Façade (The Royal Chronicles Book 1) by Camille Peters

Author:Camille Peters [Peters, Camille]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rosewood Publications
Published: 2023-05-26T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 19

RYLAND

If I didn’t know for certain that Evie didn’t possess magic, I’d wonder if she’d cast a spell upon me with how often the intriguing woman consumed my thoughts, a ploy to seduce me into preserving our marriage to protect the true princess of Estoria. It was working far more than I wanted to admit, considering she already occupied far more of my attention than was prudent with the time we had remaining. The seed had been planted the night I’d carried her to her room, been nourished by our time wading through the stream, and blossomed last night, the first night we’d slept beside one another.

Unbidden, the memory of last night returned so vividly I felt transported back to that moment, the details fully preserved with how often I revisited it…particularly the moment she’d cuddled up to me. My breath had caught even as I stiffened in shock.

For an endless moment I lay completely still, my mind consumed with her nearness and every warm contour of her body pressed against mine. Rather than push her away as I knew I ought, I found to my utter surprise I liked her sleeping so close. Instinctively my arms wrapped around her to hold her close.

The floral-scented warmth of her nearness had made sleep impossible, as had the all-consuming curiosity of whether or not the improper princess snored. I’d fought against my own exhaustion luring me to sleep in order to solve that particular mystery.

Though she slept quietly, the thin moonlight of the clearing had illuminated her adorable sleeping face just as it did tonight, even as I missed her spirited expressions and the hints of fire that always seemed to simmer beneath the surface, which I should have found annoying but instead which never ceased to entertain me. Our interactions breathed life into my previously monotonous existence in ways my dutiful royal life never had.

Despite the lengthy travel awaiting me with tomorrow’s arrival, I stayed awake most of the night, basking in our remaining hours before she slipped away forever. I focused on the feeling of her cradled in my arms, striving to memorize it so that I could remember it long after we separated.

As the night stretched on, she melted more fully into my embrace, snuggling closer in a way that caused my breath to hook and my heart to palpitate wildly. I felt awash in the sensations of holding her, a closeness I’d begun to crave since the moment I’d first embraced her the first night I’d comforted her. She fit so perfectly against me, as if my arms had been built solely for her.

I unconsciously stroked her hair; she released a contented sigh and snuggled herself closer, a cute sound she never would have made if she’d been awake. My settling heartbeat flared back to life. I’d miss this contentment even as I looked forward to our impending word spar I never tired of.

Dawn had never brought such disappointment, signaling not only the end of this last tender moment but the day we were due to arrive to the monastery.

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