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Jared opened his eyes and stared at the dark ceiling above hier The part of hie had let it burst free Theadult Warlord who kept pushing at him to embrace it, accept it

He would have to embrace it, would have to accept it, no ression if he was going to keep Lia safe

Two nights from now, the full moon after the autuht of the dance

And the dance would be the right time to call the Warlord back to himself

Chapter Twelve

Settled into one of the dainty chairs that were scattered around her sitting roo coffee while she studied her Master of the Guard She had one leg tucked under her, which h Her hair flowed over her shoulders, creating a sleek, black frame for her half-bared breasts She looked more like a whore in the ain, Krelis thought, all women hores Some were just honest about it

"Have you any news?" Dorothea asked, setting her cup on the low table in front of her She picked up a warm breakfast pastry shaped like a crescent, broke it in half, then delicately licked the torn edge And all the tiht froer a Third Circle guard who didn’t understand the dangers of accepting an aristo witch’s sexual lures

"Well?" Dorothea put the half crescent in her ain Slowly While she watched him

Krelis had to clear his throat before he found his voice "No, Priestess, I have no news But even riding the Winds, it takes time to reach Hayll," he added quickly

"Of course," Dorothea purred "I’m simply concerned that the more time it takes to complete this little task, the more chances she’ll have to slip away"

He understood the threat beneath the pleasantly spoken words "She won’t escape, Priestess I swear it on my life"

Dorothea ss turned to jelly Before he could think of so room opened

The Warlord toy-boy didn’t look sulky or defiant thisAnd he didn’t have the sated look of a ht in bed He looked haunted, numb, as if he’d passed beyond fear so to feel the tingle of reawakened eer in his eyes was focused on the coffeepot and basket of pastries, not on the barely dressed woe She reminded him of a satisfied cat who had just reme," Dorothea purred "Go back to bed"

Flinching, the Warlord obeyed

After tossing the half crescent back into the basket, Dorothea raised her ar quite like staying in bed on a rainy , don’t you think?"

For a led in satin sheets and wasn’t sure if he felt revolted or aroused Then co she’d overlook his hesitation, he tried to sence for Ladies Unfortunately, the mundane tasks we males perform don’t disappear in rainy weather"

"And I’ve kept you fro ss"

The verbal knife slipped past all his defenses and left hiine so, Priestess," he said weakly

Aca toward the sound, Dorothea stroked her breasts

Krelis fled

He walked back to the guards’ quarters, co soaked to the skin

Aristo word ga

He remembered the mother of his childhood as a lovely woman content with her life; a wo; a woman whose eyes lit up when his father was in the rooht with a witch’s passion when the Healer tried to refuse to help Olvan; the woe had shamed the merchants when they tried to insist that she pay i her a monthly account as was custohbors in the eye until they avoided her

He ree finally crumbled after so many years of isolation; the woman who became emotionally bitter and brittle; the woman whose eyes were full of contempt for the man she’d loved; the woman who kept her distance from her son, as if he, too, would place a burden on her that was past bearing

He re hi him with that soul-withered husk of abeyond the garden gate, leaving him to share in his father’s shame for no other reason than because he was le" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>