Page 80 of The Kingdom's Crown

"You won't be alone. You are not alone, and it is my intention to ensure that you aren't the only man to speak out."

Holden gave me no response, and I relaxed into my seat, Wendell's hand sliding against mine as I left the prince to his own thoughts.

"I came here for position," Holden said. "A fourth son has…next to nothing in Noren. I am underfoot. Here at least as Chosen, there is luxury." He scowled at me, and I remained patient. This was the point where we would need to bargain. "I don't want to be your Chosen when this is done."

I made an odd sound, biting off a laugh but not quite managing to disguise it either, and Holden's glare grew fiercer.

"I would…certainly not ask that of you, after what's happened," I said, hoping that wouldn't prick his pride too much, but he looked more relieved than offended. "I'm not in a position to give you a title here yet, but—"

"I want the Winter Palace and the mountain that abuts our border," Holden said. "It's what I would take with a war."

"It's what you would fail to gain with the war," I snapped back. "Out of the question."

The Winter Palace was…undeniably precious to me, not to mention how close it was to Rumsbrooke. The mountain between us protected that part of Kimmery. Giving it to Holden would risk an advantage in Noren's favor in the future.

"Magic then," Holden said easily, and I wondered if he was compiling the list of his demands in his head or if he'd already been prepared with one. "I want access to Kimmery's magic. And a royal mage."

I huffed a breath of annoyance. "Unless you wish to take Camellia home with you, that's also out of the question."

"Well," Aric said. Both Holden and I whipped our stares in his direction. Aric smiled at me. "We could give him…the conduit."

I blinked, and Holden sat forward. "What is the conduit?"

"It's a device that the mages use to hold the magic of generations of Kimmery's queens," Aric said to Holden.

What the fuck was my thief up to? "Aric, I don't think that's—"

"And he might take Kenneth," Aric continued, holding the prince's eager gaze. "He's traveling at the moment, but he's an admirable royal mage. Younger than the others."

Holden nodded eagerly, and I pressed my lips together and narrowed my eyes at Aric. Mostly to keep from laughing. Kenneth was, by Aric's own declaration, near to useless. And what had Aric really offered Holden? I tried to think like a rogue for a moment. He'd offered the conduit. Not the magic in it, which we knew I could remove, but thedevicewhich we wanted to rid ourselves of.

"This isn't something we can justgive awayAric," I hissed. "Thequeenwill have to agree."

Holden sat up. "You'll have to arrange it. Those are my terms. I want the conduit and your mage Kenneth."

I ground my teeth together as I faced the prince, it had the added benefit of hiding my smile. "I will have to be guaranteed that my sister has no chance at the crown for you to win this kind of boon. It's outrageous."

"What is outrageous, Your Highness, is all I have witnessed in the weeks with your sister," Holden answered, eyes triumphant. "I willblackenher name beyond any favor."

Oh dear, I had to leave before I started crowing victory. I stood abruptly, and Wendell and Aric scrambled to follow. "I'll consider these terms. In the meantime, I recommend you keep to this suite. You'll be protected from Camellia here."

Holden leaned back, taking the tea from the table and drinking it without a second thought as I marched for the door, holding my grin in, tension tight in my grip around my Chosen's hands.

"Aric, was that wi—" Wendell breathed as the door shut behind us, but he stopped as I leapt at Aric.

I pushed him into the wall, slamming my mouth to his in a rough kiss. "You're wicked." Another kiss, and Aric held me to him, laughing and taking handfuls of my ass. "You're mad and horrible." I moaned as he wrapped his arms around me, bending me back as he licked his way into my mouth to devour the sound. "You're a genius, and I love you," I gasped as his lips traveled to my jaw and then my throat.

"I love you too, princess. Your indignation was the perfect tool to sell the fool's gold to the man," Aric rasped, nipping over my pulse before hauling me upright again, pushing me and swatting me on my rear. "We have to convince Nathan to let us move the magic. And to give up Kenneth, I suppose."

I laughed and bounced on my toes, linking my arm with Wendell's and stretching up to kiss his jaw. He was bemused, eyes bouncing between us with obvious questions on the tip of his tongue.

"Come on, I'll explain on the way," I said to Wendell before turning to Aric. "Which will be the greater sacrifice to swallow do you think?"

"Oh, definitely moving the magic," Aric said with a laugh.

* * *

I moaned,head thrown back and my fingers digging into the soft wet clay on the table, the same way Cosmo's fingers dug into the flesh of my hips as he thrust inside of me.

---