Chapter 436: Practical Plans

Chapter 436: Chapter 436: Practical Plans

By the time Liam and Arik returned to their guest suite, the palace had finally gone quiet.

The last of the wedding guests had been redirected toward their assigned wings, Mara and Rex had escaped whatever final obligations remained, and Gerard’s body had been removed with enough discretion that most of the reception had never understood why several guards suddenly appeared near the western balcony.

Liam stepped out of his formal coat and handed it to the waiting valet before dismissing the remaining staff.

The doors closed.

Silence settled over the suite.

And... Liam started laughing.

Arik, halfway through removing the gold cufflink from his right sleeve, looked over.

Liam tried to stop.

He genuinely did.

It lasted perhaps three seconds.

Then he remembered Arik standing beside Gerard’s corpse, expression perfectly serious, explaining that the man had survived so long because he had never used his brain enough to notice when it was gone.

Liam folded forward against the back of the sofa.

"Oh, gods."

Arik’s mouth curved.

"You laughed at Rex for laughing."

"I was in public."

"That apparently matters."

"It mattered until I had time to think about what you actually said."

Liam straightened enough to look at him, crimson eyes bright with exhausted amusement.

"You said it in front of the physician."

"He was already dead."

"That does not make it better."

"I disagree."

Liam laughed again.

Arik removed the second cufflink and placed both on the low table.

His pale formal jacket followed, leaving him in dark trousers and a white shirt that had lost most of its careful structure after an entire day of ceremony, dancing, attempted diplomacy, and murder.

Accidental murder, technically.

Liam sat on the arm of the sofa and wiped at one eye.

"I cannot believe Rex kept a straight face as long as he did."

"He didn’t."

"He tried."

"Poorly."

Liam smiled.

There was no grief in the room.

No guilt either.

Gerard had spent years making himself everyone else’s problem and had finally chosen the single subject guaranteed to remove what remained of Arik’s restraint.

Liam understood that perfectly well.

He also knew Arik.

The violence did not frighten him.

What frightened Liam considerably more was the expression Arik had started wearing now.

The humor remained.

Something else had joined it.

Liam narrowed his eyes.

"What?"

Arik moved toward him.

"Nothing."

"That is suspicious."

"You have spent years teaching me to be affectionate."

"That does not require prowling."

Arik stopped directly in front of him.

Liam looked up.

The difference in height remained absurd even after all these years, especially when Arik stood this close, and Liam had to tilt his head enough to make Ayla’s old joke about needing a neck brace unfortunately relevant.

Arik reached for him.

Liam caught his wrist.

"You have that look."

"What look?"

"The one from the aircraft."

Arik smiled.

"That was a good flight."

"For you."

"You enjoyed yourself."

Liam gave him a flat look.

Arik leaned closer.

"You brought up the child."

There it was.

Liam felt warmth crawl slowly toward his face.

"I knew this was coming."

"You told me you wanted one."

"I do."

Arik’s hand slipped free of Liam’s grip only because Liam allowed it, settling against his waist.

"Then I see no reason to delay."

"We are at Rex’s palace."

"In our private suite."

"There are guards outside."

"There are guards outside our bedroom in Nuria too."

"That is not helping."

Arik laughed softly.

Liam rested both hands against his chest.

He could feel the warmth through the thin shirt, along with the steady beat of his heart beneath one palm.

The amusement faded between them.

Arik’s expression changed first.

"You meant it?"

Liam knew what he was asking.

Not whether Liam wanted children someday.

Whether he wanted to begin now.

Liam looked down briefly at the open collar of Arik’s shirt before lifting his eyes again.

"I meant it."

Arik became very still.

Liam had seen that reaction before on the aircraft.

It still did something strange to him.

For all Arik’s confidence, all the arrogance and certainty and possessiveness he carried without apology, this mattered enough to unsettle him.

Liam smiled faintly.

"I would need to have the implant removed."

"I know."

"And this is probably not the ideal moment biologically."

Arik’s mouth twitched.

Liam narrowed his eyes.

"Do not laugh."

"I am not."

"You are enjoying this."

"I am enjoying the fact that you are planning conception like an infrastructure project."

Liam pushed against his chest.

Arik caught both wrists gently before he could move away.

"You love my planning."

"I do."

The answer was immediate.

Liam relaxed.

Arik kissed the inside of one wrist, then the other.

"So tonight is technically pointless," Liam said.

Arik looked offended.

"I can think of several purposes."

"Not for conception."

"I heard you."

Liam laughed.

Arik pulled him upright from the sofa arm and into his body, one arm wrapping around his waist while the other slid beneath his thighs.

Liam barely had time to grip his shoulders before Arik lifted him.

"Arik."

"You said you wanted affection."

"I did not say carry me across the room."

"You also never object properly anymore."

"That is because you ignore me."

"Incorrect. I listen carefully."

"You selectively obey."

"Marriage."

Liam laughed despite himself and gave up, wrapping one arm around Arik’s neck as he was carried toward the bedroom.

The adjoining room was warmer, lit only by the lamps left burning near the bed and the faint city glow beyond the curtains. Their luggage had been arranged along one wall in the adjoining wardrobe, formal clothing already prepared for the next morning by someone far more organized than either of them.

Arik set Liam down beside the bed.

Liam reached for Arik’s shirt and opened the first button.

Then the second.

Arik’s gaze darkened.

"This is still practice," Liam murmured.

Arik caught Liam around the waist.

"I intend to take preparation seriously."

Liam smiled.

"That sounds threatening."

"It should."

Arik kissed him.

Liam stopped thinking about physicians, timing, implants, wedding schedules, and everything else waiting beyond the locked doors.

His hands slid beneath Arik’s shirt.

Arik lifted him again, easier this time, and Liam went willingly, legs settling around his hips as Arik carried him the final steps toward the bed.

There would be practical discussions later.