the throne, she’ll still tell him.”

“Do you think she could be in on this with him?”

“I’m not sure. I’d like to believe she’s not because she’s Leo’s daughter, and I want to believe the best in her, but power and wealth are a big lure for many immortals. And if she’s not in on it with him, her heart will be broken.”

“She can’t marry that man.”

“I know.”

We both grew silent as the sun rose higher and more amsirah woke. Color spread across the sky.

“I still can’t believe it,” Ellery muttered again.

I leaned over to kiss the top of her head. “No one is more shocked than me.”

“We have to start getting the money we stole out to the towns. We’ll do that tomorrow,” she stated. “The towns need help.”

“They do.”

“It’s time for me to go home.”

I settled my hands on her hips. “I wish you’d take a day off for yourself.”

“When this is all over, we’ll take a whole week for ourselves. Until then, we have work to do.”

She turned away and walked over to the bed; she sat on the mattress and shoved her feet into her boots. When her head lifted, her eyes landed on the rocks I’d collected and placed on the shelf over my bed.

“Why those rocks?” she inquired.

I shrugged. “I like the different shapes and colors and the fact they have a history I’ll never know.”

She smiled as she returned to me. “You’re a man of many surprises, Ryker Locke.”

“Nowhere near as many as you, my love.”

When her smile faltered a little, I slid my hand into hers and squeezed it reassuringly. “And that’s the way I like it.”

Her returning smile melted my heart.