Chapter Six #2
He frowned and tilted his head like he hadn’t heard, but the side of his lip quirked as he stepped closer, leaned in.
My heart and Flame beat as one, soaring through me like a blazing arrow.
I forced myself to rise on my toes and speak into his ear, lungs seizing when his hand curved under my elbow to steady me.
“I said, I take it you did all this?”
He leaned back just far enough that I could see him wink. “Told you I’d get you your business.”
“So you did.”
He inclined his head in such a poor imitation of humbleness that a little laugh tumbled from me before I could stop myself. I clapped a hand over my mouth as though I could call it back, but the Captain’s eyes had already rounded in surprise — then a slow grin stretched at his lips.
“Well that was a rush. Is this all I had to do to get an honest to gods smile? Any other requests?”
I rolled my eyes.
“Yes. Go enjoy your evening and let me get back to work.”
He didn’t release my arm, grin not even flickering.
“I am enjoying my evening. Now.”
My Flame outright howled. I had to close my eyes for just a moment.
“Captain —”
“Come on, Rosie, it’s Yule. Can I have five minutes? Just to talk.”
“About what?
His grin did falter a little then - not entirely fading, just a slight dimming of that unchecked, cocky joy.
He leaned in once more, fingers gently flexing around my elbow in a way that had my Flame rushing, in a desperate bid to shoot down my arm toward his touch.
His voice in my ear was low, every word smooth and lyrical even in his hesitance.
“Maybe not something we can discuss right here.”
My stomach tightened to the point of pain, panic gripping at my insides. I reeled my magic in forcefully, chest immediately growing cold as that one insistent thought echoed in my head.
He knows.
It shouldn’t matter. It shouldn’t. I’d done nothing wrong, done nothing but exist. I had a whole year still to register my power with the Crown.
But if he did know – No. No, he didn’t. If he knew, and it mattered in the way I feared it would, I’d have had a summons by now.
Tax evasion, or possession of stolen property, something difficult to disprove and easy to fabricate.
Still, my hold on my magic had leashed my lungs too, and I could not draw a full breath.
I wrenched my arm from his grasp, stumbled back with the force of my own panic.
“I can’t,” I croaked, throat tight. I nodded past him at the bar, playing at concern for the demanding crowd just so I’d have a reason to avert my eyes. “I have to – Sorcha needs me.”
When he didn’t answer, I risked a glance and found him entirely unreadable. His eyes dimmed to a murky green, mouth setting in a flat line. He just nodded then, and reached behind his back for the plank, lifting it smoothly.
“Alright.”
I hesitated for all of one cold heartbeat – then ducked past him without another word.
???
With our eager Kingsman following my cousin’s instructions all evening, Sorcha, Brennan and I finally managed to thin the crushing crowd at the bar to a manageable stream.
Even so, the stream of orders continued to flow for hours, until eventually we really did run out of mead as well as ale.
For a little while, the merriment was buoyed by wine and music alone.
But one by one, travellers and Stormsbians alike stumbled off home until we were left with a handful of Kingsmen and regulars, all clustered around one table.
It seemed Tanner had needled some of them into a game of cards, despite protests from Roy that ended in him bundling up and storming off home in a hissing huff — but not before quietly asking me to keep an eye on Tanner.
Which might have been a request of little consequence, if it weren’t for the fact that he was seated side by side with Captain Caelan.
“Why’s he staring at you?”
“He’s not.”
“Well he’s not staring…ahtmeee.”
Sorcha’s last few words were garbled through an eye watering yawn. I set down the glass I’d been polishing and fixed her with a firm look. She’d been tidying up around the tavern for the last hour, despite my insistence that she leave it for me and go get some rest.
“Bed.”
“Again, grown woman.”
“Again, nineteen year old family member entrusted to my care.”
“You’re avoiding my question.” She grinned, sly and sleepy. “Almost as hard as you’re avoiding the Captain.”
“Not avoiding anything.”
My neck ached with the compulsion to look; to see if he was looking. But my Flame was restless enough in my chest that I thought I knew the answer.
“Then tell me why he’s staring.”
“I don’t know, Sorcha. He probably thinks I’m staring at him.”
“Oh fair enough, you are.”
“I am not. I promised Roy I’d keep an eye on Tanner.”
I threw a pointed glance at their table, the muscles in my neck almost snapping with the release of tension – until a flash of green and a glimpse of a scarred smirk set my pulse fluttering. I averted my gaze, spinning sharply back to Sorcha. I snatched up another glass and got back to polishing.
“There,” I said, voice steady if strained. “He seems fine.”
“Mmhm. Great. Roz?”
“Yes?”
“Tanner left about fifteen minutes ago.”
My head snapped up. Fuck. She was right. No shaggy grey head in sight, just the Captain and Brennan prodding at a young Kingsman who’d passed out on top of a scattering of cards.
“I – know that. I meant the card game is–”
I had nothing, no further words. Sorcha grinned at me, and my fluttering mess of a heart sank, just a little.
With Fischer gone and her blossoming friendship with sweet, smitten Brennan, I knew my cousin had warmed to the Kingsmen somewhat.
Those initial worries had been eased, and she wanted to read my nerves as something fun and frivolous.
How could I begin to explain to her why the Captain had truly taken such an interest in me?
I couldn’t. I could not do that to her, not when her wellbeing was in my hands.
Sorcha sidled closer, but before she could needle me any further, movement at the card table caught her eye and her grin melted into something softer.
“Off to bed?”
I followed her gaze and found Brennan and the Captain easing to their feet, each with an arm of the drunken young Kingsman – who I now recognised as Nicholas – slung around their shoulders.
“Off to get Nick to bed,” said Brennan.
Sorcha stifled another yawn. “Lucky Nick. Wish someone would carry me to bed.”
Brennan’s breath hitched, throat bobbing as he watched Sorcha give a full-bodied, yawning stretch.
The Captain caught my eye and I knew from his slow grin that we were thinking the same thing; Brennan would saddle up and carry Sorcha to Kingsborough on his back if she asked.
Laughter swelled quickly in my chest at the Captain’s quirked brow, but my Flame rose just as fast and I froze against it.
Against the laughter, the wild warmth in my chest, the reminder that my control was failing me day by day.
I had to exercise more caution around this one man than I had in my entire life.
I turned away, shoving my magic down, down, down.
“Go on then, Sorcha, you need to rest. I’ll bloody carry you to bed if I have to ask you again.”
Sorcha rolled her eyes. “And a blessed Yule to you too, dear cousin.”
She planted a swift kiss on my cheek and ducked under the bar, hurrying over to get the door for the Captain and Brennan, young Nicholas groaning quietly between them.
I didn’t turn at the chorus of goodnights and blessed Yules, just waved vaguely over my shoulder.
My heart was still thundering when the door finally shut.
I stood with my hands braced on the shelves behind the bar, dragging in slow breaths to a count of four.
Breathe, two, three, four.
Calm, two, three, four.
The roaring between my ears dulled bit by bit.
When I opened my eyes, and stared down at my hands on the shelves, something about the mundane mess at my fingertips made me laugh.
I was being ridiculous. My wrists remained unmanacled.
The greatest danger I faced right now was the danger that I’d be up well into the small hours polishing these glasses.
I rolled my shoulders back and grabbed the nearest glass.
“Are you afraid of me?”
I was shrieking even before the spectacular crash of glittering shards hit my feet. I staggered back and whirled in one jagged movement, wincing when my back hit the blunt edge of the shelf. Standing on the other side of the plank, the Captain just tilted his head at me and nodded.
“S’pose that answers that.”
“What are you doing here?”
He ducked swiftly under the bar, and I gripped at the shelf behind me, shoes crunching in the glass when I shuffled back even further with each of his long strides toward me.
“Well, I’ve been thinking about it, Rosie. About why you’ve been so determined to dislike me from the moment we met. You jump out of your own skin at my approach–”
“It’s after midnight in a deserted tavern and you snuck up on me like a bloody wolf in the snow.”
He stopped just short of the glittering mess between us.
“And the rest of the time? You can barely look at me most days.”
I scowled. “Maybe I don’t look at you because I don’t care to.”
He laughed, as if this was a preposterous idea. “Right.”
“Dadga spare me.”
I made myself unfurl my stiff fingers and pushed away from the shelf, skirting the shattered glass and trying to make myself as small as possible to squeeze past, even as my arm brushed the Captain’s.
My Flame awoke all at once, leaping to consciousness at some silent call.
I faltered a step, and my breath hissed through my teeth but I kept walking.
“Where are you going?”
“I need a broom.”
He scoffed. “You need an excuse.”
I lifted the plank, and when it didn’t slam behind me I realised the Captain had caught it and followed me out. Fuck. He was close on my heels as I crossed the tavern for the cleaning cupboard.