“No clue. Not long, I think.”
Caelan frowned. “How does Rayne make this all seem so easy?”
Drayce leaned against the counter, smirking. His prince was adorably flummoxed by cooking rice, but he didn’t blink at taking on countries and gods. The flush had left his face, but his lips were a little puffy from their kissing. Caelan had always been a handsome man, but this…this slightly rumpled and thoroughly kissed look was driving Drayce insane.
“You wanna go back to what we were doing while we wait for the rice?”
A smile spread across those perfect lips. “I’m pretty sure that’s a guaranteed way to burn the rice.”
“I can set a timer on my phone.”
But Caelan didn’t laugh and agree like he’d expected him to. His smile faded into a frown as he stared at the boiling pot.
“What’s wrong?”
Caelan shook his head and tried to smile, but the fake thing couldn’t stick.
“Don’t do that. Talk to me,” Drayce prodded. Yes, they’d kissed—and they were damn good at kissing—but they were still friends first. “You know you can say anything to me.”
“Don’t…don’t tell Rayne or Eno about this,” Caelan said softly. His brow was furrowed, and he fell silent for a second before he lifted his eyes to Drayce’s face. “Not because there’s anything wrong with what we did. Or that I’m ashamed. I…I don’t want Rayne to worry. He’ll give me another lecture on how I can’t be distracted from what I need to do.”
His back to the counter, Drayce spread his legs and pulled Caelan between them. Wrapping his arms tightly around Caelan, he rested his chin on his shoulder. It felt as if they’d been close from the first moment they’d met, but this was something more, deeper than they’d experienced in the past.
“Rayne would be right,” he murmured in his ear. “You need to stay focused on the kingdom, your duty, and defeating the Empire. I’ll be right beside you every step of the way. If this was a one-time thing, that’s fine as long as I’ve got you as my friend.”
Caelan pulled back to look him in the eye. “And what if I don’t want it to be a one-time thing? Would that bother you?”
“Nope. I’d like that a lot. But if it has to wait, it has to wait. I’m not going anywhere.” Drayce leaned in and pressed the lightest kiss to one of Caelan’s eyelids and then the other before whispering, “I’ll wait countless lifetimes for you, Cael.”
13
Caelan Talos
It was no great shock that Chancellor Octavia Croft had taken over the mansion occupied by the university president. It was the largest home in Uni Gardens, sitting on the edge of Tula Park and only the tiniest step down from the chancellor’s manor in King’s Square. However, he was greatly skeptical of the idea that other government ministers were actually staying in the mansion with her.
Caelan’s interactions with Chancellor Croft were incredibly limited over the years. She had spent a good chunk of her career as Queen Amara’s advisor prior to being officially elected to the position of chancellor just two years ago. However, he’d always felt that she was efficient and dedicated to looking out for what was best for the people of Erya.
But that didn’t mean he was completely blind to the fact that she was also power hungry and chafed at the idea of answering to someone else. And that someone else was the crown and Guardian of the Godstone.
As they reached the mansion, a sliver of relief went through Caelan to see Erya guards standing outside. He glanced over at Rayne to find that his advisor’s frown had deepened. He wanted to ask what was bothering him, but there wasn’t a chance.
“What’s your business?” a guard demanded as they stepped onto the sidewalk leading up to the house.
Caelan peered over at Rayne with a smirk, and his companion sighed heavily before waving a hand at the guard.
“Be my guest,” Rayne muttered.
Caelan removed the ball cap and sunglasses he’d been wearing as a disguise. The man visibly paled and stumbled a step backward. “Y-Your Majesty,” he stammered.
“I’ve heard that Chancellor Croft is managing things from this house. I’m hoping to have a word with her,” Caelan said.
“Yes.” He bowed and then bowed again. “Of course. Yes. Please, proceed up to the house.”
“Thank you for your help,” Caelan murmured, stepping around him with Rayne at his side.
Now that they were on the grounds, Caelan tucked the sunglasses in the front of his filthy T-shirt and the hat into his back pocket for safekeeping. He would be returning it to Drayce very soon. He’d promised before going their separate ways this morning. Drayce and Eno had a couple of leads on Tomas and some of the soldiers in Cabbage Port. From there, they were supposed to work on eliminating New Rosanthe from Green Gate and start getting food to the people.