The provocative look in her eyes sent a chill racing up the back of his neck.
Giving up on trying to make sense of it, he bent down in front of his wife.
Dropping to one knee, he slipped an arm beneath her knees, and her slender arms naturally wound around the back of his neck.
He paused for a moment, steadying his breathing as the sweet scent of her skin seeped deep into his lungs. Then he wrapped an arm around her back and rose to his feet. The wolf stood up as well.
Varkas strode forward in long, purposeful steps, as though trying to shake off the beast that clung stubbornly to its master's side. The creature flashed an irritated look for an instant before hastily following after him.
"Not the front gate. Take the back entrance. I don't want to run into your siblings."
Talia whispered the words against his shoulder, where she had rested her head. Startled by her warm breath brushing against his jaw, Varkas silently changed direction toward the rear of the building.
"Are my siblings still treating you discourteously?"
"Lucas is fine. He gets on my nerves sometimes, but he knows basic manners. Your younger sister, though... she's really irritating."
"What exactly has Raina done?"
Perhaps sensing the coldness in his voice, she answered vaguely.
"It's not like she did anything major... She just complains about me to your retainers and sometimes starts childish arguments."
"I'll summon her personally and give her a proper warning."
"Don't."
She suddenly narrowed her eyes.
"If you step in, what happens to my dignity? It'll look like I ran crying to my husband because a child picked on me. Besides, I'm being just as nasty to her, so leave it alone."
My husband.
Varkas's brow furrowed deeply as the words echoed in his mind. He despised how easily a single careless remark from her could shake him.
Lengthening his stride, he climbed the staircase in only a few steps. He wanted to escape this turmoil as quickly as possible.
"How is your leg?"
Having crossed the corridor in moments, he asked the question as he stepped into the bedroom. Talia, idly playing with one of the metal ornaments on his shoulder, answered in a sleepy voice.
"It's fine. Just a little sore. More importantly..."
Suddenly, the arms around his neck tightened.
Varkas had been heading toward the long chaise beside the fireplace when he froze in place. Pressing herself firmly against his chest, she leaned close to his ear and whispered softly,
"Not the chair. Take me to the bed. I want to lie down."
Varkas jerked his head back and fixed her with a sharp glare.
Apparently amused by his reaction, she curved her catlike eyes into smiling crescents.
He knew that expression all too well.
Back when they had lived in the Imperial Palace, she had often worn that very same look whenever she toyed with men overcome by lust, wrapping them effortlessly around her little finger.
His lips flattened into a hard line as he carried her to the bed.
After setting her gently onto the sheets, he immediately turned to leave the room.
Her hand, however, clung to his shirt like glue.
"Where are you going?"
Her abundant wheat-blond hair lay scattered across the white sheets as she gazed up at him with moist eyes.
"This is your bed too. Lie down."
At last, his patience ran out.
Grabbing her wrist in a swift motion, Varkas pinned it firmly against the mattress.
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
His voice came out as a low growl.
"...What did I do?"
A faint blush spread across her face, accompanied by a trace of unease.
Even that looked unbearably seductive, irritating him all the more.
"You drag me onto the bed... for what?"
His harsh questioning made her cheeks flush even deeper.
She nervously bit her lip before stammering,
"I... I just wanted you to get some rest. You've spent the last two years moving from one battlefield to another. Even after coming back, you've done nothing but work late into the night with official duties, so..."
"So you want us to lie in the same bed and take a nap together?"
The sarcasm in his voice made her eyes narrow sharply.
"Why? Is that not allowed?"
He slowly let his gaze travel over her.