Ren kicked the heavy double doors of the King's Nest open with her boot.
"Room service!" she announced, balancing the steaming tray of congee in one hand and her frying pan in the other.
The room was silent and freezing. The black stone walls seemed to suck the warmth right out of the air.
Syris was exactly where she had left him: sprawled face-down on the pile of black furs, stark naked, and glistening like a glazed donut from the jasmine oil.
He lifted his head slowly. His hair slid off his shoulders like a dark waterfall. His amethyst eyes were dull and heavy-lidded.
"You took too long," Syris whispered. His voice was raspy. "The cold came back. My skin... tightens."
"I was gone for twenty minutes, drama queen," Ren huffed, walking over to the bed. "And I had to fight off your 'Real Housewives of the Swamp' fan club to get to the stove. You're welcome."
She set the tray down on a low obsidian table. The smell of the spicy eel congee wafted over the bed.
