Page 111 of Wrathful King

It was a silly question, but it was hard to see his pain. He’d had an unfair share of it in his life, and I wanted to spare him any in the future.

“Go talk to him. Then I have a surprise for you.”

I loved his surprises. I loved him. The past three years were anything but easy, but they had made us into these versions of ourselves and I was okay with that. We were stronger, and we were together. That was all that mattered.

I willingly drowned in his eyes. The stars were back in them, and just as I predicted, they shone only for me.

* * *

The first rays of sunshine peered through the clouds today, casting a glow over the horizon.

We rode in a vaporetto that Amon was navigating on his own, leaving the heart of Venice behind us.

When I asked him where we were going this morning, he just gave me a secretive smile and said, “You’ll see.”

We finally came to a stop in front of a building that looked like a palace with an exit right on the water.

“Welcome to Giudecca,” he said as he parked the boat. “And possibly our home, if you like it.”

It was quieter here, a breath of fresh air and lack of tourists giving it an appeal I hadn’t found yet in this floating city.

He jumped out of the boat and extended his hand. We were still wearing black, although my flats were pink. It would seem I didn’t own a single pair of black shoes, much to my husband’s delight.

In front of us was a building resembling an old castle, its balcony overlooking the Giudecca canal and San Marco. It was far enough not to hear the noise of the city and gave off the illusion of tranquility.

“So what do you think?”

I smiled at his excitement. “I like the location, but where’s the house?” He extended his hand. My mouth parted in shock. “That’s not a house, Amon. That’s a castle.”

“A castle that needs a queen.” He grinned at me. This place had to have at least twenty bedrooms. “With a fenced-in backyard. A pool. A playground.”

I rolled my eyes. “Can’t wait to go down that slide.”

“Me neither,” he mused.

I slid my hand into his. “I like it, but don’t you think it’s too much?”

“Money’s no object.”

“Aren’t those words every girl’s dream,” I mused. “What I mean is the place seems too big.”

His eyes darted to the building, studying it. “No, I don’t think so. When Dante and Phoenix visit, we’ll want them far from us. Not to mention your grandmother. We might have to build a suite in the backyard.”

I snickered, shoving my shoulder into his. “Smartass.”

Grandma had reconciled with Grandpa Glasgow, according to Papà. He said their marriage would last for the remainder of their days, but you never knew. I really hoped so. For her sake.

“It’s hard to get rid of your grandma once she visits,” he muttered.

“Okay, husband. Let’s see how it looks inside.” I lifted a shoulder at his questioning look. “I won’t diss it until I see the whole package.”

Twenty-five grandiose bedrooms. Two kitchens. Thirty bathrooms. One formal living room. One cozy living room. Library. Office. Ballroom. Obnoxiously large dining room. And a gym, complete with a rock-climbing wall.

But it wasn’t until I saw the backyard that I was sold. The strategically positioned trees. Wide-open lawn. Pool. A pavilion to house our cookouts. Even the playground was perfect. It was so inviting I could already see our friends and family gathered around this place celebrating our milestones—birthdays, anniversaries, anything and everything.

I turned to face him and smiled. “I’m sold. On one condition.”

He got closer until he was standing toe to toe with me and I had to tilt my head back to look at him.