Page 9 of A Guard and a Gardener

“I see.”

The Mazekhstani woman raised an eyebrow as Ren continued to...Mathias would have called it making a nuisance of himself, but my king could never be such a thing. “If you’re so keen to get up close and personal with a diseased flower bud that could see our entire collection of carnations dead within the week, Your Majesty, catch.”

She tossed it at him, petals cascading from the plant as it sailed directly at his head.

I intercepted it before it could hit him.

Mathias flinched, but Ren hadn’t moved an inch, knowing I would always protect him. Nothingdiseasedwas touching my king while I was on watch.

Even if I wasn’t technically on watch. I’d quite forgotten that today was my day off, having settled into the familiar routine of being at Ren’s side, although his other guards were hovering unobtrusively a few feet behind us.

Wyatt clapped happily for me, and then spun to face his mistress. “Do you want me to prune-”

“I’ll deal with it,” Zovisasha said, waving away his offer of help. How anyone could deny that eager face and the way he was earnestly bouncing on his toes as if ready to set off that instant, I didn’t know, but if it meant he wasn’t going near any more sick plants, I was happy. Dios knew what they’d do to his skin or...

“Wash your hands,” I urged him before I could rein in that protective part of me that apparently thought it had the right to tell him what to do.

Wyatt grinned, blinking up at me with those delicate eyelashes of his. Was it my imagination, or had they fluttered?

Ren snickered, and Zovisasha frowned.

“This is a plant fungal disease. It is not contagious to humans, señor.”

“Please,” I said, unable to bear the thought of it touching his perfect hands. The head gardener stalked off with an exasperated shake of her head, muttering under her breath in her native language.

“Sure,” Wyatt agreed, his smile even wider now. His green eyes sparkled in the sunlight. “If you do as well, Jiron.”

He reached out to take the affected flower from my hand and I snatched it away out of his reach.

I cleared my throat as everyone stared at me. “Uh. Show me where I should put it,” I said, and Wyatt gestured for me to follow him.

When I did, the king fell into step beside me.

“Ren,” Mathias chided in a low hiss. “That was not an open invitation, you idiot.”

Ren beamed. “A king doesn’t needinvitations. Besides, Jiron wants me to accompany them, don’t you?”

I faltered, caught between my loyalty to my charge and my own want – closer to a burningneed– to spend time alone with Wyatt. The boy often found himself in my thoughts, but when he was this close, he damn nearconsumedthem. It was hard to look at anything else but him; his broad smile that showed perfectly white teeth, his green eyes, permanently crinkled in good humour and soft empathy, his slender but toned body that I longed to run my hands over and discover its secrets.

But I was so many years older than him, and he wouldn’t want…wouldn’t wantme.

So I forced my gaze back to the man I’d sworn my life to since I was eighteen, and bowed deeply. “Of course, Your Majesty. Anything you wish.”

Ren latched onto that with a wolfish grin, looking expectantly between me and the boy at my side.

“Come back inside, asshole,” Mathias muttered under his breath at him.

“Nah. I’d rather stay and watch Wyattshow Jiron where to put it.”

“I’ll let you do that thing to me that you threatened this morning,” his husband casually offered.

Ren’s gaze snapped to his, his face lighting up with savage glee. “You mean the...”

“Yeah.”

Without even a moment’s hesitation, Ren grabbed Mathias’ shirt and began to drag him by it back to the palace at a punishing pace. The king consort glanced over his shoulder as he was hauled away, and mouthedyou owe me oneback at us.

Wyatt’s eyebrows crinkled in adorable concern as he stared after them both. “Is he...?”

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