Semua Bab Stolen By The Mirror, Claimed By The Prince: Bab 21 - Bab 30

“Thaddeus?” Lyra called as she stepped out of her bedroom, her bare feet brushing against the cold stone floor. The corridor was lit only by the low flicker of candle sconces, painting shadows on her face and glinting softly off the sheer nightdress that left little to the imagination.Thaddeus turned the corner. He gave a strangled little sound, caught somewhere between a gasp and a hiccup, then turned his whole body away as if struck blind. “My lady,” he managed. “You shouldn’t go around the castle like that. I—I will get you your robe.” And with the urgency of a man on a holy mission, he vanished into her room as if it were a crime scene.“All of you around here are prudes,” she muttered under her breath, folding her arms in mock irritation. “God forbid a woman has knees.”Thaddeus returned seconds later, holding out her robe. He kept his gaze firmly locked on a very interesting spot on the ceiling. “Here you go, my lady.”Lyra took the robe but draped it casually over one arm, maki

“You ask him,” Elias responded simply.Lyra stared at him. “Great. I’ll just ask the King of Terra Lucida why he killed me—while I’m standing right in front of him. Sounds like a fun brunch conversation.”“There’s no need to be sarcastic,” Elias said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You just have to pick his brain for what he knows.”“Right. Because murderers are so chatty. I’ll just walk up and be like, ‘Hey Your Majesty, remember that time you may or may not have stabbed me? Care to unpack that trauma for me?’” she snapped.Elias exhaled heavily. “He wouldn’t have hurt her. Matthew would never hurt Lirae.”Lyra crossed her arms, unconvinced. “You say that like you know him. You said so yourself, you trusted him and he took the throne from you. People do all sorts of awful things and still sleep like babies. What if he’s been lying this entire time? What if he killed Lirae himself and now he’s just playing the gracious royal act?”Elias shook his head firmly. “No. He’s many things b

“Maybe,” Matthew echoed. He gave a small nod, almost to himself. “It was quite a stunning ring. Envy of all the women. Still is.”He paused, a distant look flickering over his face. “It’s said to be of immeasurable value because of the gems—and the love of the king for the queen. But… when she was found out to be a witch, and it was believed she had charmed the king… he took the ring back. Banished her. Stripped her of her titles, her name. She was never seen again.”“Story time?” Elias’s voice cut through the room. He strolled in, the edges of his smile sharp. Lyra jumped slightly and instinctively pulled her hand out of Matthew’s hold.Matthew straightened but didn’t look the least bit ruffled. “We were just discussing history. It’s always good to know the past, don’t you think?”“Especially the parts that conveniently fit your narrative,” Elias replied dryly.“Where is the tea?” Matthew asked, turning his head slightly, his regal patience thinning.“It’s almost here,” Elias replied

She hung on to him. Her body melted into his with a softness that made even Elias forget the centuries of etiquette he had been raised with. The kiss was no longer about proving a point—it had evolved into a confession. A fevered meeting of vulnerability, danger and truth.“Your Highness,”Elias groaned and broke the kiss, resting his forehead lightly against Lyra’s. His breath was still caught in his throat, but his glare snapped toward his steward. “What, Thaddeus?! Must you haunt every moment of happiness I try to steal in this damn house?”Thaddeus stood at the base of the corridor with the serenity of a monk and the sass of a long-suffering butler. “I am not one to judge, Your Highness,” he said, eyes flickering briefly to Lyra’s swollen lips and tousled hair, “but if the maids stumble upon you in this compromising position, tongues will wag. And you know how fast gossip travels in Windmere.”Elias scowled, adjusting his coat. “Are there any places left in this blasted estate wher

They landed in a messy sprawl of limbs and tangled sheets. His mouth found her neck and she gasped.“Oh God…” she moaned, arching into him as his lips branded a trail along her collarbone.She fumbled with his buttons, tearing open the last of them.Her hands caressed the expanse of his bare chest, every inch as firm and sculpted as she'd fantasized since that absurd, embarrassing moment he’d walked in on her naked on her very first day in Terra Lucida.His abs twitched beneath her fingers, taut and hot to the touch, like he was barely holding himself back. Elias let out a shuddering breath as his lips grazed her shoulder, trailing slowly down. He pulled the thin straps of her nightdress down, kissing each newly revealed inch of skin.When his mouth finally found her breasts, he groaned—a deep, guttural sound that set her nerves on fire. Lyra rocked against him, shamelessly grinding into the hard length of him that pressed between her thighs. She gasped, her back arching as if pulled