Page 102 of When Roses Burn

That was all true, and if he’d survived and escaped the harem… twice… then he could take down anything else he encountered.

But the reminder of Pierce and Lyra awakened a new concern. With Dromon here, would Knox replace his friend in their little threesome?

The question inexplicably angered me. He said he hadn’t kissed another woman since me, but had he slept with them?

It was possible to have sex without kissing. Of course, I knew he’d been with other women in the harem—the reminder brought tears of sorrow for him to my eyes—but that wasn’t by choice. Once outside the harem, had he found other women to ease him?

The idea of such a thing shouldn’t bother me; he was a man, and he’d rejected me as his mate. He had every right to do as he pleased with his body, especially since my mother took that right from him for years, but I couldn’t deny that the idea was a dagger to my heart.

“Are you okay?” Bertie asked.

I flexed my fingers and inhaled through the constriction in my chest. “Yes, I’m just looking forward to getting to work.”

“Then I’ll leave you to it. Let me, or one of the other sprites, know if you need anything.”

“I will. Thank you. Are you really going to leave me alone out here?”

“Do you plan to run away?”

“No, but… I… I can’t remember the last time I was left alone somewhere that wasn’t locked or the harem. I…”

I didn’t know what else to say as my gaze drifted over the walls.

“You’re not free here,” she said, “but you won’t be guarded.”

“Why not?”

“Knox doesn’t feel you need it. If you try to destroy something here, he’ll make you pay. And if you try to run, he’ll hunt you, or something else will. Either way, you’ll end up here again or dead.”

“I see.”

“Use your time wisely; it would be best for all of us.”

Before I could reply, Bertie flew away, leaving me in the cool shed... alone. Well, except for Gizzi, but I had no guards, no locked door, and no atrocious tradition to face. I had only myself, the small creature in my pocket, and moss to harvest. It was one of the best days I’d had in years.

CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR

Briar

I gathered a pair of garden scissors and set them in a bucket. With supplies in hand, I returned to the moss and set to work.

Kneeling at the edge of the soft green plant, I carefully snipped away some of the red hairs as Gizzi popped out of my pocket and scampered up to my shoulder. He perched on my right side and curled his tail around my nape, where it tickled my left cheek.

He’d told me last night that Knox had discovered him and, in doing so, simply covered him up and left him alone. I didn’t know what that meant, but I took it as a sign I didn’t have to hide my friend; he’d told me last night he was an animal called a lowleeto.

I’d never heard of such a thing before and planned to find a book in the library about them, but that was a task for another day. Today, I was gardening again, and the sun was out as much as it could be in this cursed kingdom; I planned to savor every second of it.

After a while, Gizzi fell asleep while I trimmed the hairs, patted the moss I’d taken them from, and thanked the plant for its gift. Beneath my fingers, the earth thrummed with a power that penetrated my bones while imbuing me with its energy.

Unable to resist, I bent closer to the ground and pressed my cheek against the moss. I closed my eyes as I inhaled its fragrant, earthy scent. The aroma entered my lungs and flowed through me as Gizzi stirred.

“What are you doing?” he asked in my head.

“It feels so good,” I said aloud.

Gizzi scampered from my shoulder and crawled onto the moss. He bent and placed his cheek against it too. “It is soft.”

“It’s also full of strength, power, and life. It’s wonderful.”