Page 84 of Heart of the Summer Queen

“Around eight. Or perhaps nine. I awoke just after sunrise, and it has been an hour or so since then.”

“You’ve been lying here that long?” I ask in disbelief. “Weren’t you bored?”

“Not at all,” he says, fingers trailing my temple and tucking a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “I can think of nothing better than watching you sleep.”

I lower my eyes, cheeks flushing.

His fingers settle on my chin, and he tugs my face up, forcing me to look at him. “Well, perhaps that’s a lie,” he says, lips pulling into a smirk. “I do much prefer this.”

“Prefer wha—” I begin, but my question is answered when he lowers his lips to my breast. He glances back up at me with a glint in his eyes.

“And this,” he murmurs, his lips leaving my breast to deposit a trail of kisses down my side, brushing across my hips and my outer thigh until he reaches my knee.

“Elaric,” I breathe.

“Yes, Adara?” he asks, arching a silver brow at me.

“We...” I swallow, doing my best to temper my own rising desire and prevent it from igniting into an inferno. Or else we will end up spending the whole day in bed.

But with the way his gaze is greedily roaming over me, extinguishing the building heat is a great challenge.

Exhaling deeply, I say, “We need to head to the harbor and find a boat, and then we also need to find fresh supplies and—”

“It can wait,” he says. “All of it can wait until I’ve finished with you.” His hand skims the inside of my thigh, traces my hip bone.

In that moment I know I’ve already lost.

By the time we’re ready to leave, it’s much closer to midday than I prefer. The blame lies entirely with Elaric. I’m forced to get dressed twice, since the first time, I didn’t make it to the door before being intercepted by a kiss. Which, despite my fleeting protests, soon landed us back in bed. However, it’s difficult to be annoyed by it, even when the barkeep informs us that we owe him more money for the room since we’ve stayed the whole morning.

After we eat a late breakfast, our first destination is the harbor, which proves to be busier than I expect. Though it means people almost walk into us many times, it also means plenty of vessels are anchored along the pier. With luck, one will be suitable for our voyage.

Elaric pauses at the edge of the pier, scanning across all the boats and ships. Some vessels are enormous, filling most of the harbor with their impressive hulls. While others look slightly larger than rowboats, their small sails barely more than flags.

Before I finish scrutinizing all the vessels myself, Elaric signals to one near the far left of the harbor. “There. That one should suffice.”

And before I can say anything—not that my opinion bears much merit on such matters—he sets off toward the boat in question.

I’m forced into an ungraceful trot in order to match his lengthy strides.

The boat possesses a single mast fitted with two sails, and a third sail is rigged across the stern. As we draw nearer, I notice a man standing on the pier, issuing orders to several other men who are occupied with transferring barrels of fresh fish from this boat over to the larger one docked beside it.

“Good day,” Elaric calls as we approach.

The man’s eyes sweep over Elaric, cautious though he offers a friendly: “Good day to you too, sir.” He doesn’t spare a glance for me, however. I may as well be invisible.

Elaric skips pleasantries, cutting to the point. “How much for your boat?”

“I beg your pardon?”

I can’t help from cringing at the exchange. I don’t think the man notices my expression, since he’s too busy staring at Elaric in bewilderment.

Perhaps we should have discussed how exactly we will negotiate buying a boat, as it seems Elaric has decided to handle it with kingly assertiveness. I suppose at least, his blunt approach will allow us to quickly determine those who are open to selling.

“This boat,” Elaric gestures to the smaller vessel, unfazed. “I would like to purchase it.”

“It isn’t for sale,” the man blurts.

“What a shame,” Elaric says, rolling back his shoulders. “We’ll have to find someone more willing to part ways with their boat. Thank you for your time.”

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