Page 281 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
That sobered the happiness out of Alezya immediately. She felt her worries soar, but before she could panic, Kassein gently pressed her hand.
“Others are fine,” he said. “Kiera and Tievin are in the mountains. Withthekulanis.Lorey here. I stayed here to watch you.”
“I slept... long?”
Kassein nodded.
“Three days, three nights,”he said, glancing at what was now the sunrise.
It would be too bright for Lumie soon, and Kassein seemed to come to the same realization because he pulled a blanket overthe little girl, who didn’t protest. Alezya noticed that Lumie’s breathing had slowed down, and she was now snoozing against her chest. She turned her eyes back to Kassein, and for a while, they exchanged a long look, not saying anything. Then, something prickled behind her eyes, and she let a tear fall.
“It’s over,”she whispered.
Kassein leaned over, placing another long kiss on her forehead. Then, he gently kissed one wet cheek, and then the other, before he pressed his forehead against hers once again, and his thumb came to wipe her tears.
“You’re here,”he said. “With me. And Lumie.”
The truth was slowly sinking in, but it was hard to realize.
Her father was dead. The clans who had wanted her dead were either dead or had submitted to Kassein’s clan. For the first time, it slowly hit Alezya that they had won this war and with it, her freedom. There would be no one to use her anymore. No more battles to come, no more need to run. She was free to stay or go wherever she pleased with Lumie. She was free to be happy and be loved by Kassein. So many invisible chains she hadn’t realized had been weighing her down suddenly disappeared. For the first time in years, or maybe ever, she felt safe and free. The future felt so bright now, and it was almost... scary. Blinding with possibilities. Was that it? There was nothing more to worry about, nothing else to fear? She could just... live?
“Food?” Kassein asked.
It snapped her back to reality, and made her smile.
“Meat?” she asked.
But he shook his head.
“Mother said no meat for you. Not yet.”
Alezya immediately pouted, a bit annoyed, but Kassein smiled and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. He was about to back away, probably to go and get her food, but she grabbed his wrist.He immediately turned back to her, worry all over his features, but she smiled.
“Wait,” she whispered, gently pulling him back to her.
She pulled him close for a longer, more delicate kiss. Not a mere peck, but one full of softness and longing. One to tell this man how much she had missed him. One to tell him how sorry she was. The glimpses of the war she remembered were scary, but more than anything, she remembered how she’d feared for his life. She was the one to have caused all this, and if anything had happened to Kassein, Alezya knew she might not have survived.
Sheknewshe shouldn’t have survived. She hadn’t been sure they’d meet again when she had flown away on Kein, and it had been the worst of their separations. Even now, she didn’t want him to leave the room, even for a moment. Their time together felt too precious. She had chosen to jump, knowing she wasn’t supposed to make it. She had survived, and she would spend the rest of her life being grateful for that miracle.
Kassein seemed to read her mind because he leaned over, careful about her injuries and yet getting as close as he could, to caress her cheek, fully take her lips with his, fill her space with his smell, and fulfill her need for his presence. They didn’t need to speak; every apology, every “I missed you,” every breath of relief was passed into their sweet kiss and tender gestures.
After a few more kisses, Kassein slowly pulled back, giving her one more loving gaze before he eventually left the room. Alezya didn’t have to wait long as he quickly returned with a bowl of warm soup that smelled heavenly. It had a faint taste of meat but no actual chunks in it, and truthfully, she wasn’t sure she would have had the strength to chew. Kassein helped her eat, bringing each spoonful to her lips, as any head movement made her wince, and Lumie was holding her down. She was more hungry than she’d realized, and before she knew it, Alezyahad finished a second bowl. It made sense, given how long she had been asleep. Kassein seemed pleased with her eating, and she wondered how tired and frail she must look for him to seem constantly worried, unwilling to look away from her any second longer than necessary.
“You hurt?” she asked Kassein, still concerned.
But he shook his head and showed her the last of the bronze scales on his hands, then lifted his shirt to reveal a large patch of them on his flank. She frowned, but he shrugged, clearly over it already.
“Kiera hurt?”
He grinned.
“Kiera’s fine.She’s angry at me.”
“Angry? Why?”
“Because she does Aqayir work, and I am here.”
Alezya smiled.
