Page 36 of Swords and Curses

Don't kill her, no matter how much you want to. He knocked on the door, and she answered it with a rattle of chains. Balthasar had done a good job on the impromptu link he'd fashioned to the stone wall to shackle her to.

"Come to add an extra chain?" Nimue asked, her lips trembling.

"Something better." Eldon stepped into the room and tried not to breathe in the smell of her hair on the way past. He went to the wall and unlocked the chain before turning back towards her. "Your wrists," he muttered.

"Why won't you look at me?" she asked. She held her hands out to him—pale, slender, with a spray of golden freckles, just as he remembered.

"I won't look at you because I promised Eli I wouldn't kill you, and I'm afraid if Idolook at you, I will wrap these chains around your throat," Eldon said, unlocking her shackles. He looked up at her just as her face broke in joy, and amber light danced over her skin as magic flushed over her.

"Not so fast," Eldon said and slipped the golden bracelet over her hand. The light dimmed but didn't die.

"What is this?" she snapped. When she tried to pull it off, it tightened.

"I wouldn't try to remove it," Eldon cautioned. "A little gift from Eli and me to keep you from doing anything stupid. It will stop you from trying to cast any magic on us and from leaving Gwaed Lyn. It's better than the shackles."

"It's a different, prettier sort chain."

"Well, you are a different, prettier sort of liar, so it suits you just fine." He turned to leave, but she grabbed his hand.

"Will you stop and speak to me? Please, Merlin, why are you like this? It isn't you."

Eldon lifted her hand off his. "Actually, Nimue, thisisme. This is the person I became after you spectacularly destroyed my family. And don't bother repeating your story of innocence. I heard you the first time. Eli and the others can believe what they like, but Iknowyou, Nimue."

Eldon lifted her chin with his finger so she could see the raw fury in his yellow eyes. "And I know that you weren't stupid enough to believe Ryn wouldn't try to kill any of us. You knew they wanted to capture me, not kill me. You should've put Deryn in the tree." Eldon dropped his hand away and opened the door. "Oh, and Nimue, for your own safety, stay the fuck away from Rosa."

Rosa was bakingher third batch of cupcakes when Balthasar stumbled, sleepy-eyed, into the kitchen.

"I thought you might be down here," he said, sitting down at the bench. It never ceased to surprise Rosa that the sight of him shirtless in all his scarred glory could banish any thought from her head.

"Couldn't sleep," she managed before focusing her attention back to the dark fudge batter she was stirring.

"You want to tell me what's wrong?" he asked, taking an orange and poppy seed cupcake off the cooling rack.

"What makes you think anything is wrong?"

"Tesoro, I knew you well enough before the blood to know something is troubling you," he said, knowing the Italian would get her attention.

Damn him. Ever since they shared blood, she felt him inside of her like a second heartbeat that only magnified when they were close together.

"The Seelies want to kill me; the queen wants Eldon, magical swords, Nimue upsetting everyone with her perfect magical hair and general breathing," Rosa rattled off.

"Her presence does seem to upset the mood of the house. First Eldon, now Nimue. I wonder who else is going to turn up with magical hair," Balthasar replied.

"I'm serious, Bal! I spent hours this afternoon convincing Eldon to stay…again!"

"He's not going anywhere. He doesn't trust Nimue, so he won't leave you to be burned by her. He'll stay to protect you, and he's curious about Nimue too."

"If that were true, I wouldn't have had to argue with him until I turned blue. Do you know how hard it is to convince someone that pig-headed?" she huffed. Balthasar stared at her. "Shut up, Bal."

"I didn't say a word!" he said as she poked him in the side viciously.

He caught her arm. "Be careful where you are wiping that mixture." He moved her hand to show her the line of sticky chocolate on her forearm before licking it off in one slow swipe of his tongue. Rosa's cheeks flushed before she could control it.

"They are going to be delicious once they are cooked," he said appreciatively. "Have you got any more on your person?"

"I could arrange some," she replied.

He looped an arm around her waist and brought her in for a chocolatey kiss.

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