Page 58 of Kiss of Ice

“No!” Gods, it was hard enough getting her head round the concept of marriage without thinking about kids. “No. We’re, um, we’re going to wait.”

Ruth nodded.

“Well,thatI can help with. I’ll leave some herbs by your bedside before I go. One pinch in a glass of water once a day.”

“Thank you.”Not that I’ll need them. He’s not going to come near me after the way I threw myself at him.

After the wiccan left, Ren lay in bed for a long time. She was trying to decide what puzzled her the most – that she’d managed to be confident and self-assured for an entire evening without the help of magic, or that those qualities had been lurking within her the whole time and she’d never suspected.

Not even once.

Twenty Three

She looked at him critically. Kam was dressed in the clothing of a rural worker; brown cotton trousers, brown tunic and thick boots. He also had a cloak which he could pull low over his face if necessary. But Ren doubted anyone would recognise him.

His thick wavy hair was slicked back and his jaw was disguised with day-old stubble. He’d flatly refused to put tar on his teeth but he had agreed to a gold cap fitted over an incisor. The finishing touch was an eye-patch.

“How do I look?”

“Like a pirate. Maybe we need more dirt on your face? You still look too wholesome.”

Kam rolled his eyes.

“The last time a woman said that to me, I ended up with a black eye.”

“Oh, that’s not a bad ide…”

“Forget it.” Kam grabbed a handful of dirt and rubbed it liberally into his skin and hair. “There. How’s that?”

“Much better. You look like you should be skulking down a dark alley somewhere waiting for unsuspecting passers-by.”

“And what areyougoing as?”

Ren was wearing a plain and shapeless dress that didn’t quite reach her ankles. She had a large bag over one shoulder and clumpy shoes on her feet. With her hair tied into a messy bun, she could have been a scullery maid or a farmer’s wife.

“A downtrodden wench. I thought I may as well start getting used to it.”

“Very funny. So where are we going?”

“To hitch a ride. Come on.”

They left the palace through the kitchens, wandering out unnoticed through the servants’ entrance. It was barely past dawn and few people were around.

The guards gave them a cursory glance as they left the palace grounds. Ren assumed they would have paid more attention if they’d been trying to getintothe grounds.

She led Kam on foot through the back streets of the city. He was fascinated; he usually saw the capital through the carriage window or from on high when he flew over it.

He knew everything about it, of course. Its history, its geography, its demographics and its productivity. He knew which quarters housed the alchemists, the jewellers, the herbologists, the engineers. He even knew which aristocratic family laid claim to each.

But he’d never actually walked through it. Not like this, not without crowds of people surrounding him or armed guards protecting him.

He glanced at Ren and felt a flash of admiration. She was walking the streets as if it was no big deal. How long had she been sneaking out of her vast castle home to come here and help the poor?

He wondered why she had so little confidence in herself, especially when it came to her father, yet was prepared to fight like a she-wolf for other people.

Nat would like her. The thought came unbidden to his mind. Nat would like her because Ren was a protector too. Not likeshewas, with her speed and strength and her Cerulean blades. But a protector nonetheless. So determined to help people that she’d managed to persuade the Emperor to dress like a cut-throat buccaneer.

He couldn’t help laughing. To think he’d thought her timid the first time he’d met her.

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