Igniting Darkness (Courting Darkness Duology #2) - Robin LaFevers Page 0,77

candles they have brought in to light the grand salon. The king is at her side, polite and attentive. The two of them are surrounded by dignitaries and the highest nobles in France. The regent is not nearly far enough away for my liking, but at least she is not hovering like a macabre crow.

That role is reserved for the bishops and the king’s confessor, whom I do my best to ignore. They will not steal this victory from us, from her, for all that they have tried. The Bishop of Albi looks up just then, his gaze finding me across the room and narrowing in distaste. He whispers something to the confessor.

Refusing to let them dampen my spirits, I ignore them and examine the rest of the crowd, looking for Genevieve. Although I spend a few minutes searching, I see no signs of her. Surely the king has not confined her to her room. Just as I decide I will go check, Father Effram sidles up next to me.

“Lady Sybella.” His bright blue eyes focus on mine with such intensity that I am momentarily nonplussed.

“Good evening, Father. Have you seen Genevieve this evening?”

“Not yet. Perhaps she is in the chapel?”

“Gen? In the chapel?” I nearly laugh.

He shrugs. “I did say ‘perhaps,’ my lady. You have had good fortune finding those you seek there.”

I stare at his lively face a moment before his meaning becomes clear. “Oh!” I say, then hurry out of the room, trying with all my might to not break into a run.

* * *

The chapel is lit by flickering candlelight that reflects off the stained-glass windows and casts everything in jewel-toned shadows. In the front a lone man kneels in prayer, the width of his shoulders leaving little room for anyone else to join him there.

At my arrival, his head lifts, but he does not turn around until I am standing behind him. Slowly, he rises to face me, my heart nearly bursting from my chest at the sight of him. “You’re back,” I whisper, afraid to say it too loudly, lest I wake up and find it a dream.

“And you are well.” Beast’s pale blue eyes glow like the colored glass of the windows as he takes my hand. It fits inside his enormous callused one as neatly as a glove.

“I told you I would be.”

“You did.” His gaze does not leave mine. “But I have learned the world often has other plans for you than the ones you make.”

“I cannot be blamed for that.” I laugh as I draw him away from the nave toward a small room that opens up off the rostrum. I do not think anyone will be visiting this chapel tonight, but there is no reason to be careless.

“I make you laugh, do I?” he growls.

“Always.”

He peers down at me. “You are different. Lighter. As if you’ve clouds inside your skin instead of bones and blood.”

I rise up on my toes. “It is simply my joy that you are back.”

“It is infectious,” he murmurs, capturing my lips, as if he, too, wishes to be filled with clouds.

It is a heady thing, this moment, this kiss. For nearly six weeks, I have longed for this moment, even as I feared it might never come.

He pulls away just enough so that our eyes meet. “You missed me.”

I close the door behind us. “What makes you think that?”

“You did not even ask if the girls were safe.”

I snort and place my hands on his shoulders, savoring the rock-solid feel of him. “That is not because I missed you, but because I knew you wouldn’t be here if they were not.” It is truly a miracle to trust someone so very much. I pull his mouth back toward mine. “You are as dependable as the plague,” I murmur.

His hands move up to cradle my face. I close my eyes, savoring the roughness of his palms against my cheek. Savoring this sense of being cherished, of being precious.

Then his lips are on mine, and I revel in the feel of them, warm and soft, with hunger lurking just beneath the surface. Hunger that is far more than simply the time apart, but speaks to the danger we have both been in, the desperate need to believe we would be safe until we could be with each other again.

“I love you,” I whisper. “I love the way you kiss and the way you touch me and the way you always, always see me. And accept whatever