Back in the quiet of their chamber, Aria pulled the bandages aside and began cleaning Lucian’s wound again.
“You’re pushing yourself too hard,” she murmured.
He flinched at the sting but didn’t pull away. “I don’t have a choice.”
“You always have a choice.”
He looked at her, eyes softening. “Not when my people are watching. Not when the council’s waiting for me to break.”
Her hands stilled. “And what about me, Lucian? What if you break and don’t come back?”
He cupped her cheek gently. “Then I’ll fight twice as hard to come back to you.”
She lowered her gaze. “They’re afraid of me.”
“They should be,” he said, voice rough. “You’re powerful. You don’t even realize how much.”
Aria frowned. “What do you mean?”
Lucian hesitated, then reached into the drawer beside his bed and pulled ou
