Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 115347 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115347 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
He stared right at her, and she gulped. He was taller than she’d realized and the most muscled of all, judging by the straining tunic that covered his chest. A bigger cuff than most with double the stones adorned his wrist. Scuffed leathers hugged powerful thighs.
Did he remember her?
“You,” he breathed.
Her heart pounded, her feet suddenly as heavy as boulders. Oh, yeah. He remembered.
CHAPTER FOUR
LITTLE RED. SHE’S HERE. Another hallucination? A likely possibility. Micah had spied her dozens of times throughout the centuries, but only when he’d battled belua. Never any other occasion. Until now. For once, he was seeing her outside of combat. Could this version of her be...real?
He stood transfixed, awed. She’d grown more beautiful than ever. Too beautiful to be true?
Elena lingered at his side, droning on and on about Lavina, her sister-in-law. The two were forever at odds over something. Anything. Everything.
“How terrible for you,” he muttered when she paused for breath. His concentration remained on Red.
Long auburn hair gleamed in the afternoon sunlight. Smooth golden skin glowed with vitality. Features somehow as delicate as they were bold provided a delightful contradiction, inviting further—endless—study.
No, this perfect creature wasn’t real. Such a flawless masterpiece of carnality could only be a figment of his imagination.
How many nights had he dreamed of those jade eyes? That straight nose with its adorable smattering of freckles? Those plush cherry lips? The plumper bottom with its center dip taunted him.
Exquisite.
“I’m a valued member of your army while she’s a drain on society,” Elena continued, unaware of his disregard. “Norok never should have wed her. And to do so a year after you terminated the marriage line? How could he be so foolish? He’s usually smart.”
“Intelligence doesn’t guarantee wisdom.” Red’s dirty, frayed gown revealed a wealth of curves lusher than he remembered, and his mouth dried.
“I mean, I guess I understand. Being without a glamara makes him feel less than the rest of us. But to settle for Lavina because he was afraid he’d be unable to win anyone better...” She shuddered. “She got pregnant on purpose. Did you know that? Norok probably felt forced to accept a permanent connection with her. But did that permanent connection have to be forever?”
“Forever,” Micah parroted. Between one blink and the next, memories replaced his present and he lost sight of imaginary Red. Norok’s son, Warren, used to trail Micah’s every step. Unlike everyone else, the boy hadn’t minded being near the chimera.
Warren had grown into an amazing man. Strong. Loyal. Fierce but kind. A dedicated soldier who never left an injured fae behind. Now dead, killed on the battlefield. Not that there had been any kind of battle. The enemy ravaged his contingent of soldiers.
The tendons in Micah’s neck distended as muscles bunched. Acid waves of grief and sorrow washed over him. Fury and guilt. The once-jovial Norok had changed since the lad’s death, becoming hardened and somber. They’d all changed since the devastating loss.
Voice thicker, Elena asked, “Do you think he’ll ever recover from the loss?”
Will I? “I honestly don’t know.” Many others had lost sons that fateful day. Fathers, brothers, uncles and friends, too. And the blame is mine.
If only Micah had slain the couple responsible when he’d had the chance. Kaysar the Unhinged One and Cookie the Uncrumbled, a female more demented than her deranged husband. Instead, Micah had stayed his hand.
At the time, he’d still wondered if Kaysar were a chimera. Chimera sensed each other, after all. The very reason Erwen had found baby Micah in the middle of a forest. Micah had never forgotten his pull to Kaysar. Had hoped to save one of his own. Now he suspected the opposite. The male was pure fae and nothing like him. Showed mercy for nothing.
The worst part? He’d known better. Both before and after Micah’s crowning, the other royal had often ventured in the Dusklands to hunt belua. The only other warrior in Astaria able to overcome such unfavorable odds without the aid of another. Even Norok, Micah’s most dedicated and decorated warrior, required a partner.
“Kaysar’s execution will help.” Oh yes. Micah planned to rectify his error. Soon.
Mollified by the assurance, Elena returned to her original topic. He listened...for half a second. He’d caught sight of Red again.
He let his gaze drift over her body, savoring certain swells and dips.
Appearing shocked to her core, Red reared back. At least, she tried to. Something kept her tethered.
“...listening to me?” Elena asked.
“No.” He searched for the block—a familiar hand that led to a masculine arm. Broad shoulder. White beard. Norok. Micah stiffened. She’s real. She must be. Contact could not be made with a figment of his imagination.
His heart beat fast. Faster. She’s real. Excitement overtook him. Then confusion. Why was she here? How was she here? Why now?
Did she recognize him as the boy who’d given her jewels so long ago?