A Kiss of Fire (A Kiss of Magic #2)(91)

“Ariana I don’t understand you,” Jutsin said. “This has no future!”

“You don’t need to understand. Just abide by my desires. I will have him treated as an honored guest. He is a good man and a good leader. He deserves respect for that.”

“Wasn’t it you who always said he was a barbarian?” Mason asked.

“I was wrong. So very wrong. And any who think that way now will also be wrong. I am not afraid to tell them so.” Ariana reached out and grasped one of their hands in each of hers. “Please. Do this for me. I do not ask for many favors. Let this be one of the few.”

The men traded looks.

“If you’re certain this is what you want…then of course we’ll honor you with our cooperation. We just don’t want you to feel obligated in any way. To feel pressured or bullied.”

“Bullying is part of his charm,” she said with a smile. “Don’t worry. If I didn’t want him here we would be putting him out of the city as we speak. I know this.”

“As long as you realize it’s an option.”

“I do. Now, they should be back in time for supper. I will have the kitchen and the footmen prepare for extra guests. I counted four in the delegation plus Sin.”

“It should make for an interesting dinner,” Jutsin said dryly.

“You’ll survive I’m sure,” Ariana said with amusement. She turned and left the room.

The minute she was out of their sight she leaned against a wall and drew in several deep breaths. Her heart was racing with a barely containable joy. She had never known such a feeling of utter happiness before. All because she would be seeing him again. Who would have ever thought she could feel so strongly for someone. For Sin.

She hurried down the hall to the kitchen. She wanted everything to be perfect. She wanted him to know what it meant to be treated like royalty in the Saren court. For he was royal. She had somehow let prejudice lose sight of that. He deserved equal treatment to any visiting dignitary.

Or more. Because he was Sin.

And he wanted her.




She was standing in the grand foyer of the residences only an hour later waiting for him to arrive. She fidgeted with the ends of her gloves, tucked her fingers against her fingers to seat the gloves more firmly. Then she wished she hadn’t worn them at all. They felt suffocating. And what if she had opportunity to touch him. She wouldn’t want the fabric of her gloves getting in the way.

The residences were all connected by this foyer. Each residence, three in all, was occupied by one of the triumvirs and their closest family. Each had a number of bedrooms, its own kitchen and its own dining hall. They each had their own parlors. Connected to the foyer were also the grand ballroom and the grand dining hall. These five places radiated out from the foyer like spokes on a wheel, with one hall leading from the capitol building into the residences. When they had guests or a ball, people would be led down that hall from the capitol building and enter the grand foyer. When the triumvirs and their families decided to dine together they used any of the private dining rooms or the grand dining hall.

Now they stood in the foyer facing the entrance hall, Ariana nervously fussing with the fall of her dress. She was aware of her fellow triumvirs’ bemused expressions as they watched her pat her hair self-consciously.

“Stop fussing. You look absolutely stunning,” Jutsin whispered to her at last.

Ariana looked at him with a grateful expression. He understood. Neither of them had, at first, comprehended why she would ever accept the suit of a man who had kidnapped her, but it was clear they were beginning to.

Then there was a sound in the hall and two footmen came down the hall with a group of men following behind them.

This was it! He was here!

When the footmen arrived at the threshold of the grand foyer doors they stepped aside and allowed the group of men to enter the room. Ariana looked at the man who stood head and shoulders above the rest. She wasn't prepared for the rush of relief that ran over her and her knees went weak when she saw his face. His expression was shuttered. Polite as he bowed to each triumvir in turn, ending with Ariana. Then he stepped up closer to her, close enough that she had to tip her head back to see up into her eyes.

“I am afraid I do not know much about the courting rituals of your people. You will have to tell me what is appropriate and what is not,” he said, his deep voice washing over he richly along with his heady masculine scent. What next made an impression on her was that he was dressed in the Saren style, with snug kid colored breeches, a waistcoat and frock coat of a deep burgundy that drew attention to the darkness of his eyes and the near blackness of his hair. Beneath these he wore a snowy white shirt with a high starched collar and an intricately knotted cravat. His knee boots were polished to a black shine. The clothing did not belong on him. She preferred him in the Kiltian style with its vibrant colors and looser fabrics. Not that he didn’t wear it well. He did. He looked deliciously handsome. But he was missing that slightly savage air that made her heart skip a beat in his presence.

Then he reached and picked up her hand and holding it within his he raised the back of it to his lips. He never once took his eyes off of her and his gaze burned with the promise of heat and savage passion. There he was. The barely tamed man she had come to feel so much for.

“I will be happy to guide you,” she said breathlessly. “You may start by leading me into the dining hall.” She turned after a cursory glance over Lindo and the other men of his group only to realize they too were all dressed elegantly in the Saren style. But none of them could hold a candle to Sin. “Are you well?” she asked, her voice low so that only he could hear her.