33. Chapter Thirty-Three #2
“It’s not optional, Zyon.” Maximo takes the paper from him and inspects it. “This is foolish. You’re making a royal decree for a ball when that should be the last thing on your mind. You want to distract her from spring. That’s why you covered the flowers.”
Zyon flicks his hand several times. “You may leave.”
“Sir, the entire kingdom is depending on her breaking the curse.”
“You may leave!” The king rubs his forehead and closes his eyes.
I grab the shirt I left at the exit to the closet, wrap the cloak inside, and wait until it seems Zyon has fallen asleep. The closet door opens without a noise, and I shuffle into his room. It seems I’ve successfully not gotten caught as I’m nearly out of his view.
“Neera!”
I flinch and spin around. “Yes?”
“What are you doing?”
I lift the bundle of fabric. “Stealing one of your shirts.”
“Why?”
I bring it to my nose and take a deep breath. “It smells like you.”
He leans forward and narrows his eyes. “Did you steal one of my shirts from the laundry?”
“Yes, I wanted it to smell like you, not soap.”
“Are you saying I’m unclean?”
“I’m saying you smell better than soap.”
He holds out his hand. “Then come here, and I’ll let you sniff me all you want. That way I can do the same to you.”
“We’re so odd.”
“It works for us.”
I bolt for the door. “Not yet. I need my treasure safe in my room.”
“It’s not like I will take it back.”
I flee him faster and get the cloak back to the bag in my room that holds everything else needed for the mountain quest that I have to journey on alone, most likely soon.
It’s then that I think about the conversation I overheard and run to the window.
Snow still falls gently to the ground, but some spots appear to have less snow than they’ve had for many weeks.
“We need to practice,” Zyon says as he enters my room yet again without knocking.
“There’s not much time yet, is there?” I keep my eyes on the window because I fear the expressions that might flash across his face. For the first few months in his castle, he was incredibly difficult to read, but now the smallest changes in his face are analyzed until I’ve memorized most of them.
“We have time, but we do need to practice.”
He convinces me to go to the cave where he has flying creatures attack me, and I’m hauled into the air to be dropped a shameful number of times. On the tenth or twelfth one, the mountain disappears. I’ve lost track of how many I failed to kill.
“We’re done?” I spot Zyon clutching his head.
He grunts. “For today.”
I go over to my bag and pull out the ointment I keep for him in my bag, but he shakes his head. “Not here,” he says.
“Let me apply a little, so you don’t have to be in pain while we travel back.”
“Not here!”
I sigh and put it back in my bag. “Fine. It’s your head.”
I jump into the water and go back through the portal, walking toward the castle. The ice dragon turns its head toward me and takes a few steps forward, as though it’s confused about me leaving it. The trek back is slippery and cold.
About halfway back, Zyon lands in front of me and slides off the large icy wing. “I’m sorry I snapped at you. The castle wants me to suffer, and it’s been worsening the attacks because you’re healing them too quickly. That’s what my healers and mages seem to think.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? We need good communication if there will remain anything between us. Not that I even know if there is anything, or if this is all just a game of some sort to you.”
“How could you think that?”
I shrug and keep walking. “Because nothing makes sense. You won’t sleep with me all while acting like you need to protect me above everything. Maybe you’re keeping me around because I cure your headaches well.” I rub my arms and slide down an enormous boulder, landing on my ass.
“Neera, get on the dragon, and we can talk about this back in the castle where it’s warm.”
After sliding down two more boulders and rolling my ankle, I give in to his ride. I wince when I slide off the dragon and limp toward the castle entrance.
“Quit walking on your injured leg.” He carries me to the healers’ wing and sets me in a room, which holds a small bed and two chairs. A large window across from the bed looks out at the snowy expanse.
Neither of us spoke on the way, mainly because every time he tries, I turn away from him and he’s getting good at reading me.
The healer checks my leg and frowns. “You have a previous injury that isn’t healing right?”
Zyon gets up from the chair he’s sitting in and walks over to my side. “How old?”
“A few weeks, maybe.”
“When did you injure your leg?”
“As he says, a few weeks ago, but I’ve been treating it just fine on my own.”
“Clearly not. Your legs need to be in optimal health if you hope to make it up the mountain. As you have told me many times, you are not a healer.”
“I treat your head just fine. Better than your healers, you said.”
The healer glances up at that but says nothing. He works on my leg and uses magic that shows he’s a mage healer. My leg feels stronger and better than it has in weeks, and the healer promises Zyon I can return to normal activity.
I leave the room as soon as I’m cleared, and on my way out the door, I stick my head back in.
“Why don’t you let him fix your head this time?
” I return to my room and question everything about my possible relationship with Zyon.
Something has to be wrong for us being so close for almost seven months without sleeping together.
He keeps using the excuse we should get to know each other better first. It feels like more is going on.
Rana fetches Gulzar for me, and I cuddle in bed with my little monster, who has grown bigger than Florian and whose second set of snakes have broken through his skin.
He whimpers, and I put some pain reliever on the areas as they are still quite tender.
He calms and drifts to sleep. My door opens, and Zyon stands there, staring at me and pouting.
“Fine. Grab my bag.” I maneuver so I don’t wake the little monster and retrieve the headache ointment when he hands me my bag.
He climbs onto the bed, and I lay his head in my lap, working the ointment into his head. His body relaxes within minutes of me starting the treatment, and I lean over to kiss his forehead.
“Why didn’t you tell me about your leg? You’ve been fighting on it for weeks.” He opens his eyes to meet mine.
“Because the creams I had took the pain just fine.”
“You were right.”
“Of course, I’m right. About what?”
He laughs and reaches up to stroke my cheek with his thumb. “That we need to communicate better.”
“Yes, we do. You could start by telling me why you stop us every time we get close to sex.”
“I already told you. I want it to be intimate and worth it. Not some physical need we quickly satisfy and move on from.”
“I think we’re already there. You don’t feel that way?”
He closes his eyes again, so it seems he will avoid further explanation. “When you go up the mountain, I fear it’ll break us both.”
“Not sleeping together is going to change that?”
“Maybe. I’m not sure.”
“You’ll only have deep feelings for me if we have sex? That’s one sided because I already have deep feelings for you.”
His eyes snap open. “You do?”
“Definitely. How can you not tell?”
“There’s often ire in your eyes directed my way, so it’s been unclear.”
“That’s only when you say or do stupid things, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have feelings for you.”
“Sometimes I watch you.”
“While I sleep.”
He shakes his head but keeps his smile there. “I’ve lessened that, and no, sometimes I watch you while you’re awake. Every time I can’t believe you’d even look my way, let alone sleep next to me. You’re so beautiful, Neera, like everything you do is beautiful.”
“Even yell at you?”
“Yes, no one has ever dared, and you stomp into my life all fire and brimstone, ready to knock me down with your words.”
“No one else dares because you can turn them into a pile of bones.”
“And I can’t do that to you?”
I lean forward as I play with his hair and give his forehead another kiss. “No, I have to break the curse.”
“You wouldn’t challenge me if the curse didn't exist?”
“No, I would.”
“That’s what I thought. I’m at the point I don’t know how to live in this castle without you.” He blinks and turns his head away from me.
I move his head back so I can see his watery eyes clearly. “The curse will break, and you will have many beautiful maidens in the kingdom to soothe your loneliness. You can issue a decree, and thousands will line up at the door. You’re pretty enough.”
His nose twitches as he scowls at me. “Pretty?”
“Yes, and the power of becoming a queen appeals to many.”
“And the only one I’d be looking for is you.
No one has ever made me feel vulnerable.
No one has ever made me feel like I have something I could lose.
Someone whose loss would rip me apart, so I’ll never recover.
That’s why I’m scared to go all the way with you, Neera, because it already feels like I’ll become a ghost without you. ”
I kiss him, and it’s strange at first with our lips in different directions, but we make it work. He rolls over, and I slide down next to him, continuing our kiss until exhaustion sets in and we sleep in each other’s arms.