Total pages in book: 162
Estimated words: 151630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 758(@200wpm)___ 607(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 758(@200wpm)___ 607(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Sometimes Neil was serious and sometimes he was Neil. “I intend to ensure she survives, but I need to get a lay of the land. I have never been to this palace before. I need to know if I can get to the dungeons undetected.”
Bibi stepped up. “We have tunnels the king doesn’t know exist. I can get you there, but we have to be careful.”
“Take me to her.”
Bibi nodded.
For the second time that night, he found himself squeezing through tunnels. This one, he hoped, would lead him home.
Chapter Twenty-One
Shy
Rhys takes my hand as we enter the most sacred chamber in the temple. “This is the space where we would perform our rituals. Where we would be together.”
I like how he calls them our rituals. Something has changed inside me since the moment I realized I could help Fae Neil, that I wasn’t merely helpless to do anything but talk to spirits. I feel…settled. Ready.
Our rituals involve sex. Love. Communion of the most intimate kind.
I’ve literally held other souls in my body and yet I do not know what it feels like to join bodies with the man I love.
“It is also the place with the biggest bed, and we should think about that,” a familiar voice says. Lee has followed us around. We managed to shake Cassie and her brother in the small kitchens. Not that there was a ton of food in there. Or at least there hadn’t been until Rhys brushed his fingers over the potted fruit trees and shriveled remains of what had once been a garden. The vegetables and fruits had bloomed, growing in seconds as they soaked up Rhys’s unique energy. Brendan whined since Rhys can’t exactly grow him a pizza, but luckily his sister was prepared. She’d delighted in the peaches she found while tossing her brother some beef jerky.
But we still have Lee with us. He’s holding on even after he showed Sasha how to get out with the best chance of getting away from the guards.
Seeing Sasha disappear into the stables without a bunch of arrows going his way was a huge relief.
But now I kind of want to be alone with my…everything.
“It’s getting late. We can all bed down in here for a few hours and head out in the morning.” Lee eyes the space critically, nose wrinkling at the sight of the stream that flows through the large chamber at the heart of the temple. “Though I’m wary about the water. They could send something through.”
“Not unless they want to excavate about sixty feet down.” Rhys has a frown on his gorgeous face. “It’s actually an underground stream. This is the only place in the sithein where the water is on the surface. Also, the temple would keep out anything it considered impure, including anything with malicious intentions. Which is why your father no longer has access to it.”
“Yeah, I know about that part, but I don’t want to underestimate Myrddin. We should stick together,” Lee announces.
“I intend to bed my goddess here and very soon,” Rhys replies back, and he looks my way as though waiting for me to protest.
I give him a simple smile.
Lee’s lips kick up in a grin. “Yes, I am well aware. It’s going to be very helpful to all of our plans. Proceed, brother. I like a good fertility ritual. Do you need any…”
A thick vine wraps around Lee’s waist and begins dragging him from the room.
“Have you thought at all about what will happen when we begin?” Rhys asks. “If you’re not in the right room, you’ll be affected by it, and she really is far too young. I will kill you if you touch Cassie.” His eyes narrow. “Or her brother.”
“I was joking. Mostly. I am prepared for your magic. There’s a room in the temple that is shielded. As I said before the palace is under some heavy wards, though I suspect they’ll still feel it.” He sighs. “Fine. But you’re really no fun. I bet I’m a ton of fun in your timeline.”
“You are a pain in my ass,” Rhys replies as he gestures toward the door. The minute Lee is out, the door slams closed, and I hear the sound of a lock sliding into place. He turns to me. “Now that the riffraff is taken care of, you can tell me what happened. You were locked into some kind of spell with Myrddin.”
I would rather he throw himself on me, but I can understand his worry. I look around the chamber. It’s lit with soft lights from above. I can’t see them so I have to believe they’re magical. They make the room glow. The sacred space comprises three levels. There’s the stream below us, with a large bathing pool in the center that the water flows into and out of. It’s got stone flooring and steps down to what is a beautifully done cabana. “It wasn’t a spell. It was a battle. What did it look like?”