Page 119 of Clash of Kingdoms

He gave me a brief hug then stepped away.

Larisa and Clara hugged me as well. Fang was on Larisa’s shoulders, so he leaned in and gave me a little kiss with his tongue. “He says you’re a great card player,” Larisa said. “And he’ll never forget you.”

That almost brought me to tears. “I’ll never forget you either, honey.”

They stepped aside.

That was when I saw my father embrace Aurelias, hugging him the same way he hugged Atticus, squeezing him hard like he didn’t want to let go. His palm supported the back of Aurelias’s neck. He pulled away and looked at Aurelias. They exchanged words that were too quiet for anyone else to hear. My father gave him a final grip on the arm before he released him for the last time. He walked past me, and with my mother and brother, they walked up the path to the castle, probably to give us some privacy.

Kingsnake and the others did the same, moving to their horses on the field and mounting them for the ride.

Aurelias stared at me.

I stared back.

It was quiet, so quiet I could hear the horses neigh and swish their tails. When they shifted their weight, their hooves tapped against the hard earth. The sunshine was bright on that cloudless day, even though it’d been overcast for the last week. It made his skin brighter than usual.

I didn’t know what to say. How did you say farewell to the love of your life?

He clearly didn’t know what to say either because his chin dropped momentarily.

I moved toward him.

His eyes watched me, taking a deep breath as I drew near.

I rose on my tiptoes, reached my fingers into his hair, and kissed him, so very softly.

His arms immediately hooked around my waist, and he pulled me close.

Tears wanted to escape my eyes, but I kept them locked away. I kissed him like it was the first time rather than the last, without heed or haste. These lips would belong to someone else someday. I would be another memory, just the way Renee was a memory to him. I just hoped it wouldn’t bring him nearly as much pain.

I was the first to pull away.

His arms stayed on me like he didn’t want to let me go. “Baby?—”

“I love you.” I didn’t want to say more than that, to revisit the dreadful conversation that had no positive resolution. It was only painful for us both.

His eyes shifted back and forth between mine before he understood. “I love you.”

I wouldn’t say goodbye. Never.

He didn’t say it either.

His arms left my waist, and he pulled away entirely.

I knew that he would never touch me again, that he was already a memory even as he stood directly before me.

He stepped back then turned away, his muscular back to me. He grabbed on to the horn of the saddle and pulled himself up and grabbed the reins. This was the moment he was supposed to dig his heels into the horse and take off, but he hesitated. He hesitated for a long time.

I prayed to the gods he would change his mind.

Please…

But then he dug in his heels…and left.

TWENTY-SEVEN

HARLOW

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