The very next morning, Blake kicked my door open at 6 a.m. like he owned the palace (which, technically, he kinda does).
"Rise and shine, little binder," he sang, way too cheerful. "You said surprise me. Surprise time."
I was face-down in the pillow, hair everywhere, wearing nothing but the oversized shirt I slept in. I groaned and pulled the blanket over my head.
"Five more minutes or I bite you," I mumbled.
He laughed, low and dangerous. "Promise?"
I felt the mattress dip as he sat on the edge. Then a warm hand slid under the blanket and wrapped around my ankle.
"I've got the whole day planned," he said. "Fast horses, no guards, no brothers. Just you and me."
I peeked out from the blanket. He was already dressed in riding gear (black leather, red shirt open at the throat, hair messy in that way that looked deliberate). Smirking, of course.
I should've said no.
But the idea of getting out of the palace for a few hours sounded too good.
