Total pages in book: 230
Estimated words: 217798 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1089(@200wpm)___ 871(@250wpm)___ 726(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 217798 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1089(@200wpm)___ 871(@250wpm)___ 726(@300wpm)
He held her through the night, his body pleasantly tired but his mind troubled.
CHAPTER 6
Day looked out over the ballroom and wondered where her bridegroom had gotten off to.
“You look lovely, Your Majesty.” Rai gave her a proper bow.
He and the other guards had done a wonderful job on the wedding. It had gone off without a single hitch. Between McKay-Taggart working security and the lord chamberlain running the wedding, she’d had to do little except wave and say the words that bound her to Kashmir and the Loa Mali throne forever.
Which was good because it seemed her Kash had a never-ending need for sex. Since that first night, he’d been voracious. He was sweet and so willing to please her when the doors closed and they were alone. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that this was the right thing to do.
They fit together, and tonight she was going to talk to him about more exotic play. Tonight, she was going to discuss punishments and rewards.
She wouldn’t ever top another man again. Only her dashing husband.
“You practically glow with happiness,” Rai said, his eyes looking out over the dance floor.
“Thank you.” She felt happy. Maybe truly for the first time in her life, she felt at peace. Always there had been this nagging question in the back of her mind about whether she could find someone she loved who could accept her as she was.
Now that question had been answered. Kash had answered it when he’d said “I do.”
It was funny how the more he gave her in the bedroom, the less she felt the need to be aggressive outside of it. She’d found herself compromising more and more, especially with him. When he wanted to sit in on her meetings with parliament, she didn’t question it. After all, he never forced his opinion on her, but he did give wise counsel.
She was rapidly falling head over heels in love with him once again.
She turned to Rai, wondering if she could help her brand new husband out a bit. She knew he missed this man. They’d been friends for years. She didn’t understand the nature of what had caused them to break. “I think Kash would dearly love to have you on his detail again. He misses you.”
A bitter smile crossed his lips. “Somehow I doubt that. Or perhaps not. Perhaps he’s simply so arrogant and self-centered that he doesn’t understand how he hurts the people around him.”
Or maybe that would be a terrible mistake. “All I’ve seen is his kindness.”
“Then you haven’t been watching, Your Majesty,” Rai shot back. “You wait. Give him a month or two and he’ll be right back to his old tricks. He’ll crawl into the bed of any woman who will have him. And some who don’t want him at all.”
She stepped in front of him when he started to go. “What exactly are you accusing my husband of?”
Rai’s jaw formed a stubborn line. “Nothing at all, Your Majesty. After all, what woman wouldn’t want to bed the great Kashmir Kamdar? What woman would say no to him? Certainly not my own wife. If you’ll excuse me.”
She let him pass with a sigh. So that was what had happened.
“If it makes you feel any better, I believe Kash slept with the young Lia before her marriage to Rai.” Hanin stepped up next to her, looking out over the ballroom with a keen eye.
The lord chamberlain hadn’t been particularly friendly, but then he’d been under a bit of pressure. A royal wedding in a few weeks wasn’t an easy thing to accomplish. Day was happy he seemed to be calming down. “Rai didn’t find out until after the wedding, I suspect.”
“Yes. He married the girl hastily. From what I understand, Rai discovered Kash had been his wife’s lover. You know how palace gossip is. No one can keep a secret here. Kash should have immediately told Rai, if you ask me. No one ever asks my opinion, much less follows my excellent advice. If they did, their lives would all be the better for it.” He turned to her. “Rai was right about one thing. You do make a lovely queen. Hopefully now that we will have a sovereign in residence full time, the country will be more stable. The king can wander as he may and we shall have your wise hand to guide us.”
“Well, I think you might find that the king is much happier staying home now that he’s married. I think he’ll take his duties more seriously than he did before.” She felt comfortable that Kash’s wanderlust had more to do with guilt than anything else. She would gently start pushing him to restart his project. He’d come so close, and he had a true passion for innovation.
The lord chamberlain’s lips pursed as though he was thinking about what he would say next. Or thinking about not saying anything at all. “I should hope so. Nevertheless, I hope you find me helpful. Anything at all that you need, I shall be more than happy to provide it for you. This is your household now. It’s up to me to make sure it runs according to your desires.”