“I love you,” he murmured softly, his warm breath tickling my face as he ran his fingers through my hair.

“And I love you,” I said, the words leaving my lips in a resigned sigh. No matter our arguments or disagreements, I did love him, and I wouldn’t withhold that just because I was angry.

“Good.” He kissed my forehead, and then he was gone, leaving his robe behind in a gust of wind as he shot through the bedroom and into the shower.

I snatched the robe out of the air, pressing it to my face so I could inhale his scent. And then I left, allowing the blue silk to flutter to the ground as I went in search of answers.

2

I took the secret passageway back to my suite, which was only three rooms away from Iannis’s. The bedroom wasn’t much different from the one I’d had back in the east wing—in fact, Iannis had moved all the same furnishings into it since I’d liked them so much—but I now had my own private bath, and a sitting room I could use to entertain guests if I ever had any.

I tugged off my robe and dumped it into the laundry hamper that the Palace staff emptied every day, then sauntered into the marble-tiled bathroom and took a long shower. I stood beneath the hot spray and closed my eyes, allowing myself time to think about my conversation with Iannis.

Truthfully, I was conflicted about the whole engagement thing. I hadn’t wanted to rush into marriage, but I also hadn’t wanted to skulk around, hiding our intimate relationship as if what we were doing was dirty and wrong. The sheer joy and pleasure I’d experienced over the past few days felt more than right—it was perfect, and I wanted it to last forever.

But, of course, forever meant marriage. And the idea that my father, a man who didn’t know or care for me, could potentially swoop in and take it all away, was frightening. It was little wonder Iannis wanted to keep me away from my father, in light of the fact he’d been considering the possibility of marriage for some time.

Isn’t knowledge power, though? I asked myself as I lathered my arms and legs with fragrant soap. I’d always considered it better to be forewarned than taken by surprise, and I didn’t see why this situation would be any different. Yes, under the circumstances, it would be foolish to seek my father out and announce I was his daughter. But that didn’t mean I shouldn’t find out who he was. Surely, there was a way to do so discreetly, without alerting him.