Chapter 7
Sabine awoke and glanced outside, spotting thick, dark clouds. Without seeing the sun’s placement in the sky, she had no idea what time of day it was.
Peering over at Evander, she examined his cut. While the wound itself was red, the area around it didn’t look nearly as puffy and swollen as it had yesterday. Relief filled her. And her sewing job wasn’t half bad either.
Smiling, she remained lying there, watching the rise and fall of Evander’s chest. She needed to wake him so they could be on their way. Staying in one place too long wasn’t a great idea. However, he looked so peaceful. She was just about to say his name when he mumbled something. She leaned in closer so she could hear him.
“She said no one could ever love someone like me,” he murmured.
“Evander,” Sabine whispered, trying to rouse him without startling him. That was the last thing she wanted to do to an assassin. He’d probably flip her over or put her in a choke hold.
“So beautiful,” he mumbled. “The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.” He sighed. “But it can never be.”
Sabine wondered who he spoke of. While she knew he’d agreed to marry Lottie, she hadn’t asked if he was in love with someone. The mere thought of him having a lover didn’t feel right. Whoever this beautiful woman was who’d told him she couldn’t love him was a fool.
Propping her head on her hand, Sabine examined Evander in greater detail. He really was a handsome man. She didn’t know why she hadn’t seen it before back in Lynk. The curve of his face, his strong jawbone, and his eyes. Even though she couldn’t see his piercing green eyes at the moment, it didn’t mean she couldn’t picture them perfectly in her mind. The way they sparkled when he teased her, the seriousness in them when danger lurked close by.
She allowed herself to look at his body. At his toned shoulders and the curve of his upper arm. The slight dusting of freckles on his skin especially near his elbows. Her hand reached out of its own accord, tracing a line from his shoulder down to his hand. He was the opposite of Rainer in a lot of ways, and she found that appealing.
Evander mumbled something incoherent.
Scooting closer to him, Sabine gently pressed her stomach against his arm and placed the palm of her hand on his chest, not wanting to startle him and wind up dead. “Evander, it’s time to get up.” She gently patted his chest.
He reached up, wrapping his fingers around her hand. Peeling his eyes open, he peered over at her. “Morning,” he said with a small smile, his voice gravelly. “I haven’t slept that well in a long time.”
“It’s probably from the medicine.” Speaking of which, she needed to give him the second dose.
“And here I thought it was because of you,” he teased. He slowly sat up and examined his wound. “Not bad.” He reached for the basket of medicine beside the bed.
“I’ll get that for you.” She sat up.
“I can do it.” He lifted the vial and ingested the rest of the medicine. Then he spread the gooey substance over his cut. “Looks like it’s already healing.”
“I’m so sorry I stabbed you. I really meant to throw the knife at the assassin.” She covered her face with her hands. The entire ordeal had happened so quickly. Next time, she’d have to be more careful. Hopefully, there wouldn’t be a next time. She dropped her hands and looked at him to see if he believed her.
“I know it wasn’t your fault,” he replied. “I’m just embarrassed you had to help me back here and sew me shut.” He ran a hand through his messy hair.
He was kind of adorable in the morning. Sabine found herself wanting to run her hands through his hair, too.
Evander swung his legs over the side of the bed.
“Are you able to stand?” She hurried and got out of bed in case he needed her help.
“I’m fine. I could use some food, but other than that, I’m good.” He stood and stretched. “We need to be on our way. It’s only a matter of time until someone else finds us here.”
Trying not to stare at his sleek back, Sabine went over to their bags and put them on the bed. “I’m assuming you’ll want a clean shirt.” Her face warmed just thinking about how she’d torn off his shirt last night.
“Yes, thank you. Whatever is on top will be fine.”
She reached into his bag and pulled out a black shirt.
“I hate to ask this of you,” he said, his voice sounding unsure, “but can you help me put it on?” He kept his eyes focused on the floor. “I don’t want to tear a stitch.” A tinge of red spotted his cheeks.
He was embarrassed to ask for assistance. Sabine smiled. She loved when she had the upper hand. “Evander, the great and mighty assassin-pirate-prince needs my help?” She batted her eyelashes at him.
“Assassin-pirate-prince?”
“That’s my nickname for you.” She came and stood before him, the shirt clutched between her hands.
“That’s some nickname.” He finally looked her in the eyes.
Her breath caught at the sight of his mesmerizing eyes.
“Maybe start with the sleeves?” he suggested.
She cleared her throat. “Good idea.” She slid the shirt on his arms, then pulled it up to his shoulders. He lowered his head, and she put the shirt over it. Once his head was through, she carefully lowered the fabric, brushing her fingers against his skin as she did so. “Hopefully, the medicine will prevent the shirt from sticking to your wound.”
Evander pinched her chin, forcing her to look at him. “Thank you for everything.”
“My pleasure.” Her chin felt as if it were on fire.
He smiled. “Let’s be on our way.”
She grabbed both their bags, hoisting them over her shoulder, her stomach growling as she did so. They hadn’t eaten in over a day. She’d have to make sure they got something on their way to the canal.
Evander opened the door. “I can carry my bag.”
Sabine refused to hand it over. “I got it.”
“Honestly, it’s not that bad. I feel fine.”
She shrugged. “Regardless, I’m perfectly capable of carrying two bags.” She stepped around him and hurried down the steps. He followed at a much slower pace.
At the bottom of the staircase she turned to face him. “Are you sure you’re ready to go out there?” If someone attacked them, she wasn’t sure he could hold his own in a fight.
“We can’t stay here,” he said as he joined her.
“Can you defend yourself?” she asked as politely as she could.
He nodded. “I can even defend you.” He poked her in the ribs.
She folded her arms, not convinced.
“I’ve trained to fight while injured. I can do it if I have to. The worst that can happen is I rip my stitches open and you have to tend to me again.” He smiled, holding her gaze.
“Fine.” There was no use arguing with him. Sabine turned and grabbed the door, swinging it open. Stepping outside, she stumbled to a halt. She stood there, frozen, not knowing what to do.
Dozens of men dressed in black surrounded the inn effectively blocking any chance Sabine and Evander had of escaping. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” she mumbled, trying to think of how to get them out of this. They didn’t have enough weapons to fight their way through and, quite frankly, as talented as Evander was, even he couldn’t take on this many people at once.
She took a step back, bumping into him. Maybe she could just lock herself in the inn and remain in there forever. Eventually she’d starve and die, but it seemed she was going to die regardless. Right now, that seemed a better option than being taken by these assassins and murdered.
Evander put a steady hand on her shoulder, holding her in place.
She was about to tell him they should take their chances inside rather than fight all of these people when Evander said, “It’s about time you show up.”
Confusion filled her. There was no need for Evander to goad these men into attacking them.
“Glad to see you’re still alive, brother,” the one front and center said, coming forward and pushing her hood back, revealing a rather pretty, womanly face—not a man.
“What’s going on?” Sabine asked.
“This is my sister, Princess Gemma, and this is a unit of her best fighters.” Evander moved his hand from Sabine’s shoulder to her lower back, stepping beside her and smiling.
Sabine knew Avoni didn’t have an army in the traditional sense of the word. “Her best fighters?” she asked, wanting clarification that these people who were dressed and looked like assassins were on their side and wouldn’t be attacking them.
“Yesterday, when we returned to the inn, I had a message sent to the palace. I was afraid with my injury that I wouldn’t be enough protection for you, and I requested help.” He dropped his hand from her back and stepped forward, wrapping his arm around his sister and hugging her. “It’s good to see you. Thank you for coming.”
It would have been nice if he’d mentioned this to Sabine before now. She tapped her foot, thinking about how her brothers hated to ask for help. The fact that Evander had swallowed his pride and did this revealed a lot about him. Another curtain he’d pulled back for her to see behind.
Gemma came and stood before Sabine, her face unreadable. The young woman had beautiful dark red hair pulled into a bun. Her hazel eyes glistened, reminding Sabine of Evander. Both brother and sister had the same skin tone.
“Gemma,” Evander said, “may I introduce Queen Sabine Manfred.” Evander extended his arm to Sabine.
Sabine smiled at Gemma, for some reason wanting the woman to like her.
“I have a lot of questions for the two of you, but I suspect that is a conversation for us to have in private.” She glanced between Sabine and Evander, neither one of them responding. “We must get moving—especially since there is a large bounty on your head.” She focused her attention back on her brother. “You look awful.”
“Thanks.”
Gemma made several hand gestures to the members of her unit and as one, they turned, facing out, making a pathway down the center between them.
“Let’s go,” Evander mumbled, taking Sabine’s hand.
The two of them followed Gemma as they made their way between the assassin-soldiers. When they reached the middle of the group, the unit closed in around them, effectively blocking them from an attack.
The urge to tease Evander about this being a bit excessive and the fact that his sister had come to their rescue was almost too great to pass up. However, with so many people around, she didn’t feel comfortable joking with him. It seemed best to keep her mouth shut for now. While she probably shouldn’t be holding Evander’s hand in front of others, it at least afforded her the opportunity to make sure no one bumped against his side where the cut was.
As a group, they made their way through the town and to the canal without incident. Based on Sabine’s estimates, there were fifty people which meant they were going to have to take at least a dozen boats. Instead of stopping at the dock as she thought they would, they traveled a few blocks south along the canal until they came to a longer dock that had a large, flat boat with a roof. Gemma and her soldiers began boarding.
“Are we taking this?” she asked.
“We are.” Evander helped Sabine step into the boat.
She led him to the back so he’d be out of the way. With so many people on board, she didn’t want him to be jostled or hit on his side.
Once the rest of the unit had boarded, the boat slowly pushed away from the dock, heading south along the canal.
Evander sat on the floor, pulling Sabine down with him. “It’s safer,” he said.
Sabine leaned her back against the side of the boat, watching everyone else stand around.
“Sorry,” he said, recapturing her attention.
“For what?”
“At first, I was afraid the wound was deep and I wouldn’t be able to defend you properly. I thought asking my sister for help was the best course of action. But now that she’s here, I regret doing so. Not only does it seem excessive, but you appear overwhelmed and uncomfortable. I thought she’d send one or two fighters. Not come herself with her entire unit. For that, I apologize.” He rubbed the back of his neck, avoiding her gaze.
“There’s no need to apologize.” She’d rather have more protection than not enough. She had no doubt Evander would have fought to protect her if necessary, even if that meant he got hurt in the process. Having reinforcements here was a good thing.
He tilted his head to the side, looking into her eyes. “It seems the tables have turned and you have become my protector. Thank you for stitching me up and administering the necessary medicines.”
Her face warmed from both the compliment and the intensity of his attention. “It was the least I could do.” She reached out and took hold of his hand, squeezing it.
“Here,” Gemma said as she squatted before Evander holding a bottle. “You need to take a swig of this medicine to make sure you don’t get an infection.” She handed it to Evander. “And make sure you see the healer when we get there.”
“Where are we going?” Sabine asked as Evander took a drink from the bottle.
“We are headed to the main palace.” Gemma stood, looking at her brother. “I hope you know what you’re doing.” She folded her arms.
“I do,” he replied, tucking the bottle in his bag.
Gemma raised a single eyebrow, her glance going between Sabine and Evander. “I sure as hell hope you have your story straight because they are going to grill you.” She turned and joined her fighters who all seemed to be giving Evander and Sabine some space.
Evander sighed, resting his head against the side of the boat and diligently looking at the ceiling.
“Is everything okay?” Sabine asked, wondering about Evander and what sort of relationship he had with the rest of his family.
“You know how sometimes you get these grand ideas and you’re so sure they’ll work just as you imagined?” He tilted his head, looking her in the eyes.
She laughed because she understood exactly what he was talking about. “Yes, only you know things never go as planned.”
“Yes, I’m learning that.” He smiled an adorable half-smile.
Sabine leaned her head on Evander’s shoulder. “Your sister looks pretty intimidating dressed in those pants and tunic.” There had been a couple of women in the Avoni delegation and they had worn something similar.
“Please don’t tell her that. Her head is big enough already.”
She laughed again. “Are all women in Avoni, regardless of station, allowed to fight?”
Evander drew little circles on the back of her hand. “Of course. Why wouldn’t they?”
“I don’t know. Because they’re women?”
It was his turn to laugh. “You Bakleys are so backwards sometimes.”
Sabine had never thought much about the way women were treated until she’d left Bakley and saw vastly different behaviors and customs in other kingdoms. She had a lot to learn. “Why did your sister give you that ominous warning a few minutes ago?”
“Because I sort of wasn’t supposed to go with the delegation to Lynk. I’m sure my parents are going to be furious with me.”
That surprised her—both that he wasn’t supposed to go in the first place and that he’d gone without permission. “I thought you are your family’s League representative?” And a representative had to be there to approve of her marriage to Rainer.
“I am,” he admitted. “But I only took up that role a few months ago. Prior to that, I…uh…had been too young.”
“You’re eighteen?” she asked.
“Yes.”
He was the same age as her then. “So your sister is concerned your parents will be upset that you went against their wishes?”
“Yes. Their direct orders, actually.” He rubbed his face. “I’m the only son. They thought my sister, Carin, should go instead. She’s twenty and apparently since she’s third born, they can spare her.” His voice dripped with sarcasm.
“Why’d you do it then?”
He shrugged. “Carin didn’t want to go, and I was curious to see Lynk and meet King Rainer.” He peered down at her, his brows drawing together ever so slightly.
“What’s that look for?”
He sighed and glanced about the boat. Anywhere, really, but at her.
“Evander?”
“I watched the two of you together,” he whispered. “I assumed he seduced you to get what he wanted from you and your kingdom. You seemed so taken with him. As if he had you under his spell.”
Sabine’s face warmed thinking about her time with Rainer. Whenever she’d been with him, she’d felt a physical connection between them, but that was all. She suspected he was that way with most everyone since he was such a sensual person. He had been in a relationship with Heather for years and that was the woman he loved, not Sabine. When Rainer and Sabine were together, it was all for show. A performance to make sure the people of Lynk thought they were in love to strengthen Rainer’s position as their new king.
She hated that Evander thought her so naive. She especially hated that he assumed she was taken with Rainer but Rainer wasn’t taken with her. It made sense since she was so much younger than the king. And she wasn’t nearly as beautiful as Heather. Yet, the thought of someone else seeing it so easily embarrassed her.
“I guess it doesn’t matter,” Evander said. “You’re married to Rainer, and you are the queen of Lynk.” He leaned his head back against the side of the boat again. “My parents are going to be furious with me.”
“For going to Lynk and disobeying them?” Her parents would be livid with her if she had gone against their wishes.
“That. And for snatching you away from Rainer and bringing you to Avoni.” He looked sidelong at her. “I need to ask a favor of you.”
“Anything.”
“Can you please not mention to anyone that I kidnapped you?”
She thought about that. At this point, she no longer considered herself kidnapped. She’d chosen to come here to escape her assassin and to remain alive. “You didn’t kidnap me.”
“I took you from the palace.”
“To see my brother. There was no kidnapping involved. If I had to go back and do it all over again, I’d go willingly with you.”
He reached out and took a strand of her brown hair, wrapping it around his finger and watching her. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
He released her hair. “You know King Rainer can’t be trusted, don’t you?”
Staring into his green eyes, she wondered how long he’d wanted to say that to her. “I know.” She wasn’t some lovesick, besotted young woman who didn’t know any better. She was married to a man who didn’t love her and probably never could. She barely knew him and wouldn’t even consider them friends. She was more comfortable around Evander and knew more about him than she did her own husband. But that was on Rainer. He’d kept her at arms length, not wanting to get to know her. Not even trying. She was a means to an end for him. Nothing more. A pang of sadness filled her—not over Rainer but over the thought of not marrying someone she loved and respected. Shaking her head, she tried to clear it. Thinking of what could have been would do her no good.
“What’s the matter?” Evander asked, his finger tracing a line on the side of her cheek.
“You know how you said that thing about making plans and them never going the way they’re supposed to?”
He smiled. “Unfortunately.”
“Well, the same can be said for my life.” She closed her eyes, not wanting to cry. It had been a long, emotional few days, and everything was starting to catch up to her. “I always thought I’d marry a man I loved. I never thought I, the sixth-born child, would be sent off for a political match of such importance.” And she never thought her one and only sister would be murdered.
“I suppose that’s an issue with being born into a royal family—even one like mine. We have influence, wealth, power, but we also never get to do what we want, especially if we plan on keeping the throne. If we were selfish and always put our own needs first, we’d be happier. But then we’d be killed and someone else would lead the kingdom.” He shrugged. “Would you rather be poor, untitled, and marry for love?”
“I don’t know.” She’d never really thought about it. Prior to coming to Lynk, her days had been spent doing what she wanted. She hated to admit it, but she’d been selfish. Now, she looked at things differently. She was glad she was in the position she was so she could help her kingdom and right the wrongs committed. “Let me ask you this,” she said. “If you could do anything you wanted right now, what would it be?” From the limited time she’d spent with him, he seemed to have a tremendous amount of freedom to do as he pleased. But did he enjoy the life he led? Perhaps there were things missing that he longed for.
His eyes darted to her lips and then back to her eyes. “Anything?” he asked, his voice suddenly husky.
She nodded, a warm feeling spread through her body.
“I don’t know,” he said, his eyes searching hers. “What about you? What would you do?”
It felt as if something inside of her was caged and needed to burst free. “I don’t know, either.” Maybe she’d scream. But letting the scream out meant the emotions would come flooding out with it, and right now, she needed to keep it together. That thing caged inside of her needed to stay caged. She was on a boat filled with fighters, and they were headed to the Avoni palace where she would meet the king and queen. It wasn’t about what she wanted or needed. It was about saving the Bakley children, protecting her family’s kingdom, stopping a potential war, and trying to make it out of this alive.
Staring into Evander’s eyes, everyone and everything faded away as he reached forward, placing his hand on her cheek, his thumb gently wiping a tear away. She hadn’t realized she’d shed it.
“You’re not at all who I thought you were,” he whispered.
These past few weeks, she’d learned a lot about herself. She wasn’t the same person she was prior to her sister’s murder. And sitting here, with Evander’s hand on her face, she wanted nothing more than to lean into him, reveling in the feel and warmth of this man beside her. This assassin-pirate-prince. He was not at all the person she thought he was when they’d first met.
“Evander,” Gemma called out, her voice cutting through their moment.
He flinched.
“Come here.” Her voice was curt and demanding.
Evander slowly got to his feet and went over to his sister.
Sabine watched the two of them arguing in hushed whispers, looking her way every few seconds.
An overwhelming sense of sadness filled her. Evander was a good man, and he deserved to marry someone better than Lottie. He was kind, caring, funny, and he’d make an excellent husband. He was the opposite of Lottie, and the princess didn’t deserve him.
Sabine rubbed her face. Everything was becoming more and more complicated. She longed for a simpler time. As she sat there, she didn’t understand the pain she felt in her heart.
* * *
A few hours later, the boat turned into another canal that jutted off from the main one. After about a mile, the canal ended at a dock with a couple dozen boats tied to it. After their boat was anchored, everyone began disembarking.
Since Evander had never returned to sit with Sabine, she stood and went to find him. He was standing at the other end of the boat, his back to her as he leaned on the railing, staring at what was probably the palace not too far away.
Sabine placed her hand on his back. “Is everything all right?” she asked.
He nodded.
“Is that your home?” The land surrounding the canal was flat and covered with bright green grass. In the distance, roughly ten miles away, a forest started. However, directly in front of them, a little less than a mile away, a large wall stood, concealing what she assumed to be the palace. Sentries patrolled along the top of the wall.
“It is. Home sweet home. Well, one of them anyway.” Evander led Sabine off the boat.
Those who’d accompanied them now marched in two single file lines directly toward a gate in the wall. Gemma turned back to face Evander. “I must get my people inside. I’ll leave you to handle this.”
“I have it all under control,” he replied.
Gemma turned back around, marching along with her unit.
“What’s your sister’s role?” Sabine asked, wondering if her job was simply to command these soldiers. For a female member of the royal family, Sabine thought that odd.
“She doesn’t have one.”
“She’s not an officer in the military or anything?”
“We don’t have a military in the traditional sense of the word.” Evander took her hand and helped her step off the dock and onto the thick grass. “Gemma loves to fight, so she joined a security unit when she was fifteen. She’s since risen in the ranks. However, she holds no special position other than being a princess. For the royal family, my eldest sister, Lyra, is first in line and has two children of her own, making Gemma fourth in line. Therefore, Gemma is just Gemma.”
“Is she a member of your assassin guild?”
He eyed her. “That’s not something you speak of in Avoni.”
She nodded, understanding the warning as they approached the wall. “How did you end up being a League member then?” It seemed as if that duty should have fallen to Gemma.
“The League meets in secret and prefers that the members be male if possible.” He shrugged. “Since I’m the only man, once I became old enough, the position went to me.”
“Other than that, you don’t have any special job for your family?” What she really wanted to know was if the royal family employed him to be an assassin on their behalf.
He smiled at her. “Other than being their favorite son? No, I don’t.”
“Since my sister died,” she said, her voice soft, “I’m now the only female sibling.” She had four brothers, and Evander had three sisters.
They walked in silence for several minutes. “How’s your side feeling?” she asked.
“About that.” He pulled her to a stop and glanced up ahead at the wall. “I don’t think you should tell anyone that you stabbed me. Since I technically kidnapped you, it could give the wrong impression, and I’d hate for my parents to put you in the dungeon.”
Her heart started to beat faster. “You don’t think I tried to kill you, do you?” she asked, panic rising.
“No, not at all.”
Maybe she shouldn’t enter through the gate and into the compound. Especially if she might be thrown into the dungeon. She glanced about, looking for a place where she could run to and hide. “You don’t think your family will believe me?”
“No, I don’t.”
Terror filled her. She hadn’t realized she’d be entering a hostile environment.
“You need to understand that everyone in Avoni learns to use a weapon at a young age. My parents would find it hard to believe that an eighteen-year-old woman would accidentally stab someone. It’s just not done. They’d assume you were trying to kill me for kidnapping you.”
“But you didn’t kidnap me,” she said, taking a step back.
“Regardless, my parents aren’t stupid. They’re going to question how and why you’re here with me. I don’t want to give them any reason not to trust you.” He resumed walking. When he realized she wasn’t alongside him, he stopped and turned around to face her. “Are you coming?”
“Into a fortified compound where I might be accused of attempting to murder you and be thrown into the dungeon?” She folded her arms. Maybe she could just sleep on the boat. It wasn’t that cold out. Right now, she’d take her chances with a couple of assassins hunting her rather than an army of them behind that wall.
“Come on,” he said. “It’s not safe out here.”
“I’m not sure it’s safe in there.”
He rolled his eyes. “Sabine.” He waved her toward him. “I won’t let anything happen to you. You’ll be safe so long as you don’t tell them I kidnapped you or that you stabbed me with a knife.” He came back to her, took hold of her arm, and dragged her along the path toward the wall.
“Fine,” she grumbled. “But if I end up in the dungeon or dead, I expect you to save those Bakley children and protect my family and kingdom.”
“And which family and kingdom would that be? Lynk?”
She shook her head. “Bakley.”
“Then you have yourself a deal.”
At the gate, they were granted passage. On the other side of the wall, Sabine stopped, her eyes widening at the sight before her. It was as if she’d entered another world. The entire wall had been built around a lake. The palace had been constructed in the middle of it, not on an island, but right on top of the water. Bridges and wooden walkways connected dozens of beautiful wood buildings.
The unit of fighters that had accompanied them went along the wall to the right. About a quarter of a mile away, there were several small structures built near the wall. That must be where the sentries were housed.
Evander and Sabine walked across the clearing toward an archway that led to the main bridge connecting the land to the palace.
“I like that you don’t have guards following you,” she said.
“I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”
Of that, she had no doubt. They passed under the archway and onto a bridge leading to the palace.
At the other end, she stepped onto a wooden platform built over the water. She jumped to see if it would move. It did not. However, it looked as if it were floating on the water. She wondered how all of this had been built.
“You okay?” Evander asked, eyeing her with amusement.
She straightened. “I’m fine.” She gestured for him to lead the way.
He took her along the wooden pathway to the first building which was a tall, skinny structure four stories tall.
“Ready?” Evander asked, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth as if nervous.
She’d never seen him act nervous before. “Ready for what?” To be thrown in the dungeon? For someone to jump out at her? To face a squad of knife throwers?
“To meet the king and queen of Avoni.”
She shook her head. “I look terrible and haven’t bathed in days. I’d prefer to freshen up first.” And calm herself down so she could speak intelligently when introduced to them as the queen of Lynk. If she met them right now, she was pretty sure she’d stumble over her words and admit to stabbing their son who’d kidnapped her. Overall, it wouldn’t be a good first impression, and she had no desire to be thrown in a dungeon or start a war.
“You don’t look terrible,” he said. “But I should probably speak to them first before I introduce you to them.” He bit his bottom lip again.
Sabine tried not to smile at his nervous habit.
“What are you grinning about?” he asked.
“Nothing.” She smiled, batting her eyelashes at him.
His eyes narrowed. “I have a feeling you’re silently laughing at my expense.”
At that she laughed.
“You’re infuriating sometimes,” he said, shaking his head. “Come on, I’ll show you to a guest room.” He resumed walking.
Chuckling, she caught up to him, bumping her shoulder against his. She was just about to ask him to give her a tour of the palace later when they rounded the corner and Evander bumped his shoulder against hers just as her foot caught on something. She was right at the edge of the walkway and lost her balance.
It felt like slow motion as she stumbled, about to fall into the water, when Evander caught her around the waist, pulling her back up. They stood toe-to-toe, her breath heaving as she stared into his wide green eyes.