Page 51 of The Shadowbound King

A crow’s sharp cry pierced the silence. Andrin turned toward the balcony as a gust of wind swept the doors wide. A second later, a massive crow fluttered into the bedchamber. It twistedmid-flight, shifting into Rane, who hit the ground at full stride as if he’d simply stepped into the room.

He stopped at the end of the bed, his purple eyes going from me to Andrin. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Andrin said. His demeanor changed, a mantle of authority settling over him. “You’ve returned.”

Rane looked between us. “Clearly.”

Wind swept from outside, dropping the temperature and fluttering the curtains. Andrin strode around the bed and went to the balcony.

Rane kept his gaze on me as Andrin shut the doors and latched them. Goosebumps lifted on my skin as Rane took in my green and gold gown.

Andrin turned from the doors. “It’s late, and we have much to discuss.”

Tension shivered between the men. At last, Rane inclined his head. “As Your Majesty commands.” He spun and disappeared into the bathing chamber.

Andrin watched him go, a frown marring his otherwise smooth forehead. When he finally looked at me, he seemed briefly startled to find me still in the room.

“Come,” he said, moving toward the main chamber. “You can refresh yourself in the privy down the corridor. Then you’ll seek your bed.”

Chapter

Eleven

RANE

Hot fucking water.If something better in the world existed, I wasn’t aware of it.

It lapped around me as I soaked in the bathing chamber’s sunken bath, my back against the wall and my ass plunked on the stone bench that ran the perimeter under the water. Candles sputtered from a stand in the corner. Steam rose in lazy curls, carrying the spicy scent of whatever oil I’d tossed in the water before splashing in. I closed my eyes, my muscles slowly unknotting from five days of watching my back in the Edelfen.

Andrin entered, his footsteps as recognizable as the surge of power that preceded him. I kept my eyes shut as his footsteps stopped and the weight of his stare fell over me. After a few seconds, the sound of his boots hitting the ground echoed off the marble.

Clothing followed. Behind my closed lids, I marked each piece as it fell. Jacket. Shirt. Trousers. Belt. The little dagger Andrin wore at his waist. The slightly larger one he didn’t want anyone to know he carried.

His sigh eased through the chamber, and my mind supplied me with a vision of his body unencumbered by cloth and steel. The temptation to open my eyes and let reality replace memory was almost too great to resist.

Almost.

Water splashed, then sloshed more urgently against my chest as Andrin entered. His sharp intake of breath rose above the sound of the water, and satisfaction curled through me.

“Fucking hot,” he said. “Why do you always make it so hot?”

“No one invited you,” I murmured without opening my eyes.

He gave another sigh, and I pictured him scowling as he settled against the wall, his thick arms stretched along the marble and water teasing his nipples.

Long moments stretched. Somewhere, water dripped in an irregular rhythm. Steam swirled around me, filling my lungs and raising sweat at my temples.

Andrin’s surrender came in yet another sigh—this one tinged with a growl.

“Are you going to tell me what happened at the Covenant, or would you like me to guess and you can saycoldorhotuntil I get it right?”

I opened my eyes. As usual, my memory hadn’t failed me. Andrin caught my eye when he was clothed. Nude, he commanded it. Water dotted his thick, round shoulders, each drop begging for my tongue. Steam wreathed his plump pecs and the ripple of abs visible above the water. He’d tied his hair back, but one stubborn dark red strand snaked down his chest, the slightly curved tip daring me to delve beneath the bath and explore the rest of him. As if I needed the encouragement.

“Where’s your pet?” I asked.

Pique flashed through his eyes. He shifted in the water, creating small waves that lapped against the wall at my back. “Whatever you think you saw wasn’t there, Rane.”

His defensiveness merely fueled my suspicion. “I saw you standing next to our bed with a traitor.”

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