Page 108 of Born of Blood and Ash

“Nope.”

I lifted my hand, and the blade flew off his desk, handlefirst. I easily caught it.

“Let me guess,” he said. “You weren’t—”

“If you say overthinking it one more time,” Iwarned, pointing the blade at him.

Ash just grinned, and honestly, why wouldn’t he? I wasthreatening him with a paltry paring knife.

I sighed. “I miss my dagger.”

In the next several minutes, I finally stopped overthinkingthings. I managed to lift several strawberries and plop them into the glass ofwater before my attention shifted to the bare shelves as I wondered what couldbe placed on them. Ash wasn’t the type to be into glass figurines as mystepfather had been. “You need knickknacks.”

Ash half-laughed. “What?”

“Knickknacks,” I repeated. “You know, small objects that areworthless to some but are something you enjoy.”

“I know what knickknacks are, liessa.”He looked up from the building plans. “What I don’t know is why you’resuggesting them.”

“Your shelves are bare.” I pointed at the walls. “Mystepfather collected things made of spun glass. Or is it blown glass?” My nosescrunched. “Maybe they’re the same thing.”

“I don’t believe so.” Ash paused, looking to the side at thewalls. “I never really thought about the shelves.”

“I can tell,” I replied dryly, taking a drink of thenow-fruit-flavored water. “We’ll have to get you some knickknacks.”

“I’ll add that to the list of things we must accomplish.”

I looked at him with a frown. “We have a list?”

“We do.” Rising, he set aside the building plans andreturned the Book of the Dead to its drawer. “Speak with Attes.Summon the Primals. Plant more crops. Deal withKolis. Spit on his close-to-dead-as-possible body.” He ticked each item off ashe walked around the desk, my brow rising with each item. “Rule the realms.”

“That’s an…impressive list,” I slowly stated.

“I wasn’t done.”

“Oh.”

“We also have to decide where we wish to live—here or in Dalos,” he continued. I blinked, not having even considereda relocation. “Indulge in radek wine—”

“The kind that makes…”

“One incredibly aroused for extended periods of time?” Awolfish grin appeared. “Yes.”

“Oh,” I repeated. “I think I would like that.”

Icy heat swirled in his eyes as he sat beside me on thelight gray settee. “You will love it, liessa.”

My gaze swept over his powerful body. I would be obsessedwith that.

He glanced at the table that had been brought in for ourbreakfast. The heat faded from his stare. “Fates,” he muttered, dragging a handover his jaw.

“What?”

“What you’re drinking,” he said. “Or what you’ve madeyourself. I completely forgot about this until now, but…”

“Your father used to do this,” I finished for him.

His head cut to me. “How did you—?” He let out a soft laugh.“Foresight?”

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