“We can stop,” I whisper.
“Don’t stop,” he says through his teeth. “I need to get it all out.”
I run my fingers over the bullet wound in his chest. “This was the wound?”
“Yeah,” he mutters. “Got shot before I was even within fifty feet of the prison. I nearly bled out in my car trying to get to a doctor who wouldn’t ask too many questions.”
I gaze up at Jakob. He tried to break into the prison single-handedly to stop an execution that must have been guarded by dozens of soldiers with machine guns. “You’re such a headstrong idiot. I love you.”
His arms tighten around me. “As soon as I get out of here, I’m going to marry you so goddamn fast.”
I grin at him. “I thought you were going to ask me first.”
He kisses me hard. “I hate asking. Do as you’re told.”
“It’s nice to be asked. It’s romantic. Will we even be allowed to marry? Archduke Levanter is not going to like it, and I can’t marry without his permission.”
“You leave him to me. He owes me for saving his wife.”
“Or I could ask the King for a marriage license. The alternative is I renounce being a member of the First Families, like Galen Levanter.” I swallow a lump in my throat. I can imagine the pain that would cause Mum and Dad. I don’t want to put them through that, but I may have no choice.
“I’ll call Levanter now. Pass me my phone.”
“No, don’t. I’ll talk to the King. I wanted to speak with him anyway and show him what I’ve found out. It’s only fair that he hears it from me rather than reading it in the newspapers. They were his parents, and he must have loved them, despite everything.”
He watched them be killed in front of him when he was only a boy. I feel like I’m taking a knife to their throats in front of him all over again.
I take Jakob’s face in my hands and kiss him. “And while I do all this, you’re going to relax and get better.”
“I hate relaxing.”
“Think of it as tactical bedrest. The faster you heal, the quicker you can get back to your office and start ordering your men around.”
He caresses my cheek, the bandages on his hand chafing my skin. “Never mind that. The faster I heal, the sooner I can carry my bride to bed and remind her just how beautiful she is.”
I feel my face heat, and whisper, “That would be a welcome reminder.”
As I stand in front of the main entrance to the palace, I can barely tell it was bombed two weeks ago. There’s a heavy King’s Guard presence and I can hear the sounds of construction work going on at the far side. The collapsed wing is being rebuilt. Jakob will have new offices to return to once he’s well.
My stomach is in knots as I walk up the steps and I’m escorted through the huge, ornate state rooms to see the King. I wish I had better news to tell him.
King Anson comes toward me with a smile on his handsome face as I’m shown into his private office. He wears a dark suit and tie and takes my hand between both of his as I curtsey.
“Lady Sachelle. It’s wonderful to see you looking so well after your terrible ordeal. Please, sit down. Is your leg still painful?”
His concern makes me feel even worse as I sit down before him. He perches on the edge of his desk, ready to listen to every word I have to tell him. I’ve never been this close to him before and the charisma he radiates is making me forget the words I rehearsed all morning.
“I—I want to apologize for the poor judgment I’ve shown since the monarchy was restored.”
King Anson studies me, his face serious. “I’ve read the City Guard reports. You apprehended the person responsible for the attack on the palace. Without your quick actions, he might have slipped away unrecognized.”
“I only knew who he was because I was horribly disloyal to the country, and to you, sir.”
The King regards me for a moment. “From what I’ve heard, you’ve only ever had the country’s best interests at heart. Or should I say, the people’s interests.”
I recall the speeches he’s given since his coronation, about how he won’t be an absolute ruler like his parents were. I remember what Jakob told me the night Tieman smoke-bombed Hotel Ivera, that the King was concerned most of all that no one had been hurt. Now, he’s not even angry with me for going against what I thought he wanted for Paravel.
I clutch my handbag and blink back tears. “I wish you wouldn’t be so kind, sir. I have more to tell you, and I don’t think you’re going to like any of it.”