Serpent's Claim (Serpent's Touch 2)

AMIRA

Kyllen rose on his elbow at my side. “Was this how it happened in your dreams?” He grinned, raising a brow ridge in an elegant arch. “Or was it even better?”

Sunny sparks of humor bounced in his golden eyes. My heart ached at how familiar everything was about him.

“This is better than any dream, Kyllen.” I traced the curve of the sentie hanging in front of his face, and it nibbled at the tip of my finger when I reached its “head.” “This is real.”

“It’s hard to believe it is.” He rolled onto his back, pulling me on top of his chest. “I’ve come here to rescue you, thinking I’d find you lonely and scared. And here you are…a queen.”

“I was lonely and scared.” I thought back to all the months without him—the months I’d believed would stretch into years and decades of missing him for the rest of my life—and shuddered. “I thought I lost you. I’ve been told more than once you were dead. I saw Bherlon ready to strike…”

“I’m so sorry.” Pulling me closer, he kissed my forehead, my cheek, then my lips. The veil was caught between us, but I didn’t care, and neither did he, it seemed. “I was wounded. Poison was in my blood for months, making me delusional. Hapon took me to his home village, on the border with Olathana. Udren’s people were searching for us to avenge Bherlon. I heard about King Zeldren’s death only when I got here. I came to Ufaris ready to either fight for you or steal you from whoever had you.”

He’d mentioned earlier that he’d brought an army with him.

“Wait a minute.” I rose over him, spurred by the sudden realization. “Are those your men lurking in the woods around my palace?”

He shrugged in that carefree manner of his. “In my defense, I didn’t know it was your palace now.”

“Oh, Kyllen,” I groaned, scraping a hand over my face. “I’ll have to call off my men, then. So, you came prepared to storm Ufaris?”

He nodded. “To storm, to crash, to burn it to the ground, whatever it took to get you back.” He glanced at the Crown of Lorsan in its place on the side table by my nest. “I did not expect to find you wearing that.”

He looked stunned, and I felt the need to explain again. “I cared about King Zeldren, Kyllen. But it wasn’t a marriage for love.”

“I know.” Cradling my face in his hand, he stared at me, as if learning anew every feature of my face. “I also know that I shouldn’t be this shocked at seeing what you’ve become. I always knew you had the patience and determination to go as far as you wished to go. I just never could imagine you’d go this far. This quickly. And…without me.” He frowned slightly.

“Is that what bothers you?” I smiled. “Are you upset you’ve missed the coronation?”

“What bothers me the most is that I wasn’t there for you.” His disappointment was real.

I sat up. “Kyllen, darling. You were here. The memories of you never left me. I felt your support every day. I saw you in the dreams that were more vivid than any dream I’ve ever had. You talked to me. You kept me alive.”

“I did?”

I nodded. “You were as real as you are now. But you said you were in darkness and pain. I thought you were visiting me from the afterlife. But I didn’t care, because I just wanted you with me. I needed you.”

He played with the edge of my veil, looking lost in thought for a moment or two. “The hag said my spirit roamed freely while my body was healing. Clearly, conscious or not, there is but one way for me to travel—to you.”

“You don’t remember visiting me? Talking to me?”

“No, my sweet pea. But I remember you being close. When I woke up, it didn’t feel like months have passed since I saw you last.”

I drew in a long breath, shoving aside the memory of all those months without him.

“Let it be in the past, now. You’re here. That’s what matters.” I splayed my hand on his chest where his heart beat strong and steady. “I love you, Kyllen. I thought I’d never get to say it to you.”

A huge grin spread on his face. “I feared you might never say it.”

“You did? But why?”

He covered my hand with his. “You tend to keep inside even the strongest of feelings. In fact, the stronger they are, the deeper you try to bury them, like they’re treasures to hide and protect.”

“My love for you is the biggest treasure.” I lifted his hand to my lips, kissing his palm. “But I’ve found my voice. I’ve been learning to speak up. I love you, Kyllen. And I’ll say it again and again if just to see that smile of yours over and over.”

“I love you, too.” He sat up, taking me in his arms. I wished we could stay like that forever, but he shifted away from me way too quickly.

“Stay.” I gripped his arm.

“I wish I could. But I haven't slept for days. I’m afraid I may fall asleep right here, now.”

“Then sleep. There’s plenty of space. Rest.” I’d just gotten him back. I couldn’t let him leave again.

He rubbed his eyes with a hand. “There are guards at my door. They’ll expect to see me leaving my room in the morning. I need to be there.”

“What guards?” I frowned. “The ones I’ve sent to look for you have all come back. You’ve evaded them all.”

“I couldn’t let them take me to you.”

“Why not?”

A spark flashed in his eyes. “Because it already took all I had not to grab you from the throne when I saw you at the ceremony. I was a second away from kissing the life out of you right then and there, in front of everyone.”

I bit my lip. “I wouldn’t have objected to that.”

“But the others would. If the High Lords catch wind of you favoring me in any way, they’ll assassinate me without a doubt.”

“No,” I protested. “I won’t let them.”

“They’ll find a way. Lord Adriyel has already placed his guards at my bedroom door to spy on me. Of course, he claims they’re there for my protection.”

“How dare he!” Anger boiled hot in me. “I’ll get them removed at once.”