Total pages in book: 222
Estimated words: 213974 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1070(@200wpm)___ 856(@250wpm)___ 713(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 213974 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1070(@200wpm)___ 856(@250wpm)___ 713(@300wpm)
I hoped their eyes exploded from their heads.
Along with Kolis’s.
The only reason I sat through it all like a quiet, caged bird was because of Ash. The deal. Once Kolis was convinced that I was who I said I was, he would release his nephew. But I needed to be careful. While Primals couldn’t break their oaths, they often found ways to make you regret gaining their promises. There were things Kolis could do while still honoring what he’d pledged. But I couldn’t let myself think about that or allow my imagination to run wild.
Because I realized something as I sat there. I hadn’t been clever enough to clarify what state Ash should be in when he was released.
As Callum would say, I behaved myself as the meetings went on, and Kolis began to change.
He grew tense, fidgety, even. His stares became…more. Longer. Heavier. His grip on the arms of the throne got tighter, the ick-factor of his gaze stronger.
Which was why I ignored Kolis and the leering gods for the most part, so bored out of my mind that I spent an ungodly length of time staring at the cluster of diamonds at the center of the cage bars, wondering why Kolis would even put them there. Like, what was the point? I had no idea.
I learned that each of Kolis’s gods represented different cities within the mortal kingdoms. And every time a new one entered, I paid attention just long enough to learn where they were from. None had come from Lasania.
I looked up as the god before Kolis droned on about offerings. My eyes narrowed slightly when I found his gaze on me. His stare held the same qualities as the ones who’d come before him. Want for the sake of wanting, which could also be translated into taking for the sake of it. Sighing, I shifted my focus to the open doors. I could only see Elias’s shoulder and the arm of another guard. What was his name? He had only stepped foot into the chamber a few times, and when he did, he had a certain stillness about him that reminded me of Callum.
I rose, going to the table where I poured myself a drink of the bubbly water. Today, it carried a hint of pineapple.
“Do you find her distracting?” Kolis asked suddenly.
I stopped, pitcher half-lowered, and looked up to see the sandy-haired god jerk his attention back to the Primal.
“You’ve been paying more attention to her than you have to me.” Kolis’s grip on the throne arms loosened. “I don’t believe you’ve taken your eyes off her since the moment she rose.”
“I apologize, Your Majesty,” the god replied, clearing his throat. “I have been distracted.”
“By her?” Kolis prodded.
The god glanced at me again and nodded.
Kolis’s head cocked. “What is it about her that you find so distracting?”
The handle of the pitcher dug into my palm. Could it be that my gown was transparent?
“She is…interesting to look upon,” the god answered.
“Interesting?” Kolis questioned. “Please elaborate, Uros.”
The god’s stare lowered, lingering on my chest. “She is pleasing to the eye.”
“Which parts?”
I flipped my stare to the Primal. Was he seriously asking that?
“Many parts,” Uros answered, looking at Kolis before continuing. “Her shape.”
Do not engage with those who enter the chamber, I reminded myself as I placed the pitcher back on the table before I launched it through the bars—something I didn’t think Kolis would appreciate. Plus, it would be a waste. The water was tasty.
“And?” Kolis smiled at the god, but there was an edge to it. A tension that hardened his jaw.
Uros looked me over as he drew his lower lip between his teeth. “Her hips. They’re full and appear soft. The shadowy area between her thighs.”
My mouth dropped open.
Kolis raised his brows. “What about it?”
“I bet it is equally soft.” Uros’ stare was full of heat, and not in a good way. “And wet.”
“What the fuck?” I spat before I could stop myself.
Uros’ eyes widened. He obviously hadn’t expected me to speak. And I probably shouldn’t have. My question would likely be considered an act of engaging. But come on.
However, Kolis only chuckled. “I believe you may have offended her.”
Uros said nothing to that, not that he needed to. His thoughts were clearly visible to me in the slight curve of his lips. He didn’t care if I was offended and likely didn’t believe I was worthy of worrying about such a thing.
“Are you?” Kolis asked, and it took me a moment to realize that he was speaking to me. “Are you offended?”
Who wouldn’t be? But if I were insulted by this god, then it meant his words or opinions mattered to me.
And they didn’t.
“No.” I took a sip of the water as I met the god’s gaze. “Mostly, just unimpressed.”
Kolis snorted as the god’s cheeks bloomed pink. I turned, heading back to the divan.