“Dammit!” Connor’s voice reverberated off my walls. He stomped in carrying an armload of white daisies. “Stop sarding trying to buy my forgiveness with pranks! You think sending every cute serving girl under the age of six with a flower is going to convince me you’re not a liar? That we aren’t spelled?”
I watched Connor dump the daisies all over my bed. “I didn’t—”
Next to me, Declan and Quinn burst into laughter.
Connor and I turned to face them.
I put my hands on my hips. “I’m guessing you two have something to do with this?”
Declan shook his head between guffaws. “Nope. Not me. But I think Quinn’s getting desperate.”
Quinn nodded. And then he started moving his hips suggestively, pumping the air.
I smacked my hand over my forehead. But I couldn’t stop my smile. “I’m sorry, Connor.”
He stared at all of us a moment, before he turned and stomped out.
I rounded on Quinn. “You pissed him off.”
No, Dove. He was holding in a laugh that entire time.
“Oh.” I stared out the open door with longing.
“I’m gonna go follow him,” Declan grinned.
“Why?”
Declan paused at the door. “Oh. I forget. You weren’t here. Well, a few years ago, I was curious. Connor’s power doesn’t have a color when he uses it. And I was wondering about the price. I mean, why should he lose his emotions? If he was just seeing other people’s emotions, you’d expect him to then be kind of obtuse after. To go emotion-blind or something. But we think he actually drinks in emotion a little. Sips it. So, he drinks in others’ emotions and loses his own.”
I bit my lip. That made so much sense. And I’d been gone when they figured it out. I’d missed a huge piece of Connor’s life.
Before guilt could flood me, Declan added, “So, I’m just gonna follow Connor around for a bit, thinking all kinds of dirty thoughts about you. Let him drink that in.”
Quinn gave Declan a huge smile and a nod.
Dec turned to me and winked. “Trust me, we’ll get him turned around.”
A girl could only hope.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The next day was an exercise in caution as I waited to see what Sedara and Cheryn might do.
Ryan had to work with his guards and begin the process of clearing Willard’s province out. Connor got the unhappy task of breaking the news of herd and population relocation to Willard and his mother—though the official stance was water poisoning in the area. Declan stayed at my side, as he could tote his books and ledgers anywhere. And Quinn disappeared off to do whatever he did. Hopefully ferret out the dragon and its keeper.
Since it was a crisp fall day, but decent enough weather, some acrobats had been arranged to perform on the front lawn at luncheon. And then Avia and Abbas were to take a turn around the garden.
Unfortunately, my sister ended up with a stomachache after eating and had to beg off.
Sarding hell.
I had to figure out who could entertain the foreign prince for two hours.
I sat on the grass in my mint green gown, a small gold circlet in my hair. I worried Quinn’s bead beneath my fingers as I scanned the crowd of nobles on the lawn, looking for a suitable victim.
A hand interrupted my view. A strong, wide, dark-skinned hand, with a scar running along one thumb. I looked up to see Abbas smiling down at me. Today, he was dressed in traditional Evaness clothing, so his sculpted pecs were not on display. But his tight breeches left little to the imagination.
Abbas’ dark eyes bore into mine. “Since your sister has sadly been forced to leave us, I wondered if you’d care to join me and show me these magnificent grounds, Your Highness.”
I raised my brows. Not the reaction I’d expected after I’d insulted his magical prowess. Men typically didn’t like to be labeled ‘smallest’ at anything. “Actually, I have—”
“You have plans more important than the pending alliance between our countries?” His tone was soft but lethal.
There it was. That hint of a threat I’d been looking for.
“We do have a lovely group of poinsettias to the east,” I pasted on a smile and let him help me to my feet.
Behind me, Declan struggled to roll his parchment and close all his books.
Abbas tucked my hand over his arm and began to walk to the gravel path. But the distance spell tugged at me and I planted my feet.
“We need to wait for my knight.”
Declan hurriedly gathered his supplies in a bag and slung it over his shoulder.
“You’re perfectly safe with me, Your Highness,” Abbas joked lightly, but his eyes sparked with anger.
I grinned. “I might be. But you are a young, attractive, highly-eligible prince. Did you ever consider you might not be safe with me?”
Abbas’ studied my face as his grin grew. “You’re not the shy flower you were growing up.”
“We’ve met?”
He laughed. “I’m heartbroken you don’t remember. It was before the last Fire War. So you might have been six.”
“If I was, then you would have been utterly disgusting, sorry. Boy germs and all that.”
“All that indeed.”
I gestured right and we went down a path lined with evergreens that smelled of juniper and pine.
We walked in silence a moment, appreciating the peaceful crunch of gravel underfoot. The chatter from the rest of the nobles faded to bird-like twitters.
A bluebird alighted on a nearby branch, quite close to Abbas. He stopped, stared at it, then waved his hand to shoo it away.
“Don’t like birds, Prince Abbas?” I laughed as the bird flew skyward but then dived back down toward Abbas’ face, clearly dive-bombing him in retribution. Abbas’ long hair was nearly his downfall as the bird got a piece and yanked. “Ah! They don’t like you. I’ll have to tell Quinn. My knight’s under the impression that woodland creatures and nobility are fond of each other.”
“Little asswipe,” Abbas muttered under his breath.
“Oh, don’t let a silly bird ruin our enchanted outing.”
“Enchanted?” he grinned. “I knew you were taken with me, but enchanted is a strong word.”
“Particularly for you,” I winked.
His smile dropped a little. “May I ask where you heard such awful rumors about me?”
I almost felt bad. But the persona I adopted was intended to push him. To find that secret moment when I pushed too far and the courtier faded and truth remained. Nice wasn’t an option. Not when I was hunting those who might hurt Avia. Or Evaness.
I waved my hand back and forth casually in response to Abbas’ question. “Oh, you know how servants talk. Your youngest brother is supposedly the most impressive. But sadly, he couldn’t come to visit.”
“You certainly know how to cut a man’s ego.”
“Is yours large enough to cut?” I pushed harder.
Behind us, Declan’s blush was hilarious. The innuendo was too much for my sweet knight.
Abbas grabbed my hand and tucked it gently back into his. He clearly had no issues with innuendo. “I’ll let you stroke my ego anytime you want, Princess.”
“I’d have to use my pinkie then.”
His dark eyes glittered as he leaned down toward my ear and whispered, “I love it when you take out your little claws. One day, I’m going jam you so hard that I wipe that smug look right off your face. You’ll be screaming my name.”
“What a lovely double entendre,” I pulled away and turned to Declan. “Can I take that as a direct threat against my person and have him locked up?”
Abbas didn’t look worried in the least. He still held my hand, still had that smug grin slicing across his chiseled jaw. Perhaps he was only playing. Perhaps he wasn’t truly a threat. But those who didn’t have magic had to find their strength in other arenas. Was Abbas a good liar? A skilled manipulator? I didn’t know.
I looked back at Declan, since he didn’t answer right away. “Should we detour to the dungeon? Or not?”
Declan glared at me for making him this uncomfortable in front of a stranger. “Most people would only hear the sexual implications, wife. Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s quite enough,” Declan said.
“Damn. I’ll have to goad you into real threats.”
Abbas grinned. “I look forward to it. I thought you were giving me a tour of the grounds.”
“I am.”
“You haven’t pointed out a single plant.”
I put my hand to my mouth in mock horror. “Oh dear. I’m sorry. To your left are trees. And some bushes. And beneath all of those is a marvelous little plant called grass.”
“You’re an illuminating tour guide.”
I decided to push again. Without sugar-coating. “Why did you come without your brothers? If you all seek Avia’s hand, why not all come at once?”
Abbas looked down at me. With the afternoon sun behind him, I couldn’t read his expression. “The country of Evaness is well connected. You have access to trade with Lored. You have a working treaty with Sedara that gives you access to the elven weapons created on the Isles of Peth. You even get along with your neighbor, Rasle, to the west. How is that?”