Betrayed by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #5)(18)

“Stop,” I said firmly, gripping his hand. “I didn’t agree to stay at the Palace because I wanted a hidey-hole. I agreed because we’re going to be married, and I love you.” I turned my face, so I could press a kiss into his palm.

Iannis gathered me up in his arms, and I sighed as he rolled onto his side, tucking me against his body. His strength and warmth eased more tension from my body, and my neck and shoulders relaxed.

“Whoever threw that bomb at me is probably the same person who’s been giving intel to the Resistance,” I muttered into his chest. “We have a spy in our midst.”

“Indeed.” Iannis stroked my hair softly, his hand skimming the newly shortened strands—I’d had to chop an inch off, as it had been burned by the fire and smelled like rotten eggs. My eyebrows had seen better days too, but they would grow back to normal overnight. “I wish I could continue the investigation tomorrow, but we cannot delay our trip to Dara. We will have to rely on Fenris to keep up the search in the meanwhile, and if he hasn’t found the culprit by the time we get back, I bloody damn will myself.”

I smiled at that—Iannis so rarely cursed, and never more than once in a single sentence. “I’m sure you will,” I said, tugging open the sash of his robe. “But in the meantime, I could use some help getting to sleep. I’m still a little wired from all the excitement.”

Iannis tensed as I slipped my hand inside his robe and ran it along the smooth, hard muscles of his chest. His right hand pushed up the fabric of my nightgown, and I gasped as he slid his hand between my legs, finding my sweet spot with his skilled fingers.

“Anything for you,” he murmured, rolling me onto my back. His lips found my own, and I lost myself in his arms, pushing aside my troubles. I would deal with them tomorrow, but for now, I would enjoy Iannis, and be happy that I was still alive to do so.





9





“I must say, you’re looking very well for someone who nearly died in an explosion last night!”

“Thank you.” I smiled at Gena Chanie, the correspondent, who had arrived half an hour early to interview me this morning. I’d arrived in the meeting lounge at nine o’clock on the dot—which was a damned miracle considering how long it had taken me to get ready. A maid had rapped on my door at six in the morning, sent by Director Chen to help me prepare, and I’d endured over two hours of scrubbing, washing, hair pulling, and powdering as she dressed me up.

“I imagine you aren’t used to wearing such feminine clothing,” Gena said as her eyes skimmed the peach-colored and far-too-lacy dress the maid had crammed me into. “Considering that you’re an enforcer by trade.”

I smiled a little, smoothing out the skirt of my dress. “I’d have a lot of trouble catching criminals if I had to chase after them wearing ensembles such as this.”

Gena laughed. “Too true! But they will look great on the photos we just took.” She glanced down at her binder. “So tell me, have you and Lord Iannis picked out a wedding date?”

I froze. “Um, no. Not yet.”

“Really?” Gena frowned as she scribbled on her notepad. “I know it’s only been a week since you announced your engagement, but, surely, you’ve given it some thought. Do you plan to have the ceremony in Dara, during the next Convention?”

“No,” I said automatically. The next convention wasn’t for another two years, and there was no way I was waiting that long. “We want friends and family to be present, and that will be easier if we have the wedding here in Solantha.”

“Family?” Gena asked, her pen poised like a viper ready to strike. “Do you mean your relatives from the Jaguar Clan? Do you plan to invite all of them, or only immediate family members?”

Fuck.

The questions came fast and furious, and I floundered badly at each one. Had I picked out a designer for my wedding dress yet? Who was going to give me away at the altar? Did Iannis have any family who would come out of the woodwork to attend? What was it like being engaged to the most powerful man in Canalo? On and on and on it went, and I had no idea if the answers I gave were damning or not to my reputation, never mind Iannis’s.

“Well, I’m afraid that’s all the time I have left,” I announced, cutting off the correspondent mid-sentence. She’d been edging towards questions about the ‘intimate’ side of my relationship with Iannis, and I was having none of it. “I’m leaving for Dara today, and I’m afraid I’m not quite packed yet.”

“Really?” Gena jumped to her feet as I rose, her pen and pad still clutched in her manicured fingers. “What for?”

Shit. I had no idea if our trip to Dara was supposed to be a secret or not. But even if it wasn’t, I doubted Iannis would want me leaking details to the press.

“I cannot say,” I said coolly, deciding it would be best not to offer any information at all. “Lord Iannis asked me to come along as his apprentice, so I am going. Good day to you.”

I swept out of the room, heels clicking on the hallway floor as I hurried back to my rooms as fast as I could without running. I didn’t want to look like I was fleeing from the interview—even if I was, sort of. I really did have to pack, though—between the events of last night and the interview this morning, I wasn’t even remotely ready to go.