Page 142 of Glow of the Everflame

Lust. Physical attraction. Nothing more.

“Is everything taken care of?” I asked, my voice coming out more husky than I’d planned.

“Yes. The woman from Umbros made them believe they no longer wished to attack and sent them home.”

“She can do that? Plant ideas in their head and make them believe those thoughts are their own?”

He nodded. “I knew the Umbros magic was powerful, but seeing it in action was unsettling.”

“If that power is unleashed in a war...” I shuddered, and he pulled me closer. “They’re going to be furious when they realize what happened. What if they come back?”

“I let them keep their blades, but I had their other weapons and explosives dumped into the Sacred Sea. They won’t be able to try another attack like that any time soon.”

Luther spoke of the rebels more as a nuisance than a threat. While I was grateful he didn’t seem to share his kinsmen’s desire to see them all slaughtered, a part of me worried he did not see how dangerous the Guardians were—and the lengths they would go to see their plans fulfilled.

I blew out a long breath, my heart conflicted. “What do we do now?”

And when did this become a ‘we’?I wondered.

“We stay focused on the Challenging. If the Umbros Queen believes she can control you with what her Descended learned, she’ll want you on the throne. Any move she makes will come after the coronation.”

I tried to clamp down on my burgeoning dread. I had once thought surviving the Challenging was my greatest obstacle, but between Iléana’s threats, the Guardians’ war, and the Umbros Queen’s plans, surviving long enough to be coronated might only be the beginning.

“Eleanor told me about Marthe Hanoverre’s accusations,” he said tightly. “I’m sorry I was not there to step in.”

I bristled a bit. “I handled it.”

“I know. Very impressively, I hear. Still... I should have been there.”

“You can’t fight all my battles for me, Luther.”

“I seem to remember you claiming me as your High General.” He pulled back to look at me, his features warming. “Fighting all your battles is quite literally my job.”

I dipped my face to hide my smile, and a low chuckle rolled out of him, the sound of it raising goosebumps on my skin. My fingers curled, my nails gently scratching against the back of his neck. His grip on me tightened.

“You’re still not my advisor.”

“Patience, my Queen.” His thumb stroked a slow trail up my spine. “The most precious rewards come from the battles most fiercely fought.”

My body was a sparkling chandelier, every nerve ending alight in a symphony of flames that flickered with each unsteady breath. The feeling of being in his arms—the rightness of it, the overwhelming sense of being safe and protected. Accepted.

Loved.

I inhaled sharply. My pulse broke into a sprint.

Lust. Physical attraction. Nothing more.

Itcan’tbe more.

“Henri.”

I wasn’t sure if I thought it or said it aloud, but the shift in Luther’s posture told me Henri’s name had spilled from my lips. His back went rigid, and cool air rushed between us as he shifted to give me space.

“I sent him home. I didn’t think his spending the night in the dungeon would serve either of you well.”

Indeed. It would have driven the knife of my betrayal so deep, it might never be dislodged. Perhaps that would have served Luther’s interests—and yet he’d put me first. Putme and Henrifirst.

“He’ll forgive you,” Luther said quietly. “If he loves you, he’ll understand why you did it.”

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