Page 52 of The Lord of Whispers

The Vitruvian estate was located in Breakpoint, a decent-sized town on the southwestern coast of Valencia. As our carriage rode through the town to the manor, I took in the many stores and bars and restaurants that lined the main thoroughfare. Although not as big as Vlaise, Breakpoint made my hometown a couple of hours up the coast seem positively podunk.

Our carriage made its way up the hill to the Vitruvian estate. After we’d made love, I’d fallen asleep with my head in Jay’s lap, but I awoke to see the estate. It was built on a cliff over the Azure Ocean. The Vitruvian manor was an immense, alabaster castle with at least ten spires and half as many towers, and perhaps a hundred windows. The Vitruvian estate in Breakpoint made the Vitruvian estate at the High Court seem modest in comparison.

“Home,” the high lord said, squeezing my hand as we stopped in front of the manor.

He reached for the carriage door. Jay hopped out of the carriage and reached up to grab my hand and help me down.

I took his hand, entwining my fingers with his once I was on the ground. Jay stopped in front of the castle for a moment, allowing me to take in the sight before he moved toward the entryway, with me in tow.

A beautiful, older high fae lady opened the doors to the castle and met us at the doorway. The enchanting woman enveloped Jay in a big hug.

“Cress, this is Alarie. Alarie, Cressida,” Jay greeted the lady, pulling out of her hug after a few moments.

I reached out my hand, the one that was not preoccupied with Jay’s hand, to Cressida. On our way to the estate, Jay had explained to me that there was no need to be concerned about concealing the true nature of our relationship at his estate, not that we tried to conceal it very well while at the Vitruvian manor at the High Court, anyway.

Cress pushed aside my hand, encircling me in a warm hug as well. I wasn’t the hugging type, but Cress had the kind of natural motherliness that you just wanted to melt into. Cressida was the high lord’s steward. She carried out Jay’s orders and took care of the Vitruvian estate in his absence.

“Oliver wanted me to tell you that you should meet him in the courtyard with your sword, ‘unless you’ve gotten too old.’ His words, not mine!” Cressida said, fondly patting the high lord on his arm.

“Sounds like Oliver,” Jay replied, smirking. “Please tell Oliver that I have some very importantbusinessto attend to,” he said, looking pointedly at me. “And then I’ll gladly remind him to respect his elders.”

Cress nodded and gave her high lord a knowing smile.

“Let me show you around,” Jay said, turning to me and pulling me by the hand through the door.

The foyer was extravagant. A chandelier bigger than the room I grew up in hung in the entryway. The expansive marble staircase leading away from the foyer contained so many stairs I wondered if I would have to kick off my heels before walking up it. As if reading my mind, Jay raised his right eyebrow at me and swept me off my feet, holding me in his arms. It was a playful, very un-Jay-like maneuver.

Once we were at the top of the stairs, he carefully set me back on my feet and led me toward what appeared to be a bedroom.

“Jay,” I protested. “I thought you were giving me a tour.”

“Fair enough,” he conceded. “There’s the foyer,” he said quickly, pointing to where we had just left. “The ocean’s over there,” Jay said, pointing to a window in the hallway where I could see the white peaks of the waves of the blue ocean. “The library’s in a separate wing that we’ll have to explore later. And this, my love, is my room and is where I will conclude my tour for the afternoon and perhaps well into the evening,” he said, a mischievous look playing across his face as he led me through the door of the huge room.

It had a lavish master bath connected, a sizable sitting area, and a veranda that spanned the entirety of the room and overlooked the cerulean ocean. I walked toward the balcony, taking a deep breath and inhaling the ocean air for the first time in months. I exhaled, letting out tension I did not know I’d been holding since I’d last seen the ocean back home. My chest expanded as I rolled my shoulders back and lifted my face to bask in the sunlight.

I closed my eyes, savoring the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore. I’d missed this more than I’d realized. There were many things I didn’t like and didn’t miss about my hometown, but the beach was not one of them.

Jay came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling my body into his. We stood that way for a few minutes in silence, taking in the sight and feel of the ocean before I turned toward Jay, wrapping my arms around him and looking up into his ruggedly handsome face.

“It’s wonderful. I love it,” I breathed.

“You’re wonderful. I love you,” Jay imitated fiercely.

This was the first time he’d told me he loved me since we were in the carriage. The first time he said it, he had been sheathed inside of me, yet somehow it felt more intimate for him to say it now, as we looked into each other’s eyes. I melted further into his embrace at his words.

“I love you,” I said.

Those three simple words still felt foreign on my tongue.

He leaned his head down toward mine, some of our height difference alleviated by my tall heels, and he lightly kissed me.

“You want to go to the beach?” he asked, looking over my shoulder at the ocean.

“Well…” I said, pointedly looking to his right in the direction of the large four-poster bed in the middle of the room.

“I could use some help getting these heels off. Can’t walk in the sand in these, can I?”

A keen expression moved over his face, and his right eyebrow lifted. “I would think not,” he responded with mock seriousness before sliding his strong arms under my legs and carrying me to the bed.

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