A dizziness took over. He tasted like ocean and rain, like summer mornings and sunshine, like everything abstract and beautiful, and she wantedmore.
His hands traveled from her face to her hair. A tremor ran down her spine when his fingers dragged through her scalp,loosening the hair pins, and then trailed down the nape of her neck to her lower back. A breathless moan escaped her.
“Do you like when I touch you?” he murmured, pulling away from his kiss to stare down at her. His usually shuttered expression was heated, possessive, and with a hint of feral desire that sent a jolt down her core.
She blushed. “N-no.”
“Liar.” He kissed her again and she stepped even closer to him. She clutched his back tightly, her breasts pushing against his muscular frame, and her thighs brushing against his long legs. His kisses trailed down to her jaw, then the column of her throat. Her eyelids fluttered shut as he dragged his lips over the sensitive flesh.
“Tell me you want this,” he said quietly.
Her eyes flicked over to his. He was now level with her, a grim expression overtaking his handsome face.
“I want this; I want—I wantyou.”
The admission felt like a betrayal of her royal name, but it feltrightin that moment.
Nikator leaned in to press another kiss on her, but a woman’s grating laughter jolted Biyu back to the present. Everything had all but disappeared during their moment of passion—she had forgotten they were still in the grand hall, barely hidden by the pillars and banners and curtains. She poked her head around Nikator’s arm to find a group of noblewomen a few feet away from them, cooling their faces with fancy silk hand fans and giggling over the newest piece of gossip.
A frown twisted her lips and she glanced at Nikator, who glared at the unaware women. She tugged at his hand. “How about we leave to find somewhere private?”
A dark eyebrow rose. “Oh? Like where?”
“Follow me.”
25
Nikator probably hadn’t expectedBiyu to drag him to the southern gardens. The last time she had been up these twisted paths was when Drakkon Muyang had told her Jian would marry her. She avoided the pergola where everything had transpired last time, and they took a different path. The palace gardens were so vast that they were lost in the thicket of cherry blossom trees and fragrant flowers. Away from anyone who might have also disappeared into the night with a lover.
Nikator held her hand lightly, his fingers brushing along her knuckles from time to time. The summer air was cool against her warm skin, and the sky was peppered with stars. The moon shone brightly, lighting their path in sheets of silver. Crickets and insects buzzed. The night was calm, beautiful even.
It had been a long time since she had felt such peace. She pushed aside all her worries and everything that had bothered her and just focused on thenow.
On how large and calloused Nikator’s hand was. On how the gentle breeze felt against her cheeks and neck. On how being this close to him sent a host of butterflies fluttering in her lower belly.
“Do you think anyone will notice that I’m gone?” she asked, unable to meet his gaze.
“I doubt it. They will likely think you wanted to retire for the night.”
“I suppose that’s true.” Her words came out small.
She didn’t know why she was suddenly so shy. It wasn’t like they were doing anything other than strolling through the gardens, but she felt awkward after admitting that she wanted him—and then being promptly interrupted before he could even say it back. If he even meant to say it.
Or maybe she was having too little confidence in herself. Hadn’t he told her that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever met? That she lit up his world with vibrant colors? That sheplaguedhis thoughts?
Perhaps it was time for her to grow a little. Just like these trees and flowers, which looked so different than when she was a young girl.
Biyu spotted her destination before he did, and she couldn’t help the smile that lifted her lips. She pointed to the small pond surrounded by an array of dragon and serpent statues. A bridge led to the center of the water where a pergola sat. “There,” she said, tugging his hand as they crossed the distance. “I used to love coming here.”
It was well-kept, unlike in her memory, where no one had cared to maintain it that well. Her father had had little care for the gardens, and hadn’t hired as many gardeners in these parts. She padded over the bridge, her footsteps light, while Nikator’s creaked over the wood. Fireflies danced between them, blazing up in beautiful greens, and intermingling with the gentle winds.
Even the floor of the pergola was polished and clean; stone benches were pushed to either side of the octagonal structure. Moonlight lit the space in silver rays. Biyu released his hand and went to one of the banisters; the surface of thepond was undisturbed. Water lilies were scattered along in no particular pattern, and she could make out movement beneath the darkened surface. She could imagine the colorful fish that inhabited these waters. She had once enjoyed swimming here and pretending to be a hunter catching prey.
She told Nikator just that, and a wry smile pulled on his soft mouth.
“I can’t imagine you as a hunter,” he said, and then with a snort of laughter. “But wouldn’tfisherbe a more appropriate term?”
Her cheeks warmed. “I was a child.”
