Chapter 24
Chapter
Twenty-Four
CAELAN
“You are both stubborn idiots,” Rowan said.
We were in the dining room, sharing a meal and talking about how quiet the Lords had been over the last couple of weeks.
Too quiet. Rowan had blamed me, which could be the truth.
I’d gotten into a rip-roaring fight with them over Evie not too long ago, which had led to a lull in antagonizing my fiancée.
Did I even have the right to call her that anymore?
Regardless, there was no need to kick me when I was down. “Rowan, I don’t want to hear it tonight.”
A server came over and refilled our coffee mugs before disappearing from the room.
“I’ve warned you a few times now,” the other Lord continued. “And yet, you seem to keep fucking up.”
I stared the Lord down, but Rowan had never been scared of me. “What about Evie?”
He picked up his mug and sipped his coffee. “What about her?”
“When does she get any blame?”
“Thirty seconds ago, I called her an idiot.”
“Yes, well, that’s not enough,” I grumbled.
“You knew what you were signing up for when you pursued her.”
“Perhaps, but she did not know what it meant to be with a Lord.”
Rowan shifted. “Yet you asked her to marry you anyway.”
“That’s what normal people do when they love someone, yes.”
Rowan set his mug down and sighed. “You and Evie are not normal people. She is the heir to the fae crown, and the poor girl still has no clue what that means for her. It’s possible she won’t be able to marry you if she accepts that crown.”
Rage turned my vision red. “Is that what you want?”
Rowan snorted. “I want my two best friends to work this shit out so I don’t feel like I have to lecture you both.
” He leaned forward. “But I will say, this is the last time I will speak to you about this. There are things going on in my territory I need to attend to. Once I return home, I won’t be back for a while. ”
Good, an uncharitable part of me thought.
Rowan’s grin was edged. “Jealous bastard. You’re one to talk with the Jezebel you have staying down the hall.”
“For the gods’ sake,” I muttered. “Turning her away is the fastest way to get into a conflict with Europe.”
“And the easiest way to smooth things over with your fiancée.” Rowan took one more sip of his coffee and rose.
He came around the table and clapped me on the shoulder.
“Sometimes the wind speaks to me, Caelan. There’s something off about this.
Off about her. The timing is too odd for this to be coincidental. Send her home and do it quickly.”
Rowan rarely spoke about his power. All the Lords had them.
We were shifters, but we were also something more.
None of us revealed our magic to the other, but we all knew Rowan’s power had manifested differently.
His gift resembled Evie’s enough to make me nervous, though his was a gentler sort of power, and he used it far more than the rest of us.
Rowan’s gift seemed to have been bestowed upon him at birth. The rest of us grew into our powers. I used mine only in dire circumstances, sometimes with devastating consequences. If he was warning me something wasn’t right, I’d be a fool not to listen.
“I’ll look into her visit.”
Rowan nodded. “If I hear anything more, I’ll call.”
He left me sitting in the dining room wondering what the hell was wrong with me. Why hadn’t I called Rachel’s father yet? I never let important things slip by me.
And where the hell was Simone? When was the last time I’d seen her?
Rising, I headed into the study to make a long overdue phone call. If Rowan was concerned, I should be too.
But on the way back, I stopped by the garden first. It was a beautiful evening, and I needed the fresh air…