Han’s arm shot out, steadying her. “I told you before, I wouldn’t let you fall.” He pulled her out of sight behind the tree and pressed the palm of his other hand into her sore side. She hissed a breath through her teeth.
“I don’t feel any knots. That’s a good sign.” He gently lifted her tunic. A bruise had spread from her hipbone to just above her waist. He shook his head in sympathy. “It should heal. My mother has a salve.”
She was suddenly aware of how near he was, both his hands on her, their faces a mere hand span apart. She tried to pull away, but he held her firm. “I’ve watched so many die tonight—I won’t see you be one of them. What are you doing, sneaking out of the harem? And going into the palace? I thought you were smarter than that.”
When Lilette didn’t answer, he took a small step closer—so close she could feel the warmth from his body. “You’re to be the next empress—the most powerful woman in the empire. You’ll want for nothing. Why risk death to get away from that?”
The next empress? “What?”
Han’s face darkened, but he didn’t respond.
She pinched her eyes shut to block out the images of being a wife to Chen. Could she trust Han? Despite everything, she’d seen glimpses of his former kindness. He had saved her life twice, risking his own. If Lilette was going to get out, she needed help. She wouldn’t find anyone better. “If I asked, would you help me escape?”
He studied her, his eyes glinting in the starlight. “We are enemies, you and I.”
Hopelessness washed over Lilette. Without his help tonight, she would have been caught and probably killed. If he refused, her chances of succeeding were almost nonexistent.
“You should go.” The hardness in her voice could cut a stone. “Thank you for returning me to my prison. Again.”
She turned to leave, but Han caught her hand. “Do you remember the first night you fled Rinnish?”
“How could I forget?”
He gently tugged off her hat. She froze as he unwound her bun and ran his fingers through her hair. She wasn’t sure why she allowed him to touch her, but it felt so good. “You were my best friend,” she finally admitted.
“Do you remember someone coming in the middle of the night to warn your parents to flee?”
Lilette whipped around to face him, her hair flaring across her shoulder. “All I remember was waking to my mother forcing me out of my bed.”
He looked sad, and vulnerable. It was so unlike the man she’d come to know that she blinked in surprise. “You? You warned us?”
His scar twitched. “I overheard my father talking to the elite. They were to come for you just before dawn. He wanted to marry you off to Chen.”
She touched Han’s scar. “Is that why you have this?” He tried to pull away from her, but Lilette stepped closer. He dropped his head and murmured, “My father was furious.”
She ran her fingers across the uneven skin. The movement was so slight she wasn’t sure, but she thought Han leaned into her touch.
“I wanted you to know that we may be enemies, but I am also your friend,” he whispered. “I have always been your friend.”
She wasn’t sure what made her do it, but she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. His mouth opened in surprise, but then he took hold of her face and kissed her. His lips were soft and gentle, but she felt a slight tremor somewhere deep inside him, as if he was holding back.
He pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. “Lilette . . .”
The way he said her name with such longing—had he learned to build armor around his heart too?
Every part of her ached for more. He rolled a lock of her hair between his fingers. “I never knew it came in the color of winter sunlight.”
“I’ve never seen winter.” Lilette’s voice came out breathy and soft.
“The light is thinner, the colors washed away.”
She pressed her lips together to keep herself in check. “Han . . .” This—whatever this was—didn’t fit in with her plans of escape, or Chen’s plan to marry her.
Han let her hair slip from his fingers before he stepped back. He tipped his chin toward his mother’s house. “You need to get back. Can you make it?”
She felt hollow without him next to her, and now words had abandoned her. She nodded. With a rush, he launched himself at the wall, his footing and handholds sure.
Lilette whipped around at the sound of voices in the distance. They were too far away for her to understand their words, but they were definitely calling for someone. And of course that someone was probably her.