Viserys said nothing, merely holding her tighter.
He looked down at the woman in his arms, and Rhaenys raised her head to meet his fierce, possessive gaze. She did not look away.
Then she rose onto her toes, kissed Viserys on the lips, and turned and ran out.
Viserys was left alone, wearing a smile that mingled helplessness with indulgence.
Viserys shook his head, setting such romantic concerns aside for now as his gaze sharpened again. King's Landing might already be under his control, but this was only the beginning.
Uniting the Seven Kingdoms, the approaching threat of the Others, the forces seeking to prevent the rise of the Valyrian Freehold, the enemies lurking in the shadows, and those so-called "gods"-he would have to face them all, one by one.
Viserys gathered his thoughts, then roused himself and prepared to arrange the day's affairs. After all, an important "battle" awaited him tonight, and he needed to prepare early.
Meanwhile, at Storm's End in the Stormlands, Renly Baratheon was facing the most difficult moment of his life.
Renly stood atop the highest tower of Storm's End, looking south toward Dorne. The composure and arrogance he once wore had vanished from his face, replaced by profound exhaustion and anxiety.
Ever since Renly had withdrawn from Bitterbridge to Storm's End, his days had grown steadily harder. He had originally dispatched the Earl of Tarth from Evenfall Hall and the Earl of Estermont from Greenstone, each leading ten thousand Stormlands troops, to reinforce Blackhaven and Nightsong respectively.
He himself had taken the remaining thirty thousand men and prepared to hold Storm's End to the death. This castle was the symbol of House Baratheon, as well as the strongest fortress in the Stormlands.
During the War of the Usurper, Lord Mace Tyrell and Earl Mathis