Page 89 of A Bond in Blood

“A bird,” his voice coiled around me. “I would think a bear is more fitting. But a bird… I wonder what that looks like.”

“Gods,” I groaned, pulling the covers over my head. “Silence yourself,” I begged.

“Princess skin is not supposed to be inked. Has no one told you that?”

I sat up, glaring in the dark. “It’s my body. I can do whatever I please.”

“Show it to me,” he replied.

“No!” I yelled.

The pillows just barely below my arm were gone and his body was against mine before I could move.

“I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” he whispered.

“Stop it.”

“It wouldn’t take much for that chemise to rise,Ursa. Just a little peek?”

I turned on my side, holding the edges of my chemise between my legs. Glaring at him in the dark, hoping he could see the hate in my eyes.

“I’ve seen yours,” I bit back. “Fitting for you to have monsters on your skin.”

He laughed. “You haven’t seenallof mine. There are some in moreintimateplaces.”

“Get away from me,” I seethed.

His hand brushed my cheek, bringing a startled gasp from me. “Maybe one day.”

Then the heat of him was gone and the pillows were back under my arm.

“Again, Ulrich, I would have to go mad to allow that to happen.”

“Whatever you say, princess,” he laughed.

I pressed the back of my head into the pillow while his breaths slowed. Not able to prevent my mind from wondering what other places he could actually be hiding ink on his skin.

And that one insane part of my mind considered, only briefly, if I really did want to see it all.

Chapter 20

“We’ll start at the kitchens,” Ulrich stated while I struggled with the small easel strapped around my neck.

The pouch around my waist clattered together with my koal—far more than I ever needed to map out a palace.

“Why the kitchens?” I enquired.

Ulrich smiled at me. “Because they leadeverywhere. They are the veins of my palace.”

“Who uses them?”

Ulrich led the way through the palace, toward the kitchens I had surprisingly not yet visited.

“Myself and mytroll,” he replied. “Olen as well. Those who need to get around quickly.”

I pondered his words while we talked, noting down on my parchment the path we took from the library. Down stairs I hadn’t known existed just beyond the table I’d come to claim.

The stone staircase spiraled down with small windows providing red light as we descended.

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