Page 7 of Bloody Black

Clutching the hidden knife in hand, I scan the balcony. It’s empty, but this one runs the entire length of the ballroom, then wraps around the castle. There are entrances to various other rooms, including our library.

If someone had the desire, they could break into private areas of our home, all without guards noticing.

Listening hard, my ears tuned for the slightest sound, I turn left.

That’s where it’s darkest, and if I were going to do something nefarious, I would head away from the light spilling through the windows.

A shadow shifts off to my left, and I spin to face it, just in time to find a hand slapping over my mouth. My back slams against the stone wall, a tall male leaning into me.

“Don’t scream,” rasps a male voice.

I ignore this, because ignoring men’s requests is my specialty.

Instead, I scream as loudly as I can, biting deeply into his hand. Then I launch my knee, straight up. It strikes him squarely in the groin, and my attacker doubles over, swearing. He doesn’t see the knife in my hand.

I stab him in the shoulder.

“Princess! Anne!” Voices immediately shout.

“We’re under attack!” I yell back.

And the man, whoever he is, straightens and runs away. He launches himself over the railing, jumping right off the balcony.

It is over that quickly.

“Anne! Anne! What’s happened?” William finds me immediately.

“A stranger grabbed me!” I am running toward the rail. Oddly enough, I’m not scared. I’m just angry that I didn’t have my sword or rose dagger with me.

I stare into the darkness, down and down. There are many balconies on this side of the castle, and it’s not far from the ground. My attacker has already fled, and now there’s no telling where he might be.

“Another rogue, trying to get past our defenses,” Soren growls.

“I thought you had everything locked down?” William gathers me to his chest. “Tonight must go perfectly.”

“I do—we did.”

“Apparently not.” My new husband quickly takes charge, ordering my guards, cursing their worthlessness. “Get down there, and find him. ”

It’s wonderful, letting him lead. I huddle against William’s chest, relishing his strength, periodically rubbing my cheek against his shirt. I cannot wait for him to be king. He’s so firm, so decisive, it will take some of the pressure of being perfect off of me.

“What were you doing out here, Princess?” William murmurs, once we’re alone again.

For some reason, I don’t want to tell him the truth. He’d probably be angry, and justifiably so, that I went off on my own. “Looking for you,” I murmur, lifting my mouth for a kiss.

William’s lips brush mine, and I give a tiny sigh of relief.

“Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to go looking for trouble, Princess?”

“Yes,” I admit. “Far too many times. ”

“Are you sure you didn’t see him? Don’t know what he looked like?”

“He had a mask on.” I sigh. “As much as I hate to say it, my father is right. Every time we claim we’re at peace, that we can relax, someone comes along to prove us wrong.”

“I didn’t realize you had quite so many people wanting to kill you,” William admits.

Yes, and I’m sure that is off-putting. Hopefully he’s not having second thoughts. Hopefully, he’s not wondering if marrying me was even worth it.

As if he senses my worries, William leans in, kisses my forehead. “This is nice, despite the circumstances. It gives me a chance of avoiding the idiots and sycophants that grovel at your father’s feet. And now mine, apparently.”

I glance around. There’s no one else here. No attacker, but also, nobody else. My groom and I are alone in the cold night air. Alone, finally, for the first time in our entire courtship.

Our breath fogs in the cold, forming mist around us. I run my hands down his chest, marveling at the layers of muscle and tanned skin. There isn’t an ounce of fat on him. My husband. A soldier. A warrior. He’s not spoiled, not fat, not old, not ugly. Indeed, just looking at him is thrilling.

Still, we’ve only kissed. That’s all we’ve ever done. Now that we’re wed, however…

“We’re alone, for the first time in weeks.” My hand slides down the ridges of his abdomen, dipping toward his waistband.

“Indeed, we are.” His mouth quirks on one side. “What are you plotting, Princess? ”

“To get you in bed and take advantage of you,” I say sweetly, kissing the cleft in his chin. Feeling drunk, I stroke my palm over his pants. It’s sloppy, uneven. Unpracticed. Hopefully, my enthusiasm makes up for the lack of know-how.

“Hmm. I’m counting the minutes until I’m inside you,” he admits, his thumb stroking over my pulse. “I haven’t touched anyone else in so long that I—”

I definitely do not want to hear about who else he has, or has not, been touching. Or think about the fact that he ever had. The mere idea of it fills me with worries.

“Tell me. Tell me how you’ll do it,” I interrupt. I’ve imagined it enough times, I feel like he is all I ever think about.

William chuckles. He leans close, dragging the tip of his nose along my jawline. “What? Are you so desperate for my cock that you can’t wait another hour? You need a taste to hold you over?”

My face heats, color rushing to my cheeks. “We could do it now. Right here.”

“Without witnesses?” William gazes down at me, pauses the trace of his fingers on my skin.

“Wouldn’t you prefer that?”

“No.” His brow furrows. “I wouldn’t. Everything must be by the book.”

“What does that mean?” I tease. “Is there a sex manual for soldiers circulating in our ranks?”

Surprisingly, this seems to make him angry, and he pulls away.

“Have you forgotten our courtship? Every cold glance I endured? Every venom-tipped whisper?” He shakes his head, face contorted. “We’re going upstairs to consummate this the royal way—in front of a priest, a historian, a horde of onlookers. There can be no doubt, Anne. None.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I don’t care if they kneel next to the bed and watch my cock enter you, I want it to be sure. You are mine, mine in name and body, making our marriage impossible to undo.”

“We are married,” I chuckle, dismissing his fears. “It’s too late for their naysaying, Will. They’ve crowned you.”

“And the earrings you’re wearing cost more than I will earn in a lifetime.” William exhales angrily. “Even an ignorant rat like me knows that nothing is final until we’ve consummated the marriage. With witnesses.”

“I love you. I don’t care if—”

“Of course you don’t! The princess gets whatever she wants, and her good soldier takes whatever she’s willing to give.”

Surprised, I pull back, my teasing mood evaporating. “Surely you don’t actually believe that?”

William, seeing my expression, changes tack. He leans in, his breath warm on my throat as his hands rove over my wedding gown.

“Come now, darling. You’ve been so patient.” One of his hands cups my ass, squeezes me through layers of brocade and ivory silk. “I love that you can’t wait to be under me… but it’s just a few hours longer. Can’t you mind your manners?”

Ugh. My chest heaves as I stare up at him through my lashes.

He’s right. They would use any excuse to be rid of him, and the last thing I want is for our marriage to be voided because the gossips claim he’d taken advantage of me or coerced me, or whatever other lies they might invent.

In fact, that crusty old Lord Spotswood would do nearly anything to have our marriage undone, and tonight is his last opportunity.

Sighing, I press my forehead to his chest. I’ll be a virgin for our consummation, and we’ll let those bastards watch our every move.

“Fine,” I mutter.

“It’s only once, darling,” he murmurs, his tone unexpectedly gentle. “Don’t be so sour about it.”

Grumbling, I slide my hands up his chest. “I suppose.”

“Be my good girl.” William traces my earlobe with his nose, scrapes it with his teeth.

I should grumble about that too. No one in all the kingdom would ever ask me to do that.

I’ve been rebellious and difficult since I was born, a fact that is widely known at this point.

But his words send a little zing through me, making me press closer.

The idea of being a good girl suddenly sounds appealing, especially when he says it like that.

But William steps back and lets my wedding gown fall into place. “Come, darling. Let’s go back in. It’s chilly out here.”

Snow dusts the shoulders of his jacket and forms crystals on his golden hair. Here in the moonlight, he looks like an angel, like my salvation. Just looking into his eyes makes me sigh with longing, that’s how badly I want him. But he is mine, and I did just marry him.

He’ll still be mine in another few hours, won’t he?

“Fine,” I say again. “But once they’ve had their show, we demand that they leave, and then we spend all day and night in bed.”

“For at least a week,” he assures me, smiling obligingly.

When we re-enter the ballroom, my hand is tucked into William’s arm, and the hall roars with revelry. If anything, our guests are even more drunk than they’d been when we left, and several people are asleep in their chairs.

“There’s Ben, right over there. Doesn’t he look happy?” William tilts his chin toward my ward, passed out in the corner.

A cold prickling sensation skates down my spine, like a musician hitting a sour note.

My eyes sweep the crowd, and it’s a sea of unfamiliar faces gleaming with wine-flushed cheer.

Among the crowd, a man stands, half-hidden by shadows.

Clad in weather-beaten black leather, his gaze fixed unyieldingly on me .

Not in admiration or idle curiosity, but with the ruthless intensity of a hunter marking prey.

Bearded and with a silver earring.

I don’t recognize him, and the entire event has shaken me.

And while guards were allegedly meticulous about who they allowed entry, that is clearly not true.

Still, who are we kidding? I make it a point to ignore both war and politics, so even if someone were in the castle regularly, I wouldn’t have noticed.

There are so many strangers watching me on my wedding day, it would be impossible for me to ever remember them.

William presses a golden goblet into my hand. “A toast! To my princess, the queen of my heart.”

King Francis, my father, puts his hands on both our shoulders. “May your union be long and prosperous!”

“Oh!” I laugh, and then beam up at them. My father is rarely affectionate, almost never touches me. Thrilled that he seems encouraging, I take a deep drink of the wine, relishing its woodsy acidity.

It’s the happiest day of my life.