“I’m glad you’re my ally now,” I say. His eyebrows lift, and I blush, because it sounds so sterile out loud. “I wouldn’t want to face you on a battlefield.” “I wouldn’t want to face you on a battlefield either.” “Liar,” I say, and I’m teasing, yet also serious. “I could never defeat you in battle.” “On the contrary.” He takes my hand and kisses my fingertips. “You know all the ways to make me yield.”