Threads of Desire (Spellcraft) - By Stone, Eleri Page 0,25
gold.
He nodded toward the guards stationed inside the doors and passed directly to the upper level. He paused on the threshold then quietly closed the door behind him. Somehow—he’d never understood it—she was always the first to know he was there. Today, she was seated nearest to the door, as if she’d been patiently waiting for him to arrive though he’d sent no word. Her straight black hair was bound in a single thick braid. Much longer and she’d be able to sit on it.
“Nira,” he said, and she turned, her pale eyes lighting with delight.
She ran into his arms and he lifted her off her feet. Her small hands grabbed onto his shoulders and she buried her face against his neck. When she laughed, the sound melted his heart.
“Papa, you came.”
Chapter Nine
Kal coaxed her from her work by insisting that she looked pale and that he wouldn’t have it said of House Azi that they overworked their servants. She’d rolled her eyes, and they’d continued the playful argument as he dressed her in a ridiculously extravagant robe trimmed in gold and what she very much suspected were real rubies.
“I don’t need a break,” Ily insisted as Kal pulled her into the courtyard and through the servant’s gate. She didn’t fight very hard. Every day brought her closer to leaving the villa for good...to leaving Kal. But she did argue with him—first, because she enjoyed it and second, because his reasoning was outrageous. Really, the exercise might be good for her, but she had not grown plump after only three weeks of regular meals.
Grabbing her hand, he led her down the short flight of stairs and through a low arched tunnel into the street.
“You’re winded already. Hurry along now, I don’t wish to be recognized.”
“By whom?” The streets weren’t crowded. Most people were at home at this time of day, resting in what shade they could find or near the water. And if he’d truly wanted anonymity, he might have chosen a color for her other than red. Something plainer, that wasn’t embroidered at waist and cuff with a serpentine pattern reminiscent of his house seal. The veil that covered most of her face was so delicately fine it offered no concealment. He was no better off, wearing fitted breeches and a midnight blue tunic that appeared slick as water in the sun.
He shrugged, glancing down the street and then pulling her into an alley. Hand in hand, they scurried along the edge of the neighboring building. “Anyone might be watching—the emperor’s spies, rival houses, the guild.”
She must have stiffened because he glanced down at her and his expression softened. “They mean no harm. This is Lasura and the emperor’s in residence for a few more weeks until the summer heat drives him out. Everyone is here watching everyone else. It’s a casual interest only, to keep track of alliances and rivalries. No one likes to be surprised, not in business.”
She forced a smile and plucked at his sleeve. “And this is invisible to you?”
He looped a finger inside her veil and tugged it loose. Dropping a kiss to the tip of her nose, he turned her by the shoulders and gave her a gentle push through the open archway to where a young woman stood waiting in the shadows with her head bowed. Kal kicked the brightly painted door closed behind them. “They’ll look for a veiled woman in a scarlet robe and her hulking bodyguard dressed in satin.”
She raised one brow. “Hulking?”
His mouth pulled in a grimace, but his eyes crinkled in amusement. “You wound me, Ily.”
He eased the robe from her shoulders, revealing her comfortable and perfectly unremarkable linen tunic. It was one he’d provided for her, the least showy despite the silk piping at collar and wrist. He tossed both her robe and his own tunic to the waiting servant and pulled a pair of sturdy sandals from the leather bag he’d slung over his shoulder. “I planned to go to the fountains. Do you mind the walk?”
His uncertainty never failed to charm her. She took the sandals and kicked off the more formal slippers she wore. “I don’t mind walking.”
She was rewarded with his wide smile and her heart stuttered in response. He spoke a brief word to the woman, who was obviously accustomed to this routine. He dropped a small pouch into her waiting hand and Ily politely turned her head as they finished their transaction.
They were standing in the receiving room