Chapter Eight
Evan Goes on a Journey
A carriage arrived at the cottage before dawn, pulled by a familiar brown horse.
“Seabiscuit?” That wasn’t his real name, but he reminded me of the one from the movie, so the name had stuck. I walked over and petted his neck, smiling as he stood still and allowed me to. “Still as handsome as ever, aren’t you, boy?”
“Samson will serve you well.” Callum beamed down at me. The sun hadn’t risen yet, but with that bright smile, warmth flooded me anyway. “He likes you. If you were anyone else, he would’ve already knocked you on your cute ass.”
“Did you just call my ass cute? I’m telling Maddox.”
Callum grinned and surveyed the yard. “Speaking of the captain, is he still speaking with that thief?”
Maddox had told him about Rowan before heading off into the woods with the thief in question.
“Yep.” I glanced toward the trees where he and Rowan had gone earlier. Lake was with them too. Nearly an hour had passed. Hopefully, they hadn’t killed each other.
Callum followed my gaze. “Lake is coming with us, isn’t he? I’m sure the captain is giving him demands in regard to your well-being. He did the same to me two days ago. Quite unnecessary though. He told me to protect you with my life, and I would’ve done that with or without his order to do so.”
My heart squeezed.
Duke petted his horse—a gray one with darker gray spots on its rear—then clapped me on the back. “Are you ready for our adventure, Thorn Prince?”
“Y-Yeah.” More like terrified, but I’d keep that to myself. The light dusting of snow remained from yesterday. “Will it be safe to travel?”
“Aye. We’re traveling south where snow isn’t as common, even in winter, so the weather shouldn’t be a problem.”
Three more men arrived on horseback. They were decked out in full armor and wore helmets, so I couldn’t see their faces.
“Who are they?”
“Guards who’ll be traveling with us.” Duke nodded to them.
“Why?” I asked. “You and Cal are more than enough.”
“Direct orders from the castle,” Callum said.
“Orders from the castle, huh?” I eyed the three guards with suspicion. “It seems my men aren’t the only overprotective ones. Prince Sawyer is a worry bug too.”
Callum ruffled my hair. “Can you blame him?”
I patted my bangs back into place and playfully snarled at him. Which just made his sunshine persona even more blinding as he gave a full, toothy grin.
One of the guards was massive. Atop his horse, he looked intimidating as hell. The other two guards dismounted and approached, removing their helmets as they did.
“Good morrow,” one greeted me. He had wavy brown hair and pale blue eyes. “I’m Finnian, and we’ll be accompanying you to Exalos.”
The other man glowered at me. Scars marred one side of his face and trailed down his neck, dipping into the top of his armor. He had a short beard and a head of shaggy, dirty-blond hair.
“His name’s August,” Finnian told me. “Forgive him. He’s not a morning person.”
August snarled at him before storming back off toward his horse.
Finnian offered me a polite smile, bowed, then followed after him.
The third guard didn’t bother greeting me, but it was okay. Maybe he wasn’t a morning person either.
“Mister Evan!” Miles waved as he approached on foot. The café would open soon, so he’d arrived early to prep the pastries. He held a wrapped bundle and offered it to me. “For your travels.”
I unwrapped the cloth and smiled at the loaves. “Carrot cake?”
“With crushed pecans.” He wrung his hands in front of him. “I added cinnamon as well. But only a hint.”
“Thank you.” I wrapped it back up and put it inside my satchel for safekeeping.
The backs of my eyes stung. I’d miss Miles, Peter, and Alice. I’d miss the café and my daily routine of waking early and baking with Lake. I’d miss helping Maddox into his armor before he left—and out of it once he returned home. And I’d miss the crinkle at the edge of Briar’s hazel eyes as he spoke of his day and asked me about mine.
I will not cry. Nope.
“Mister Evan? Are you all right—”
I threw my arms around Miles and squeezed him tight. “Take care of everything while I’m gone.”
“You can count on me.” He returned my embrace. “I should get started on the croissants, otherwise many people will be saddened by the lack of those breakfast sandwiches.”
After giving me another hug and telling me to be careful, he dashed off into the cottage.
“Come here, love.”
Those three words broke through my defenses and released the flow of tears I’d been blinking back. I stepped into Briar’s arms and pushed my face into his chest. He rubbed my back and murmured sweet words in my ear that only made me cry harder.
“I don’t have to leave,” I said into his chest. “I can send a letter to Exalos detailing things for the café and stay here with you.”
“A letter won’t be the same,” Briar responded. “As much as I’m going to miss you, I won’t let you throw this opportunity away. You’ve worked too hard, Evan.”
“But—”
“Spreading love, acceptance, and happiness one cup of coffee at a time, remember?” His lips brushed my temple. “You made your dream a reality by opening this café, and now you have another dream: to make this sometimes cruel world a little brighter in the way you know how. A second café in Exalos is the beginning of that.”
“Damn you,” I mumbled through another wave of tears. “Why do you always have to make sense?”
He smiled against my brow. “Three weeks isn’t too long in the grand scheme of things. A month at most. You’ll be home before you know it.”
“Fine.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “But you have to promise me you’ll remember to eat. No skipping meals because you’re ‘too busy.’ And a cup of tea doesn’t qualify as a meal.”
His body shook with a light chuckle. “Noted. Now, let me have a look at you.” He gently wiped at my wet cheeks. “Please don’t cry.”
“I can’t help it.” I hiccupped.
“When our captain sees you like this, it’ll break his heart.” Briar caught a strand of my hair and twirled it around his finger. “It’s certainly breaking mine.”
“Sorry.” I scrubbed at my face. “Better?”
He kissed me in response. A kiss that didn’t last nearly long enough.
The coachman grabbed my suitcase and loaded it into the luggage department before doing the same to the sacks of provisions for the journey. Provisions in the form of a ton of cookies, sandwiches for the road, fruit and vegetables from Lake’s garden, and dried-out slivers of meat that tasted just like beef jerky. I’d packed enough for everyone in the “escort Evan” party. My need to feed the people around me didn’t stop just because I’d be living out of a carriage for several days.
“I’ll hold on to this one,” I said as he reached for the satchel at my feet.
“As you wish, sir.” The coachman nodded and returned to the carriage.
“What’s in it?” Briar asked.
“Oh. Just… stuff and things.”
Curiosity caused a dip in his forehead and a twinkle in his eyes. “Stuff and things?”
“Keepsakes.” I hugged the satchel to my chest. “The book you let me borrow when I first got to Bremloc. One of Maddox’s neckerchiefs. Rowan’s dagger. Mister Hop is in here too.” Lake’s stuffed animal from when he was a young boy. I’d kind of grown attached to the thing.
Briar rested his hand on the side of my neck. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“But I love both of you most,” a deep voice said from behind us before strong arms came around me. Warm breath feathered across the back of my neck. “Did I hear you correctly? You stole one of my neckerchiefs?”
Despite the ache in my heart at our imminent goodbye, I smiled and turned to face him. A mistake. Staring up into his blue eyes, any witty remark I might’ve had flew right out of my head. Maddox made my brain stop working sometimes.
“It seems there are now two thieves for me to keep an eye on,” he said.
“So Rowan is still alive? That’s good.”
The muscle in his cheek jumped.
I poked the spot and loved how the twitch dropped to the edge of his mouth. “In regard to the allegedly stolen neckerchief, all I have to say is… finders keepers. It was tucked away in your drawer and forgotten with the passage of time.”
“I wore it less than a week ago.”
“As I said, forgotten with the passage of time,” I said with a wave of my hand. “I rescued it from a life of sadness and neglect.”
A deep laugh rumbled in his chest before he drew me in closer and rested his cheek on the top of my head. “Behave yourself while you’re gone. Lake will tell me if you don’t.”
Maddox usually referred to Lake as “the wolf” or “the mutt.” So hearing him say Lake’s name nearly made me start crying. Again.
“I always behave.” The floodgates were about to open for the second time. I needed a distraction and fast. “What did Rowan tell you? And if you say ‘knightly business,’ I swear to all the gods I will take this satchel and smack you with it.”
“He gave me names,” Maddox said, surprising me. I hadn’t expected him to actually answer. “I intend to look deeper into them and consult my sources on the matter before taking any sort of action.”
“Your sources? Like the order of spies?”
“Yes.”
“Oh! What about the pirate captain? Rowan mentioned him, and the curiosity is killing me. What business arrangement do you have with him? Does he have a big ship—”
“Her,” Maddox interjected, silencing my rambles. “The pirate captain is a woman. You’ve met her actually.” He lightly bopped my chin. “Captain Stone. First name, Isabel.”
Shock flooded my system. All the little Evans that controlled my body had stopped moving, cups of coffee halted at their mouths as their brains short-circuited. One was probably choking on a cupcake.
“Isabel? She’s the pirate captain?”
He nodded. “The knights agreed to turn a blind eye to her and her crew while they’re in the area, given that they not stir up too much trouble, in exchange for her aid in monitoring ships sailing toward the capital. She’s to alert us if anything seems amiss. With her aid, we’re able to guard the land and the coast.”
Everything made sense now—why he’d been meeting with her in the tavern that day and her amusement when she mentioned being trustworthy after returning his coin pouch. Because, well… pirate. With that piece of the puzzle now in place, a small giggle escaped me. It came more from relief than anything.
“See?” Maddox linked our fingers. “My relationship with her is strictly business. And as I mentioned, she has no interest in me, romantic or otherwise, nor do I with her. You are all I need and want in this life.”
“Thank you for that clarification, Captain.” Briar exaggerated a sigh. “Oh, how the heart aches when one comes to the realization that their love is unrequited—”
Maddox caught him by the nape and captured his lips, silencing Briar with a kiss just like he often did with me. When they pulled apart moments later, both wore tender smiles. That tenderness seeped into me too.
“We should march out,” the cranky guard, August, barked from atop his horse. “A long journey awaits us, and we needn’t waste daylight.”
Maddox frowned at the guard before looking at Callum. “Stay close to Evan’s side.”
“I will, sir.”
Did Maddox not trust the guards? Not surprising.
“Don’t worry about me,” I told him. “I’ve got Cal, Duke, and Lake on my side. And I’ve been known to do some damage myself with these weapons of mass destruction.” I flexed one bicep.
Which remained flat.
When Maddox snorted a laugh, there was a pained look in his eyes. He then crushed me to his chest, a lot tighter than before, and lowered his face to my neck. “Be careful, sweetheart. Don’t go anywhere without either Lake, Callum, or Duke by your side.”
“You wound me, oh great captain,” a smooth voice then said. “Your lack of trust in me is quite depressing. I’m more than capable of protecting your little muffin too.”
I peeked around Maddox’s big body to see Rowan. He wore a black cloak over his tunic, and his dark auburn hair was pulled to the side and held together with the same golden cuff as before.
“Trust must be earned.” Maddox held me even closer. “And know this, thief. If any harm comes to Evan as a result of your actions, there isn’t enough magic in this world to hide you from my rage.”
“Typical brute. So quick to resort to violence.” Rowan’s topaz eyes moved to me. “What you see in him, I’ll never understand. Or perhaps it’s simply because he has a pretty face?” He tilted his head to the side. “Well, if you squint with one eye and close the other, that is.”
“Hey, be nice,” I snapped.
Maddox pressed his lips together. The insult hadn’t bothered him in the slightest. He was hot as hell and knew it. Rowan was just being an ass.
“Lovely seeing you two again,” Rowan said to Callum and Duke. “Better circumstances this time, I’d say.”
“Lovely isn’t the word I’d use,” Duke responded.
He and Callum, two men with easygoing natures and who always radiated silliness and smiles, looked murderous.
Panic set in as the two knights swung back up into their saddles and spoke to the guards, also on horseback. The coachman tipped his head to me. All were waiting for me to get into the carriage, but my feet were cemented to the grass. I felt like Rose from Titanic when she didn’t want to get into the lifeboat and leave Jack behind.
“I’ll help you into the carriage, love.” Briar took my hand.
“As will I.” Maddox grabbed the other, linking our fingers. The ring I’d bought for him hadn’t left his finger since the day I’d placed it there. The feel of it as I held his hand gave me butterflies.
“Don’t miss us too much, boys. I’ll take real good care of him.” Rowan tossed them a smirk before stepping up into the carriage and disappearing into the dark compartment.
Maddox scowled. “He’ll be riding with you? Forget our agreement. I’m going to gut him here and now.”
“Now, now, Captain.” Briar sighed. “You felt the same way about Lake in the beginning.”
“I was wrong about the wolf,” Maddox said. “The thief, however, is a self-serving bastard who’ll be intimately acquainted with my sword should he step one toe out of line.”
Reaching the carriage, Briar placed my satchel inside before standing in front of me. His smile didn’t reach his eyes. Maddox didn’t even attempt one. He frowned, as usual, though like earlier, there was a pained gleam in his ocean blues.
“It’s only for a few weeks, right?” I tried to keep a light tone, but my voice cracked anyway. Then, to Maddox. “I left Miles the recipe for your favorite muffins. He said he’ll make them for you whenever you want.”
“They won’t be the same.” Maddox retook my hand. “I’ll wait for you to return and make them for me yourself.”
“Okay.”
It’s not goodbye forever. So why did it hurt so much?
Briar pressed closer and kissed my temple, letting his lips linger on my skin. Maddox then took hold of my chin and crushed our mouths together. I felt the things he couldn’t bring himself to say. My captain didn’t express that sort of vulnerability when others were around, especially his knights.
The two of them helped me up the single step and into the carriage. As I settled in place, they stepped back and shut the compartment door. The window allowed me to still see them. Their eyes didn’t leave me either. When the coachman cracked the whip and sent Samson into motion, the carriage jolting forward in response, I waved at them, blinking back tears.
Maddox stepped after the carriage, and that wall he’d hid behind crumbled, revealing a deep sorrow as he mouthed my name. When he took another step after me, Briar grabbed his hand. That same sorrow reflected in his expression too.
I stared at them until they faded from my sight. Weeks without them. How the hell was I going to do it?
A flash of silver caught my eye from the tree line. Lake. He’d be following in secret, using the trees as coverage. Would he be all right traveling on foot? Worry then knotted in my gut for another reason. I was happy he’d be with me, but the risk of him being discovered made me feel sick.
“Dry those eyes, little treasure.”
I jumped and looked at the seat across from me. Rowan had blended in with the shadows of the interior, making me temporarily forget he was inside. Probably intentional on his part. The trickster.
“I’m not crying.” I used my sleeve to wipe at my face.
“Do you need to cuddle with the stuffed rabbit?”
“Quit teasing me.” I clutched the satchel in my lap where, yes, Mister Hop was tucked inside.
“Then stop being so fun to tease,” Rowan said.
“Know what else I have in my bag? Your dagger. I’m not afraid to whip it out if I need to.”
He arched a brow. “To do what? Poke your eye out?”
“Rude.” I huffed. “If this is how you plan to seduce me, you have a snowball’s chance in hell of it working out for you.”
“It worked for your captain.” Rowan’s smile grew. “You like when he teases you.”
“You’re not him.”
“Thank the gods for that.” He reclined and spread his legs out, resting one arm on his thigh while placing the other on the back of his seat, watching me with that familiar curve to his lips. “Knights are all about brotherhood and sacrificing their lives for the greater good. I could never be so selfless.”
“At least you’re honest about it.”
“Why be a hero and kneel to some fool in a crown, doing his bidding, when you can be free? Villains have more fun.”
“Is that how you see yourself?” I asked. “As a villain?”
“Don’t you?”
“No.” And I really didn’t. Rowan might’ve come across as a bad guy, but I got the feeling there was more to him.
His brows drew together. “Well, you’re the first.”
“A villain would’ve left me in the dark wood to die once realizing I wasn’t worth anything to him,” I said, glancing toward the trees as the carriage rattled down the road. “But you didn’t. You saved me from that crow demon and tackled me to the ground, using your shadow magic to hide us from it. Pretty sure a villain wouldn’t have used his own body as a shield like that either.”
Rowan looked out the window closest to him, no longer smirking. “He would if he’d finally found something worth saving.”
“That’s how you see me?” I tore my gaze from him, feeling too nervous. “As someone worth saving?”
He didn’t answer.
When I looked back at him, he was gone.
He had sunk into the shadows, leaving me alone in the carriage with nothing but my satchel of keepsakes, an emotional support bunny, and a world of confusion.
***
The long day of travel ended in a port town called White Peak Bay. Apparently, the name came from the way the water looked when crashing against the cluster of sharp rocks offshore. Sailors knew to avoid the area, otherwise have their ships riddled with deep scrapes and holes.
After finding a stable for the horses and storing the carriage for the night, the coachman and guards went ahead of us to secure rooms at the local inn. Duke and Callum walked with me through town, one on each side of me.
Lake had approached me shortly after arriving and said he’d be waiting for me in the room.
“I wish people weren’t so close-minded,” I said at the thought of my wolf. “Lake should be here with us, out in the open. Not forced to hide.”
“Until the conflict with Lord Onyx ends, I’m afraid people will continue to see demi-wolves as a threat,” Callum said.
“Because they sided with him, right?”
He nodded. “The human-demon war goes back many, many years. I’m not even sure how it all began. There are only speculations. Fight over the right to the throne. Conflict over territory. The same reasons most wars are started, I suppose. It all started between Lord Onyx’s father and King Paris, a former king of Bremloc.”
“How old is Lord Onyx?” I recalled the man I’d seen in the dark wood. Long black hair, red eyes, and dressed in an ornate outfit that reminded me of a traditional Chinese robe. He hadn’t looked a day over thirty.
“I don’t know,” Callum answered with a shrug. “Old.”
I snorted. “Glad you could clear that up for me, Cal.”
He flashed a dimpled grin.
The glow of lanterns lit our way, as did the light streaming out from shop windows. Shops that were closing for the evening by the look of it. The tavern was booming, though. People went in and out, the roar of laughter, voices, and music increasing and fading with the opening and closing of the door.
“Fancy a drink?” Duke asked, following my gaze.
“Nah, I shouldn’t. Knowing me, I’d drink too much and then wind up on a table dancing in my underwear.”
Callum nodded. “We should get you a pint of ale, then. I’d like to have a good story to share with the captain when we return.”
“Not a chance.” I shivered. The setting sun zapped the warmth from the evening air, and the wind chilled me to the bone. Being that close to the harbor didn’t help.
“Here.” Callum put his arm around my waist and tugged me closer. “I’ll keep you warm.”
Duke eyed him over my head. “Careful. I know a certain captain who’d remove your hand for placing it where it doesn’t belong.”
Callum grinned. “What the captain doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Besides, he ordered me to protect Evan and ensure he was happy and comfortable during our travels. I’m simply following those orders by keeping him warm.”
“Suit yourself. It’s your pretty head on the chopping block.”
“Pretty? Careful, Duke, or I may think you’re sweet on me.”
“You wish.” Duke snorted “I never said I liked the pretty ones.”
“Ah, yes.” Callum’s smile widened. “You like them muscled and brooding like a certain blond we know.”
“Blond?” I asked, thoroughly intrigued. “I see, I see. You have the hots for Hudson, don’t you?”
I was teasing, of course. I suspected who he actually liked but didn’t want to risk ruining the mood by mentioning it. Baden hadn’t given any indication that he liked men. Briar had joked about unrequited love earlier, but Duke probably knew all too well what it truly felt like. Painful and lonely.
“Hudson?” Duke barked out a laugh. “Even if that fool learned how to properly wield a weapon without falling on his ass, I still wouldn’t give him a toss in the hay. He’s much too young for me. My tastes lie elsewhere.”
“Elsewhere?” Callum’s knowing smile made it clear he knew exactly where that was.
“Aye. Elsewhere.” Duke reached over and shoved his shoulder. “Get your nose out of my business and worry about yourself. The captain’ll whack off your head with his sword for being so familiar with his precious muffin.”
I looped my arm through Duke’s. “Now you’re both keeping me warm. No heads will roll. I won’t let them.”
“There’s our small but mighty thorn prince,” Duke said. “Brave enough to face down an angry Captain Maddox.”
“Eh, he only looks mean. Beneath that scowl, he’s a big softie who loves sweets and snuggles.”
Duke snickered. “So if he charges at me in anger, I should throw a muffin at him?”
“Better make it two muffins,” Callum said. “And a chocolate cupcake for extra defense.”
Their banter alleviated some of my homesickness. “Thanks again for coming with me on this trip. I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have you guys.”
“I wouldn’t wish to be anywhere else,” Callum said in a softer tone. “What good is all my training if I can’t protect those I love?”
“You love me?”
He averted his gaze to the nearby tavern.
“We all love you,” Duke said. “You’re our little prince. Baker of the best pastries in all the realms.”
“I wouldn’t say all the realms.” I shook my head. “But I appreciate the boost of confidence.”
“Where’s that redheaded bastard?” Duke then asked. “The ugly one. Not the insanely attractive one such as myself.”
“Rowan isn’t ugly,” I said. Quite the opposite. His sharp features, tanned complexion, and topaz eyes did strange things to my belly… and nether regions. “I don’t know where he is. He kinda disappeared earlier, and I haven’t seen him since.”
“Good riddance,” Duke muttered. “He’ll stay away if he knows what’s good for him.”
Callum lost some of his lightheartedness. It wasn’t often he looked so serious. “When the captain said the thief would be traveling with us, to say I was surprised would be an understatement. In fact, I was angry. It was the first time I’ve ever questioned the captain’s decision.”
Duke sobered as well.
“How did Maddox react?” I asked, wishing I could’ve been a fly on the wall when that conversation took place.
“Remarkably calm.” Callum shifted his gaze to me. “He understood why I was angry.”
“Why were you?”
“Because Rowan hurt you,” he answered. “But the captain told me to trust him. He wouldn’t have allowed Rowan to travel with us if he believed him to be a threat to you.”
“Really? What makes him so sure?” Even I was having some doubts in that regard. Rowan was just so… mysterious. I couldn’t read him at all.
“Instinct,” Callum said. “His gut tells him that despite Rowan’s unsavory qualities, the thief is genuine in saying he doesn’t want to hurt you. And the captain’s gut is rarely wrong.”
“Probably because it’s filled with all those muffins,” I said. “They give him a sixth sense.”
When Callum laughed, the little fractures in my chest at the thought of him being upset mended some. “You slay me, Ev.”
After we’d stretched our legs for a while, we made our way toward the inn. The chill in the air made me thankful to have them on both sides of me. Their big bodies helped block the breeze.
The inn was a charming little place that looked like it was torn from the pages of a medieval fairytale. Soft light filled the foyer, and the sconces along the paneled walls guided our way farther inside. We passed armchairs, shelves of knickknacks, a few tables, and a lit hearth. A woman wiping down a table smiled at us.
I returned her smile before looking at Callum. “It’s cozy here.”
“You sound relieved.”
“I expected it to be a shady establishment with eye-patched rogues and bandits stationed out front, threatening to steal my booty or something.”
Duke barked out a laugh. “That’d be the case if we were in Lindel. The town’s overrun with thieves, pirates, murderers, and the like. Can’t walk five feet without bumping into a pickpocket or finding yourself pulled into a dark alley followed by cold steel pressed to your throat.”
“We’re not… um, passing through Lindel on our way to Exalos, are we?”
Another laugh, and he clapped me on the back. “Fret not. Lindel is to the east. Exalos is south.”
“South is my new favorite direction.”
“You could take on a rogue,” Duke said. “With your tiny fists of iron.”
“His fists aren’t meant for violence.” Callum swept his gaze around the front parlor and placed his hand on my lower back when locating the stairs. “They’re not weapons but tools for healing.”
“Healing?” I asked, walking with him across the room. Duke walked on my other side. “If you recall, Briar fired me from his clinic. I was a horrible apprentice.”
“You heal the soul of anyone who eats your food,” Callum said. “Every time the knights have been wounded and in the medical ward, you stopping by to make them… us… breakfast lifted our spirits more than you’ll ever know.” His warm brown eyes found mine. “There’s no one else like you, Ev. Someone pure of heart who always puts other’s needs above his own. It’s why I’m happy you have the captain and the rest of your men. You deserve to have that same selfless love and care returned to you.”
“Cal…” Damn if his words didn’t make my eyes water.
“The hour’s late.” He tore his gaze away and continued guiding me up the stairs. “We leave at first light, so don’t let Lake keep you from a proper night of sleep.”
“And the walls are thin,” Duke added with a sly curve to his mouth. “Which means don’t keep us awake either.”
Certain I was blushing scarlet, I stumbled along with them down the short hallway. One of the guards from our party stood outside a door.
“There you are,” August told me in a hard tone. “You’d do well not to wander off. Enemies of Bremloc could be lurking in the shadows, waiting for the opportune moment to strike.”
Shadows, huh? Fairly sure Rowan would cut down any of them long before they could even think to lunge at me. Because, for whatever reason, he saw me as someone worth protecting.
“We were with him.” Callum echoed the guard’s hard tone, though his seemed way more legit. Maybe because he had the skills to back it up. “You’re dismissed for the night.”
“You are in no position to give me orders, knight,” he said through clenched teeth. Seemed like someone was on a power trip. “My orders were given to me by Prince Sawyer himself. If anyone is in charge here, it’s me.”
Callum’s eyes narrowed. Then, he casually turned his back to the guard. “Suit yourself. Enjoy standing out here all night while I sleep peacefully in my bed.”
August’s expression soured even further.
“Let’s get you settled into your room.” Duke ushered me toward the door and opened it, gently pushing me inside. “Remember what I said about the thin walls.”
Callum chuckled, then poked his head around Duke’s sturdy frame. “Sleep well, Ev. We’ll come to fetch you first thing in the morning.” A sudden seriousness washed over him before he came closer and leaned in, whispering in my ear, “Lock the door once we leave. Come morning, we’ll knock twice. Pause. Then knock once more. Don’t unlock the door otherwise.”
Because of Lake. It was to protect him. If Guard Douchebag walked in on us instead, Lake would be discovered, and… yeah, I didn’t want to think about it.
Duke made a fist and lightly bumped my shoulder before stepping back into the hall. Callum ruffled the top of my hair in a way that was becoming familiar. There was a tenderness in his eyes that was becoming familiar too, especially over the past month. He shut the door but remained standing on the other side of it.
I noticed his shadow and the lack of retreating steps. Only once I locked the door with a loud click did he finally step away.
Overprotective. Just like Maddox.
“Did you have a nice stroll through town?” a soft voice asked.
I turned to see Lake in the corner. Tiny bursts of excitement went off in my chest, and I ached to wrap my arms around him. “Yeah. My butt still hurts, but it’s nothing compared to how you must feel. You had to run the whole way.”
“I enjoyed the exercise. It’s been a while since I was able to run like that with such freedom. And I was able to rest when you stopped for meals.” He slowly approached, staying out of sight of the window. In front of me, he took me in his arms and nuzzled my neck. “But even if it’d been a tedious, miserable journey, being here with you would make it all worth it.”
“You sweet talker.”
“Only for you.” Lake dropped a kiss to my throat. “You’re my mate. My human.”
“And you’re my Mister Wolf.”
I felt him smile before he drew back and led me toward the bed. He helped me undress, removing my cloak, tunic, boots, and trousers. His nose crinkled in an adorable way as he spotted my underwear. They were the ones I’d been wearing when whisked away to Bremloc: neon colored and covered in hot dogs wearing sunglasses with text that mentioned my wiener.
“The strange design again.”
“You leave my hot dogs alone.”
Lake lowered his head and nipped at one of them. I giggled and curled into a ball on the bed. He dove on top of me and trailed those nips up my bare belly, chest, and throat. His lips then pressed to mine. As the taste of him exploded on my tongue, I sighed and hooked my arms around his neck.
We turned out the lantern and cuddled under the blanket, giving each other slow kisses and soft pets. It was intimate and tender but lacked any sexual undertones.
Not that labels mattered, but I sometimes wondered if Lake was on the asexual spectrum. Maybe within the shades of gray. He enjoyed sex—and he definitely set the sheets on fire when he was in the mood for it—but he seemed to prefer other forms of intimacy. Being close to me and cuddling without making it sexual.
Lake pulled from my lips and rested his head on my chest. He loved for me to hold him. I loved it too. I closed my eyes and ran my fingers through his hair.
Two faces surfaced in my mind.
Going one or two nights without Briar and Maddox was common. Briar’s work sometimes took him out of the capital for a few days at a time, like when he visited the Magical Academy to be a guest lecturer or help with research. Maddox left for days when on a mission. But this was different.
“What do you think they’re doing?” I asked.
“Probably what we are.” Lake’s wolf ears twitched as I petted them. “Lying together and thinking of us like we are them.”
Luckily, I fell asleep fairly quickly. Must’ve been from the long day of bouncing around in a carriage, stopping periodically to take a leak or to dish out food from my knapsack. Lake’s scent helped too. The hint of peaches and spring. Of home.
Sometime during the night, I could’ve sworn I caught traces of another scent. Something peppery with a touch of sweet.
And somehow… that reminded me of home too.