Total pages in book: 192
Estimated words: 192810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 964(@200wpm)___ 771(@250wpm)___ 643(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 192810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 964(@200wpm)___ 771(@250wpm)___ 643(@300wpm)
The architect who built it had done it with an eye to intimidation and instilling fear.
It was beautiful, of course. But there were occasions, when the moon was full and falling behind it, it appeared dark, forbidding and otherworldly. And at all times, day and especially night, when the gothic spires and masonry were reflected in that pool, it seemed to trick the eye, making it mysterious and spooky.
It had been where the first Royals lived before they built Celestial Palace.
I loved Celestial Palace for its sprawling grace and elegance.
I adored Spikeback Castle because it was dark and ominous, even on a sunny day, and it spoke to the primal shifter in me.
But I didn’t know if I wanted to live there.
“Are we going to do that?” I asked.
“We is plural, so I’ll take you there, give you a tour, and then we’ll discuss it.”
At his words, everything, all at once, settled in me.
He was the one with the money, the status, the title, the prestige, the control.
But in that one sentence, he made it clear that we would make decisions about our life.
We.
While I was processing the heady fullness of that feeling, Aleksei continued talking.
“I failed miserably with my first business, Laura. I was young, had a university education, never worked a day in my life, outside my studies or royal duties. I thought I knew it all. I knew nothing. I had to find a partner to infuse capital into it, or I’d have to close it down, lay off one hundred and twenty-five employees. Fortunately, that partner was Sirk’s father. He’s a shark, but instead of forcing me out, he took me under his wing and taught me everything I really needed to know. He’s still my partner in a number of ventures.”
“Did you meet Sirk first, or his dad?”
“Sirk. At Red Lair. First year. We were both twelve.”
I loved knowing that about him and his friend.
“My mother heard the business was failing, and she used that to try to force me back into the fold. It only made me more determined to figure it out,” he shared.
“And you did.”
He inclined his head.
I smiled. “Go you.”
He smiled in return and explained, “What I’m saying is, I know it can be done, spending time in pursuits that nurture you, challenge you, along with doing your duty to the throne. Yes, if I were to give it all up, my time would be consumed with accepting more invitations, attending more events, taking royal trips, even spending more time in the Center, playing politics. But if that was my life, like it used to be, I would be deeply unhappy, as I was then. I’d put on a neutral face, but behind the mask, I’d hate every minute of it. If you find you love it and wish to move out of your chosen field to concentrate on it, that will be your choice. But if you don’t, then we’ll find a balance for you, like I have.”
It meant a lot he would back me on that play.
But he needed to know the fullness of it.
“Just before we start filming, and during filming, I’ll need to be at the studio or on location. Some of the filming will be at the studios north of Nocturn, so maybe a half an hour craft ride away. I can come home every night. But we’re also filming on location close to the Clan Caves. And that’s a two-hour craft ride away.”
“Not in a JetPanther that gets priority course routes. But just to say, I’m often away for business. Would you expect me to be home every evening?”
“No, but shooting can take two, three, sometimes even four months.”
He pulled me up so we were eye to eye. “Darling, I can come to you. You can come to me. You have access to transport that will cut the time it takes to make any trip in half. Save nefarious plots getting in the way, neither of us can fool ourselves that the rest of our lives are going to go as smoothly as we’ve begun. And when it doesn’t, we’ll work it out.”
I was reminded for the first time in days about how angry he got after the assassination attempt, and how he’d communicated that.
I needed to share how that made me feel.
But I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to spoil this moment. I didn’t want to cast a pall on what he thought of as our smooth beginning.
And I didn’t want to make him feel bad.
It had been emotional. He’d given no indication before or since that was something he was prone to do.
He’d been murderously angry at his brother, and although he’d shared his feelings without a single attempt to sugarcoat it, he hadn’t lost his mind shouting and cursing.
“Say it,” he ordered.