Defend the Dawn (Defy the Night #2)(94)

My breath catches, my heart thumping in my chest, and he breaks off.

“Well.” Corrick raises a rueful eyebrow. “My point is that I did none of it. You found a way to forgive them, and so I found a way to forgive them.” He pauses, and his voice grows grave. “You said I see everyone as an adversary. But since the moment my parents died, that’s all I’ve had. Adversaries. I’ve had to fight to hold Kandala together. I’ve had to fight to keep my brother safe. And now, if I have to, I’ll fight to hold on to you.”

I swallow and lift a hand to cover his, holding his bandaged palm to my cheek.

He brushes a thumb along my cheekbone. “If you’d allow me, I would say all that and more once we return to the Royal Sector. I would officially declare our courtship before the king. But only if you want the same, Tessa.”

His eyes are so honest, dark blue in the dim candlelight. This reminds me of the moment we kissed in the workshop, the first time I saw him as Wes and Corrick all rolled into one man. It reminds me of the way I was sitting on the deck, and he brought me food, even though we were at odds. It reminds me of our first carriage ride together, when I was terrified of him, and he offered me a pouch full of silver and a dagger from his belt, and he told me how to find freedom.

Impulsively, I reach forward and put my arms around his neck again.

This time he catches me for real, his hands secure against my back. He smells so warm, so familiar. I press my face into his neck.

I missed you, I think.

Because I did.

I blink, and the world goes blurry. Tears sit on my lashes.

Corrick must feel the shift in my emotions, because he draws back. He tsks under his breath, then touches a thumb to my cheek, brushing a tear away.

“Do you still hate me?” he says softly.

“No,” I whisper, like it’s a secret. “I love you.”

He leans closer. “What’s that?” he teases. “I can’t hear you.”

“I said you’re a huge pain in my—”

I break off with a squeal when he kisses me, then melt into his hands when he pulls me close.

“Will you stay here with me?” he says quietly, and I freeze. Before I can say anything else, he adds, “Things are so precarious with Captain Blakemore. If something were to happen, I don’t want the guards to have to split their attention.”

The room is so quiet, and so warm, and the boat rocks beneath us. He might be right to worry, and he might not.

But tonight, we’re alone, darkness pressing against the window.

Tonight, like before, it’s the two of us against the night.

“Will you?” he says, his thumb stroking over my lip.

I stare into his blue eyes and nod. “Yes.”





CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Tessa

Eventually, we have to sleep, and I don’t really know when he drags me to the bed, just that we’re somehow there.

“I’ll sleep on the floor,” he says. “I want to hear if anyone gives the guards trouble.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s a crime to allow the King’s Justice to sleep on the floor,” I say, but my heart skips, because it sounds a bit coy.

I thought it would make him smile, but it doesn’t. “I rather doubt it. Harristan left me to sleep in a cell, if you recall.” He grabs a pillow and one of the blankets, then moves to the door, dousing one of the lanterns on his way.

For a moment, I don’t think he’s serious, but he unlaces his boots to kick them free, then unbuckles his jacket to toss it over the back of a chair. When his hands fall on the hem of his shirt, my breath catches, and he stops, his eyes glittering in the shadows.

I realize I’m staring at him, and my cheeks catch on fire. I flop back on the bed and drag a pillow over my face. “Sorry.”

He laughs softly. “Don’t be sorry.”

“I’ve seen you shirtless before.”

Fabric rustles. “Ah, yes. So you’re immune.”

“Completely.” I slide the pillow down, peeking around the edge.

He’s wrapped in the blanket already, lying on the cold, hard wood of the floorboards. His eyes are on me now, and I unlace my own boots to kick them free, then untie my vest.

“You’re not getting a show either,” I say.

“Good. Because I’m not immune.”

The heat on my cheeks goes nowhere. I crawl under my own blankets and reach to lower the flame of the other lantern, leaving us with little more than moonlight and the rhythmic creaking of the ship.

But as I lie there in the silence, I think about everything he said. I’ve always risked my life to help others, but my choices have always been simple, because I’ve never had much to lose. If I were thrown into the Hold or killed while distributing medicine in the Wilds, the world would keep on spinning.

But Corrick always has so much more at risk. I’ve been judging him and Rian by the same standards—by the standards I would apply to myself—but now I wonder if that’s been fair.

Corrick and Harristan have an entire country to lose. Their choices have threats and vulnerabilities built into each one.

For the first time, I wonder what Rian has to lose.

Across the room, Corrick shifts his weight, and I glance over.

“Corrick,” I say softly.