Gods, I wanted to hate how he curled his tongue around my name, making it sound like both a wicked whisper and a reverent prayer.
I kept my hands clasped. “Thank you, but I don’t think I will need that much. I’m sure you’re busy.”
He drew his thumb across his lower lip, his gaze still fastened to mine. I didn’t think he’d blinked once. “What is it that you want that won’t take much time?”
Something about his tone left me a little unsteady. A…softness. “I want to discuss Irelone. I would like to go there as soon as possible. I figured Nektas could travel with me.”
“I’m going with you,” he said, the eather brightening behind his pupils. “I need to hear exactly what Delfai says about the embers to ensure that I can carry out the process of removing them.”
Irritation hummed from deep within. Traveling with Nyktos anywhere was…well, not opportune. And I was confident that Nektas could relay any pertinent details effectively. Still, I squashed my irritation. “Okay.”
He arched a brow. “Okay?”
I nodded.
Nyktos’s eyes narrowed slightly as he drew his thumb along his lip once more. “I’m assuming you would like to leave right now.”
“I would.”
“I would like to wait until tomorrow.”
I gritted my teeth. “And why would you like to do that?”
“Because one of Kyn’s draken was spotted this morn over the Black Bay,” he shared, and I tensed. “The draken hasn’t made any move against us. He’s just been circling at the edges of our territory.”
Us. Our.
I squeezed my hands. “What do you think he’s doing?”
“Scouting. Likely seeing how many guards we have on the Rise,” he said, and I tensed even further as he dragged the edge of his fangs across his lip. “And probably trying to get a good look at the armies, which he will not be able to.”
“Do the other Primals not know the size?”
“They only know that I have one, and that it’s sizable. But not even Dorcan knew the exact size,” he answered. “I want to be here just in case my suspicions are wrong.”
“Understandable,” I said. “If the draken attacks, I want to be of aid.”
“Of course.”
Now it was my turn to stare in confusion. “Of course? As in you will not demand that I remain back?”
“I have learned not to ask that of you,” he replied. “Or to expect you to stand down when you need to help—when youwantto.”
“You’re not worried that I’ll get myself and the embers killed?”
“I worry about that every waking second,” he said. “But I’ve also learned that it’s something I will need to deal with.” He shifted, straightening in his chair. “Besides, the other deal you made, the one in the courtyard, was that you wanted to be of aid. I agreed. That has not changed.”
I blinked rapidly, having figured that all our agreements had been voided. “Then we leave in the morning.”
Nyktos nodded. A moment passed. “Nektas said you knew the woman Delfai was with? Was she the one you spoke about before?”
“It’s Princess Kayleigh—Tavius’s once-betrothed,” I said with a nod. “She should be at Cauldra Manor, in Massene—a village in Irelone, near the capital. I remember her saying it wasthe Balfour ancestry home. I’m hoping there’s a gateway near.”
He smiled then, a little wider, warmer. “We lucked out with one being so close to Wayfair, but there are none within Irelone that I would trust using. However, we don’t need a gateway. We will shadowstep.”
I started to ask how that would be possible, but then I remembered how he’d taken me from the Great Hall in Wayfair. “So, you’re going to have to knock me out.”
“I will do my best to make sure you feel no pain and that it’s quick,” he assured me. “The only alternative is that we enter through Spessa’s End or Pompay, where the closest gateways to Irelone are, which would be rather time-consuming.”