“What would you like for breakfast?”
“Bacon and eggs would be lovely,” she said, grinning. She raised herself up on her toes to reach his lips, and he bent down, losing himself for a moment in the sweetness of her kiss.
He was so happy at the moment that he almost forgot about Martin. After the gentle, sweet kiss, Azura nodded to Jeremia and then headed for the bathroom.
Onyx waited for her to disappear, then hurried out into the hall.
“Tell me what’s going on.”
“Master Martin was not in his rooms this morning. We have searched the palace, and he’s not here.”
“The palace is a big place. Are you sure he’s not here?”
“Search is still ongoing,” Jeremia said, a touch of exasperation in his voice. “But I don’t think the boy is hiding behind drapes or in an ornate chest.”
Onyx agreed. He shook his head in frustration.
“Did anyone see him leave the party last night?”
“No, sir.”
“Fuck! What about Kyra?”
“We are in the process of contacting her family, my Lord.”
“Damn. I’m going to assign a personal bodyguard to this kid for his own protection.”
“Might not be a bad idea, sir. We have plenty of people moving out in separate directions to comb the city. I am bound to inform you what is going on, but we didn’t want to inform the lady in case we worried our guest unnecessarily.”
Onyx let out a bone-deep sigh, remembering his talk with Azura the other day, as well as the magic of last night.
“I can’t do that,” he muttered unhappily. “I promised her that she would be involved in all decisions involving Martin. I’ll have to tell her.”
Jeremia had a little mischievous smile.
“Well done, my Lord. You show the lady extreme respect by being completely open with her. It is a mark of courage … and true love. It shows you are serious about making her your wife.”
“I am very serious,” Onyx snapped.
As serious as a heart attack.
Jeremia winked.
“It’s about time you got serious.”
“Quiet now,” Onyx muttered with a smile. Jeremia had been with the palace for generations, and sometimes, he felt like an older brother. “Get breakfast sent up,” Onyx said, sighing. “And keep me up to date if you get any news.”
“As you wish, sir.” Jeremia bowed and swiftly walked down the hall.
Onyx took a deep breath, then headed back into the bedroom. He sat on the rumpled bed, the sheets still warm from their tangled bodies. He put a hand softly against the pillows, his nose full of Azura’s scent.
Damn that kid! He had to go and ruin everything. We could have made love all morning, but now my poor mate is going to fall straight back into last night’s mood. She doesn’t deserve this.
As he heard the shower shut off, his anxiety rose. He wasn’t looking forward to this. He wanted to make Azura happy every day, and he didn’t want to have to fight to make it happen.
There was a knock at the door, and he hurried to let the runner in with the trolley laden with plates of food.
He nodded to the young girl, not feeling bad that he didn’t know her name. The palace was staffed by hundreds of people, and they changed places all the time. He knew the girl wouldn’t be offended.