Page 329 of Split or Swallow

Without another word, he drank. The moment her venom disappeared down his throat Tem felt unmistakable relief. Leo was safe. Nobody could crest him. He would never be controlled by Bastian, or any other basilisk.

Tem felt something else too. It was as if an invisible bridge had grown between them—a passage connecting her to him. It wasn’t quite like the corridor she shared in her mind with Caspen. But it was an inarguable thread that was as real as a physical sensation. She wondered if Leo felt it too.

Tem stood on her tiptoes, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Thank you.”

Leo smiled beneath her lips.

“Anything for you, Tem.”

His arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her into a proper kiss. She could taste her venom on his tongue. Smoky, like Caspen’s, only sweeter. When the kiss deepened, she let it. But when Leo pulled her toward the bed, she stopped him.

“I need to get to my dress fitting, Leo.”

“No you don’t. You need to kiss me.”

“I’m the bride, remember?”

“We’ll get married naked. It’ll be delightful. The guests will love it.”

“Leo.”

“Tem,” he groaned, throwing his head back. “What’s the point of marrying you if I can’t fuck you whenever I want?”

“Some would say love.”

“Ah, yes,” he smiled. “That.”

The smile faded, and Leo became serious. He traced a finger up her neck, tilting her face to his.

“You know I love you, don’t you, Tem?”

He didn’t need to tell her; Tem knew it from his actions. She saw Leo’s love for her in every glance, felt it in every touch. Even when they were fighting, she knew he loved her. He always had.

“I know, Leo.”

Tem realized suddenly that the only time she’d said she loved Leo was in front of Caspen. I love you both. Even that, Leo had to share.

Tem whispered her next question, genuinely wondering the answer:

“Do you know I love you too?”

If Leo looked happy before, he was positively euphoric now.

“Yes, Tem,” his arm tightened around her. “I know that. But I am certainly glad to hear it.”

There was a sharp knock on the door.

Leo groaned again, and Tem laughed at his constant unwillingness to be interrupted. The door opened to reveal the same maid from before.

“Temperance?” she asked. “It’s time for your dress fitting.”

The rest of the day was a whirlwind.

A fleet of maids ushered Tem from one event to the next in a blur of pearls and tulle. There was not one but three dresses to be chosen, along with cake samples, champagne (which she gave to the maids to taste), and flower arrangements. A harpist sampled a song for their first dance as husband and wife.

Tem barely registered any of it.