Chapter 2

Queen Cleo of Arloerin stared at the Krahzaran prince who sat across from her at the council table. "You're a few months early, you know. The treaty I set with Malik isn't due to expire until..."

"Oh, I know," Prince Kaveh grinned, his light hazel eyes sparkling as he watched her every move just as she watched his. "Besides, I thought you'd enjoy my company while we hashed out a few...details...that I'm sure you didn't forget since the last time Arloerin and Krahzara came to an agreement."

Enjoy his company...while trying not to slap him for every smirk he gave her or every heated look. Gods, did he think highly of himself. Cleo eyed him carefully, his inky black hair that fell in waves down to his broad shoulders, the smooth, dark olive skin, how his gold embroidered black tunic was unbuttoned and showing off his well-toned chest. And those eyes still watching her carefully...

Oh, yes. He'd done this just to try and trip her up. Like that would happen.

She shifted in her seat, crossing one leg over the other as her hands rested gracefully on the armrests. "I thought this was about trade of goods?"

"It is...among other things."

Cleo couldn't help it. She let out a laugh. "You've got some nerve coming here unexpected. Does Malik know you're here?"

"You mean, does he know that I beat him here? Yes. I think he's going to try and get here soon to start talks in...oh, I don't know when. I told him I wanted to get to know Arloerin more since, you know, if that marriage term of the previous agreement still stands between you and I..."

"Oh, please," she snorted. "You think I don't remember that? Your mother is still insistent upon it, too, especially now that you're of age. But I'm sure your many lovers wouldn't take too kindly to you being married off."

"There's only one lover I can think of, actually..."

Again, Cleo laughed, throwing her head back.

"What's so funny?" Kav asked, trying to look more innocent than she definitely knew he was. "Is the thought of marrying me that horrific?"

"Definitely. Besides, I wouldn't want to marry a Krahzaran prince whose head is much too big for his shoulders. I remember when you were just a cute little nine-year-old running through these halls..."

That godsforsaken smirk pulled up one corner of his mouth. "And now I'm almost a twenty-nine-year-old male who knows how to please every one of his lovers...and would love to find out what pleases the queen who sits in front of him now."

Biting the inside of her lip, she swallowed down a groan. Holy gods above.

There. He knew he had her. Had her squirming in her seat and her thoughts running away from her.

Cleo's knee banged against the council table as she bolted up.

Kav grinned as he fluidly stood, watching as her eyes drew up the length of his body. Nope, he definitely wasn't the nine-year-old boy who barely stood up to her chest the first time she met him. Now, he towered over her, purely male and muscle with magic that drew her in.

She cleared her throat loudly. "This meeting is now over, especially since we didn't start any kind of treaty talks."

"Like I said, I just wanted to come and explore Arloerin without my brother pestering me," Kav told her, running his fingers through his hair to draw it up in a knot at the back of his head. "So, I'll leave you now to roam the city, taste the famous Arloerin wines, and gorge myself on too much food and maybe a few females as well. I don't think I'll be joining you for dinner tonight if that's all right."

"Fine," she growled out, just wanting him gone. "Just don't wreck my city or else I'll have to send both my dragons after you to roast you alive."

Kav gave her another lopsided grin and didn't say a word as he rounded the table only to stop at her side and lean down to whisper, "I wouldn't bet on it. You and I know they both love me too much."

Her shadows immediately jumped at the closeness of him, wanting to reach out to him and pull him even closer.

Cleo stood frozen in place even as he left the council room, taking his two guardsmen with him.

Calm down before you do something so incredibly stupid...

A low whistle sounded from behind her. "Damn, he knows how to get to you," Urell grinned at her, fangs and all. The orc had been by her side for well over a century and knew how she worked...and when she was about to lose it. "I'd say you need some time to work off the anger and tension that boy brought with him. Want me to gather some of the guard for training with the queen?"

"No, I'm...fine. I just need to calm down or else I'll..."

Her second, Janan, grinned from the chair at her right, fingers smoothing over her leopard familiar Shamira's fuzzy head in her lap. Her dark umber skin seemed to be glowing from the new lotion she'd sampled when they were in Searis just the week before. "Calm down. Sure. Urell, you might want to get one of the males who work at that pleasure house near the port. You remember the one she took a liking to...?"

"Stop, would you?" Cleo groaned, then plopped herself back down in her chair in a manner not fit for a queen. She covered her face with her hand, fingers brushing over the golden fabric and metal of her eyepatch that covered her onyx eye. "I just want him gone."

Janan shook her head as she reached over and patted her arm. "That's not going to happen until the treaty talks finish up, you know. He'll find every excuse just to stay and get under your skin. And this would just be the beginning. Since we're not due to complete them for another few months, he'll hopefully be leaving but will then have to come back with the Crown Prince."

Urell was rounding the room, large arms crossed over his chest with his battle axe across his back. "Why is he early? Malik said in his last message he wouldn't be here for another few weeks. And if Prince Kaveh speaks to you like that again, you know I'll gladly put my axe in that head of his."

Cleo straightened her red jacket and ran her fingers through her hair. It was a poor attempt to calm herself down. "Well, you can't exactly do that without making Arloerin go to war with Krahzara, can you?"

"We could say he tripped and fell."

"Right into your axe in your hands?"

"Now, you're getting it."

Despite herself, Cleo chuckled at his attempts to lighten the mood.

Urell raised a brow. "You know, I could send for that male if...that's the kind release you need."

"I'm fine, you two. Geez," she told them, rolling her eyes as she pushed herself up to stand. "Now, don't we have to go inspect a few of the market stands?"

Janan raised a brow. "You mean eat as many sweets as you can without getting sick, don't you?"

"Almost twenty-five years as my second-in-command and you still question my motives, my dear," Cleo smiled at her, holding out her hand for Janan's. "Of course, that's what I plan to do. Come on. You and Shamira are coming with me."

"You do know everyone's about to close up shop for the evening, right?" she questioned, yet took her hand anyway.

"Exactly, which makes it all the more imperative we leave right now."

Janan went along with her with Shamira trotting along by their side as Urell grudgingly followed.

Her two best friends in all of Arloerin, they'd been by her side through almost everything. Urell had been the first orc child she'd ever seen when she was a child herself. His parents had been taken by a sickness that spared him but left him on the ruined streets of Arloerin. Cleo's grandmother Renna had taken him into their tiny ramshackle home, having missed being able to care for someone other than herself and Cleo. It had been shortly after assassins had killed her twin sister Adeena and her grandfather Evander. They grew up with one another, learning how to fight and defend themselves and each other, growing in each of their unique magics and skill sets. Of course, Cleo would make him Commander of the Elite Guard and General in Arloerin's army.

Though Urell had been with her the longest, Janan would always hold a special place in Cleo's heart. The mage had gone through so much in her short life having been the consort to King Nishan of Rezuvell before his queen helped her escape. With nowhere to go, she and Shamira had gone to the one place all misfits seemed to converge – Arloerin. Cleo still remembered that day when she and Urell were out at one of the vineyards and she'd first laid eyes on the tattered and worn-out mage and her familiar. From that moment, she knew Janan was something special and she grew to love her as a sister after just a short time of knowing each other.

A sister...gods, no. Cleo had to shake her head to rid herself of the thoughts that, no matter what she did, would never seem to leave her.

She tried to plaster on a smile as she, Janan, Shamira, and Urell left the palace grounds, heading for the heart of the city of Arloerin just as the sun began to lower to the west. Many of the vendor carts were still out, though they were packing up what they hadn't sold that day. They still managed to buy a few things off them, slowly walking up and down the streets as the city came to life in the nighttime.

Different colored lights were being lit along with the lanterns that hung overhead. Music streamed out from taverns and nightclubs, along with laughter and conversation. Usually, they would join in the nightly festivities, but Cleo's mind was elsewhere and Janan and Urell knew it. They still kept her occupied and away from the palace, just like she was needing then. She was still looking around for a certain someone. Someone Janan knew about and had kept to herself on Cleo's orders.

No one knew except for her.

Oh, and one other who'd known about it long before anything ever did. One who smirked as soon as he'd set foot in the palace a few months ago and took one look at her. Damn that Seer.

With the sun now set, all the lights making the capital city of Arloerin glow, and the constellations popping out up above them in the night sky, Cleo sighed.

Then caught sight of three young boys running in their direction, play fighting with wooden swords, before one of them tripped and fell, skinning the palms of his hands as he slammed into the cobblestone.

Cleo rushed over as soon as he cried out, kneeling down beside him as his two friends came back to check on him.

"Are you all right, little one?" she asked, helping him sit up. She looked down and saw the blood and dirt that covered his hands. "Here, let me help you with that."

The boy and his friends watched as her shadows appeared, cool as a nighttime breeze, weaving in and out of her fingers before stretching out toward the boy's scraped up palms. Though her healing magic was very little when it wasn't being used on herself, she knew she could do this. Her shadows pulled forward her light magic with them, making flecks of silver like stars burst within them. The boys stared in wonder, barely even realizing how her magic soothed over and healed the scrapes until he was good as new.

"Oh, wow," the boy breathed, staring up at her. Then he finally realized who she was. "Queen Cleo, it's you!"

"It's me," she smiled, helping him stand and straightening his shirt. "How do you feel?"

"I'm perfect, thank you!" he smiled, then gave her a quick hug. She barely felt when his small hand slipped into her jacket pocket, depositing a folded-up piece of parchment there. Then he leaned forward to whisper in her ear, "I was supposed to give you this, too."

The three of them bolted back down in the direction they'd come, their laughter echoing again until they disappeared around the street corner.

"Everything all right?" Urell asked from behind her.

Cleo didn't turn, feeling his and Janan's eyes on her back. "Fine. Just fine. Scraped hands is all."

Scraped hands and a note meant only for her eyes.

"Cleo?" Janan said, her lyrical voice holding a bit of worry when she didn't make a move.

"Hm?" she hummed, spinning back around. "I'm fine. Just...tired with the unexpected arrival. Do you mind if I leave you two and head back home?"

"We can go with..." Urell began, nodding back in the direction of the palace.

But Cleo shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I just want to clear my head, all right?"

They knew not to push her when she needed time to herself. The weight she carried...they knew of everything she did for her kingdom and yet still couldn't understand it wasn't their companionship she was wanting to help shoulder the burden but another who would stand beside her.

So, Urell nodded his head with a faint smile. "Of course. Just call for us should you need us, all right? Otherwise, we'll see you in the morning."

As she walked, Cleo made a show of putting both hands in her pockets, her shadows settling around her like a thick blanket to keep her warm against the night's chilly breeze, fingers closing around the folded piece of parchment there. And as she rounded the corner, disappearing from Janan and Urell's view, she finally let her shadows envelope her fully, allowing her to step through them and right through the palace gates. The guardsmen didn't even blink at her sudden appearance, having it happen plenty of times before, enough for them to be used to it.

As she walked around to the side of the main building, letting the cobblestone path guide her through the gardens in full bloom beneath the moonlight, she was finally able to sneak the parchment out, unfold it, and read the words written there in familiar blocked handwriting.

Guess I've got something to make up for, huh? You know where to find me.

She did.

Looking up, she saw there was a light on in her bed chamber, one she knew she hadn't left on.

And let her shadows bring her to him as she smiled.

***

Cleo tried not to let her hum of contentment turn into a moan of pleasure, but the fingertips that continued to trace along her skin were making it very, very difficult. They traced along every one of her scars, jagged and raised even after all the time that passed, then over the tattoos that covered the other half of her body. Just swirls of ink in an intrinsic pattern, something pretty to look at instead of the marks of the past. Those fingers then trailed along the bare curve of her spine, so light she had to concentrate to feel them, and then they disappeared below the silken sheets that covered her from the waist down as they brushed against her thighs.

Hours before, right when she stepped out from her shadows and into her bed chamber, she'd already been working on undoing the buttons on her jacket. Gods, she'd missed him. And it had only been a few weeks since he'd been there in Arloerin with her, though he'd snuck in just to see her for a few days without anyone else knowing he was there. Janan had been the only one, mostly because she had to keep everyone from questioning where Cleo had slipped off to. She wasn't anywhere, just locked up in her rooms with a male she was supposed to not want anything to do with.

And yet she wanted everything to do with him.

Lips brushed the skin of her shoulder as a body settled beside hers on the mattress. "Marry me."

"Hmm," she hummed, eyes still closed in concentration, following the trail his fingers made. Closer and closer he got to the space between her legs, making her shift to grant him better access. "No."

His fingers stilled and she wanted to growl out her displeasure. "Do you know how many times I've asked you now?"

"How many?"

"Too many. And yet you still tell me no."

"Hmm."

"Why?"

"Why?" Cleo repeated, finally opening her eyes to see the face on the pillow beside hers. She shifted so she was on her side facing him. "Because I like hearing you ask it over and over again a little too much. Who knows when I'll finally say yes?"

Those light hazel eyes she absolutely loved were bright even in the darkness around them, glowing in the light from the fire that blazed in the hearth.

"You know," Kav told her as his fingers made their upward climb once more, slowly brushing over the apex of her thighs to making her groan. "We both have a friend who will be able to tell me the exact moment when you finally say yes."

"Mm-hm. And you missed him by a month since he's gone back to his own land, but I think...I..."

She couldn't concentrate. Not when Kav dropped his face to the crook of her shoulder, kissing along her collarbone as his arm hooked around her waist, then pulled her on top of him. "Dammit. Looks like we'll just have to wait then."

"And it looks like you'll just have to keep asking."

"Will you marry me?"

"Nope."

Kav let out a snarl that had her toes curling as she shifted to straddle him. But she didn't make another move, even though he was more than ready for her to. She paused, staring at him, at the hard lines of his face, at his wavy dark hair that spilled out across her pillows, at his skin that still glistened with sweat in the firelight.

Hers. He was all hers, just as she was his.

Mate.

Kav seemed to realize what had gone through her mind then, the both of them focusing solely on each other, on the shimmering bond that connected them. A sorceress with light and darkness and a mage from a completely different world than the one she'd come from and yet there they were, destined for one another by different gods.

He was the only one who didn't look at her with both fear and respect. Didn't shrink away at her shadows that were always surrounding her. Didn't cower or look away when she'd finally let him see her obsidian eye, which she always had covered up with her eyepatch.

Beautiful, he'd whispered to her the first time he'd seen it all, had seen every inch of her.

And she never truly had felt that way until then.

Cleo reached up, brushing her fingers across his cheeks, across his jawline, below his bottom lip just before he kissed her fingers, making her smile gently. "I missed you, Kav."

Threading his fingers in her hair, he pulled her face down to his, kissing her softly. "I missed you, too, my queen."

"You wanna stay for a few days?" she asked, trailing the tip of her nose along the side of his. "Janan can cover for me like she always does."

"Sure...and then I guess I have to come clean about how Malik was actually not going to come. He's got a trip planned, but I might have lied...and he might not show up for a few weeks. I might have told him I was going to Searis for a short trip..."

"Are you serious?"

"What can I say? I just wanted you all to myself."

Cleo bit down on his bottom lip hard enough to make him cry out, then kissed the pain away.

"What did you do that for?" he groaned against her mouth. "You're lucky I'm in love with you."

"You are, huh?" she grinned as she shifted on him. So, so close... "Then you're lucky I didn't do anything worse...because I love you, too."

"Good...now, will you marry me?"

She let out a laugh that had the darkness around them sparkling with starlight. "No."