Chapter 100

Lyra’s POV

Within minutes, we finished bathing—our first truly ordinary bath together. Normally, showering side by side leads to passionate entanglements that last well beyond the water running, but today felt different. Today, Alistair honored my wish for a calm, simple ritual. When we stepped out, I toweled off and made my way to the bed. He wrapped a towel around his waist and joined me, lying down gently beside me.

He studied my face with concern. “What did he do to you?” he asked at once, the moment he saw I was genuinely relaxed.

I curled my legs beneath the sheet and tried to sound casual. “He kissed me uninvited,” I admitted, “so I bit him and kicked him where it counts.” I hoped that admission would close the matter.

Alistair’s eyes darkened. “Do you want him dead?” he asked gravely, and a chill ran down my spine. Was he really so calm about ending someone’s life?

I blinked, taken aback. Who was this man I had married? In that moment, I