"Why?" Tania asked, freeing herself from his grasp. "Is there still work to be done?" Sleep was calling to her. Her exhaustion was not merely physical but mental as well.
"No. But if you return there, the likelihood is high that those women will come back searching for you. And it would not end well."
Tania looked at him with widened eyes. "Then what am I to do?"
This was Eltanin's moment; what he had been anticipating. Internally, his heart did flips, but externally, he maintained a composed expression. "You can stay here," he offered sincerely.
"You mean, in your room?" Tania's eyes grew even wider, her brows practically touching her hairline. "I—I can't!" Her voice was tinged with disbelief. The suggestion was absurd. If someone discovered that she, a mere maid, was sleeping in the king's chambers, it could spell disaster. Did he grasp the seriousness of the situation?
