Filed To Story: Between Two Kings: A Split or Swallow Book PDF Free
That was what Tem wanted. But then the wedding happened, and something had changed within her-some thread of selflessness had tugged on her heart when she’d looked in Leo’s eyes after she’d crested him. It wasn’t fair for him to have to share her. Not when he wanted all of her. He’d told her that himself once:
“I want all of you. Or I don’t want you at all.”
Tem sighed, leaning back against the seat. The memory of their wedding plagued her-the way Leo had looked at her as she ascended the stage, the way they’d kissed when she’d crested him. It was a memory she cherished, a moment she thought of in the dark hours of the night when Caspen was asleep beside her. She remembered other things too, from the night they’d spent in his bed: the way he tasted like honey, the way he’d worshipped between her legs, the way he’d murmured her name while his cock was inside her.
The carriage seemed suddenly too small. Tem was unquestionably turned on. Ever since she’d transitioned for the first time, the line between simply existing and arousal had become desperately thin. All it took was the mere thought of sex to make her wet. And when she thought about Leo, it took even less. Something in her body craved him beyond explanation. It was different from the way she craved Caspen. With Caspen, her desire was primal and raw, visceral, consuming her like a hungry animal. With Leo, it was slower-a glowing coal that smoldered deep within her chest. She could not rid herself of it. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to. Just the thought of being close to Leo was sending her into a frenzy. Tem leaned forward, cradling her head in her hands. She had to get it together.
“Miss?” The footman’s voice interrupted her thoughts. “We’ve arrived.”
The carriage door opened, and Tem accepted the hand offered to her. The stars were bright overhead, the last sliver of the harvest moon glowing beneath the freckled sky. She stared up at the castle’s foreboding turrets, dreading what came next. No part of her wanted to walk inside those doors. This was no longer her home.
Now it was Evelyn’s.
Tem paused before the entrance, her hand on the doorknob. Was Leo on the other side? Was Evelyn? He’d told her to come alone-did that mean he would be alone too? When she opened the door, however, Leo was not on the other side. Instead, Lord Chamberlain greeted her with a subdued smile.
“Temperance,” he said calmly. “How are you this evening?”
“Oh,” she said, clearing her throat. “I’m fine.”
He nodded. “Please, follow me.”
Tem did so, following him through the foyer and into the parlor, where Lord Chamberlain gave her a curt nod and bowed as he left the room. Tem wondered about the formality. Did her status as queen of the basilisks give her some respect in the royal castle? Or did he merely pity her for what was to come?
Tem needed a drink.
She scanned the room for alcohol, her eyes landing on a golden tray holding a faceted crystal bottle filled with whiskey. She crossed to it immediately, pouring herself a healthy dose and downing the entire thing. The liquor settled her nerves, but just barely. The parlor was hot; suddenly the stupid robe was too tight.
Tem looked up at the paintings on the walls. Dozens of faces stared back at her-all royals, all long dead. It was clear that Leo’s icy-blond hair had been passed down through generations. Even when his male ancestors had married brunette women, the children somehow ended up blond. Her eyes traveled over the sea of angular faces, seeing Leo in every single one. One man had Leo’s slate-gray eyes, another his thin, elegant fingers. Finally, she spotted Maximus.
Tem crossed to his portrait, still clutching her whiskey glass. The former king was standing in what looked like the library the Frisky Sixty ceremony had taken place in. A thick golden cuff glinted on his wrist. Tem wondered where Maximus was now, whether Leo had allowed him to roam free or imprisoned him for his crimes. Before she could follow that thought, someone cleared their throat. Tem whipped around at the sound.
There, in the doorway, stood Leo.
He looked just the same. Tall, slender, wearing an impeccably tailored velvet suit. His hair was just as she remembered it, white blond and slicked back. For some reason, Tem had expected him to look different-older, somehow. But the only thing that had changed was his eyes. They were hooded, as if he hadn’t been sleeping properly. Tem didn’t want to think about what could be keeping him up at night. He was wearing a wedding ring, and she wondered suddenly whether it was the same one he’d married her with. Tem still wore hers-she hadn’t taken it off since their wedding. Surely, he would ask for it back. The thought killed her.
“Tem.”
Just her name, but something inside her awoke at the sound of his voice-something impossible to ignore.
“Leo.”
Just his in return.
Tem remembered Caspen holding her and Leo’s heads together, sealing their bond with a kiss. She wanted to kiss him again now. Tem immediately suppressed the thought. Leo was not hers anymore. Not only did he belong to someone else, but Tem herself had told him to go. She didn’t feel as though she was allowed to miss him when she was the one who had sent him away in the first place.
Leo’s eyes traveled over her, lingering on the diabolically low neckline of her robe.
Tem set her whiskey down, afraid she might drop it.
“Thank you for coming.” His tone was oddly formal. She couldn’t stand it. “I wasn’t sure if you would.”
Tem frowned. “Why?”
He tilted his head. “Because you’re…with him.”
Tem didn’t know how to respond to that. Just because she was with Caspen didn’t mean she was going to ignore Leo’s existence. She was the one who’d made him promise they would see each other again.
“I’ll always come when you call,” she said quietly.
He didn’t reply. Tem rather wished she’d had more to drink, but perhaps it was better this way. There was no telling what she would do if she was drunk. Even without the influence of alcohol, she felt uncommonly warm. And every time she looked at Leo, she only felt warmer.
“Are you…?” Leo began but stopped.
“Am I what?” she prompted.
“Happy?”
It was an impossible question. How to answer? Of course she was happy with Caspen-she always had been. But part of her yearned for Leo- ached for him. It was a part as real and as prominent as the part that loved Caspen. She couldn’t help it, couldn’t control it. It simply was. Rather than answer, Tem decided to ask him the same question in return:
“Are you?”
Leo’s gaze was unwavering. The intense eye contact was beginning to test her. She wanted to cross to him, to cup his chin in her hand, and pull his face to hers. She balled her hands into fists, resisting the urge.
“Happiness is an indulgence,” he whispered.
Tem had no idea what to make of that answer. Was he saying that he wasn’t happy? Or that he was, but it had cost him something to become so? She didn’t know, and she couldn’t fathom asking. Instead, she asked the thing she’d come here to find out: “Did you find her?”
Tem expected an immediate response, but none came. It was a simple question. She already knew the answer. Still, she needed to know for sure-needed to hear him say it.
“Yes.” His voice was tight when he said it.
Tem nodded. She could think of nothing else to do. On the one hand, she was glad Leo had found Evelyn. That’s what she’d ordered him to do, after all. On the other hand, she felt a wave of jealousy so severe, it nearly ripped her breath from her chest. A thousand terrible images flashed through her mind: Leo touching Evelyn, kissing her, saying her name instead of Tem’s. It was revolting.
There was only one more thing she wanted to say to Leo-one thing that weighed heavily on her heart. Tem knew she shouldn’t say it-had no right to say it. But she needed him to know it anyway. “I miss you.”
Leo’s eyes narrowed. There was no mistaking the desire in them-pure, animalistic craving that matched the craving in her. But pain flashed across his face, and Tem immediately regretted her words. She hadn’t wanted to hurt him.
Leo opened his mouth, then closed it. Not for the first time, Tem wished she could read his mind the way she read Caspen’s. Instead she could do nothing but wait-and pray. She was helpless, as she always was with Leo.
It seemed like an hour went by before he said, “That will pass.”
Something inside Tem wilted. This was a version of Leo that she wasn’t used to-a version that was distant and cold. She understood it. But she hated it.
Leo crossed his arms, cutting himself off from her. “So, shall we get on with it?”
“Get on with…?”
“The annulment.”
So that was why she was here. Tem should have expected this, should have known that after Leo found Evelyn, the next logical step would be to marry her. But she couldn’t bring herself to speak. So she simply nodded.
Leo cleared his throat and gestured at the door. “After you.”
Every step toward him felt like it was taken underwater. Tem moved as if in slow motion, sensing every rise and fall of his chest-every twitch of his pulse. She could hear his heart rate speed up as she got closer, her basilisk side wide-awake and wanting. The moment she smelled his cologne, her nostrils flared, and she stopped. He smelled like summer-like a warm breeze over an open field. But there was another scent mixed with his. Sickly sweet, like vanilla. The whiskey turned in her stomach. It was her. Tem was sure of it.
She was still frozen in place.
Leo stared at her, his posture stiff and guarded. “Tem…?”
At the sound of her name, she looked up into his slate-gray eyes. He was so close. They were breathing the same air, their faces inches apart. Was she imagining it? Was he leaning in?