Page 96 of King of Fire and Flames

“Yes. Now listen closely. We don’t have much time. She’s arranging my wedding for… for tomorrow night.”

“What the fuck? No!”

“It’s the only way. We have a plan. Just be quiet and listen. The ceremony will begin at nine o’clock. Sun Realm marriages include approximately half an hour of preamble. Poems and songs. As close to nine o’clock as possible, Estella will hold Nukala under water for about twenty minutes. During this time, Melaya’s power will be disrupted, the block on your magic released. Blow the cells up, do whatever you must to get the hells out of here fast.”

I pulled orchid petals from my pocket. “Rub one of these on your skin, over your heart is best, then hurry to the hall so I don’t end up married to Bakhur.”

As I tucked the petals deep into the pocket of his leathers, a filthy laugh rumbled from his chest, causing bumps to erupt over my skin. “Be careful, Leaf,” he said. “There’s still life in me yet.”

“Not much you can do through these bars, big fella.”

“Try me.” He nodded at the bulges in my tunic. “What have you got there?”

“A present for you. Persimmons.”

His eyebrows twisted into a hard scowl.

“Only two of them. They were all I could find in the kitchen. But they’ll help strengthen your magic, right?”

The Storm King made a gagging sound. “Yeah, but I hate the damn things.”

“I know. Sorry.”

I held a persimmon up to the bars, and he bit into it. “The things I do for love.”

“And also for your kingdom. For all five kingdoms, in fact,” I said, stifling a laugh as he chewed the fruit like it was full of bitter poison.

Bending, I reached inside his cell and placed the second persimmon on the floor near the side wall, where I hoped the guards wouldn’t notice it.

“Eat some more,” I said, raising the first fruit to the bars again.

A single brow arched. “Kiss me, and then I will.”

I peppered his face with kisses, the last one lingering on his lips before I stepped backward.

“Leaf. Come on,” he rumbled. “That’s not what I meant.”

“Promise me you’ll eat the other one as soon as your hands are free.”

“Say you love me, and I will. Tell me at least once. I need to hear you say it before I die.”

“Oh, Arrow, I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”

He groaned, a bead of sweat tracing the sharp curve of his cheekbone. “And I’m begging you to have mercy. After all, you may never have the pleasure of seeing me again.”

I clicked my tongue. “Arrogant right up to the end.”

“The end?” His pupils flared. “You just promised to get us out of here.”

I scanned his wonderful, maddening face, holding it between my palms, then kissing him through the bars whisper soft. “Although I’ve tried countless times to rip you from my heart, I admit defeat. Arrowyn Ramiel, I will love you, adore you, and long for you with each beat of my heart through this life and the next.”

A dopey smile spread over his face.

“Does that satisfy you?” I asked.

“If you say it again, it will do for now.”

“Leaf, you should leave while you still can.” Raiden’s voice hissed along the dim corridor as I pressed another kiss to the Storm King’s lips. “The magic in the dungeons is fucked up. Anything could happen.”

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