Tiernan"s mouth curved up ever so slightly.
She quickly continued. “I had to see Cassie in the ice cream parlor. So I figured it would be nice to have someone buy me a hot fudge sundae.”
“A human male.”
She shrugged, couldn"t help smiling, somewhat brought on by his amused expression. He glanced down at the gown she wore and looked back up at her face. She wasn"t sure what she saw there, admiration, jealousy maybe, that some human male might have taken interest in her.
He hadn"t said one thing about how she looked while wearing one of her prettiest fae gowns, her hair coiled in curls on her head, emerald encrusted combs keeping the curls in place. She wondered if he preferred her dressed in a man"s tunic and beeches, for all the compliments she"d gotten from him.
“And the unseelie?”
“After I saw him, she came back to target him. She nearly ran into me when I first arrived, seeing me before I saw her. She had it out for me from the beginning.”
“Fae spite.”
“Certainly. What had I ever done to her?”
“Targeted the same human male on the beach.” He again looked at her gown, then said,
“I"d hate to know what you were wearing for the human to see.”
She cleared her throat at that. “Deveron came and forced me to leave. I didn"t even get to say anything to Cassie.”
“Or spend the afternoon with the human male.” He studied her for a moment more, and she knew the way his gaze focused on hers he wished to ask another question and so she waited.
“What were you wearing?” he finally asked.
This time she couldn"t contain her smile, although she truly didn"t want to say. But she thought he might be a bit jealous. “A bathing suit.”
“A bikini?”
“Not as skimpy as the one the unseelie was wearing,” she said.
Tiernan"s hand brushed her arm with a gentle caress. “When it warms up, you will wear this bikini for me.”
“What if I didn"t bring it with me?”
Tiernan"s eyes sparkled with intrigue. “I"ll buy you another, my choice.”
She could imagine him getting her one as skimpy as the bikini the unseelie had worn. But she wasn"t going for it.
“So Deveron forced you to go home and…?”
“I learned I was to be at the dig site, and I was forbidden to go to South Padre Island for a month.”
“Longer than that,” Tiernan promised.
She ignored what he was hinting at—a marriage and she would not be able to visit the island at whim any longer. Although she could see where that might be prudent, given who was probably waiting there for her. Probably any of the dark fae visiting the area would have to have an armed escort now.
Ritasia leaned back against the plane seat, didn"t remark about his comment, but dove back into a more immediate problem. “We have to make it right by eliminating the power within the ring and medallion, although I suspect the medallion has no power. Just the ring.” She gave a bitter laugh. “I thought that nothing of value would ever be found in the castle ruins. I never expected to find a device that could create a war between the unseelie and seelie courts.”
He slipped his hand around hers and gave a squeeze of reassurance.
And here she"d wondered what to do with herself that could be adventurous and dangerous, thinking that she couldn"t get herself into too much trouble unless she was trying to get her brother or cousins out of their own difficulties.
None of them had ever gotten into a mess of this magnitude…ever!
Chapter 9
Ritasia was tired by the time she arrived at the court of the hawk fae after the long human flight that went through the night. Earlier that morning, everyone came out to see her in their finery, although she had wanted to sleep as she couldn"t on the plane. Though she"d worn a lovely gown that fluttered as a warm breeze floated through the windows of the great hall, the rich fabric was a little wrinkled so at the very least, she"d wanted to change. But she knew she could not do just as she wished, not in Tiernan"s court, and truly she wanted to please him. He didn"t seem to want to let her out of his sight at the moment while he showed her off to those who appeared high in the royal chain and those of the lowliest servants. He seemed so proud of her as he presented her to his people that she was truly surprised.
She hadn"t expected all the fanfare, not when she wasn"t married to him.
And though she knew he wanted her to be his wife, she hadn"t expected him to be so…enamored with her. Surely after the fiasco she"d caused, he was sure to believe before long she"d be in another mess. Then again, maybe he thought he would be able to ensure she didn"t get herself into trouble like that again. Well, for a while she probably wouldn"t. Not until she learned all she could about the place. There would be time enough for adventures galore.
He leaned down and whispered in her ear, which sent a tingle of heat cascading through her blood, “Your room is being prepared as we speak, no time to get word to the staff before we arrived.”
So that was the reason she couldn"t have freshened up a bit right away.
Melissina stood nearby, looking as though she could fall asleep on her feet.
“What about the ring and medallion?” she whispered back, and the crowd watching them smiled or murmured comments, probably believing she and the king were whispering sweet sentiments to each other.
“Later,” he whispered back, then smiled at his people.
Her skin heated at the notion that everyone watched them as much as in her own court.
Only in her own court, she at least knew her people and they knew her.
Several women approached her in a timid way and curtseyed and wished her and the king well, their eyes on her, not on the king. Were they afraid of him?
She greeted them as if they would all be her best friends, yet she saw the aloofness that persisted.
Were they afraid of her?
He motioned for a lad of about fourteen to come to her. She recognized he was human at once as he had no fae aura, no gold circles around his eyes, no scent of the fae, and her hackles rose. Her own people hadn"t taken humans into service for centuries, though many of the fae kingdoms thought nothing of it.
But she"d never considered the hawk fae kingdom would have human servants. To the king"s credit, the young man was the only one she had seen among the fae here so far.
“This is Romero. He will be your page and will carry your messages to me whenever we are separated and you need to speak with me.”
The boy was fitted in the finest forest green tunic and breeches, his long dark hair curling about his shoulders, his blue eyes bright with intrigue. “My lady,” the boy said, bowing low.
She belatedly curtseyed once she realized she had not done so. She couldn"t help it. She was still so startled to see him here. “Is he mine to do with as I see fit?” she asked Tiernan.
He looked a little taken aback by the question. “What exactly had you in mind, my lady?”
“We do not keep humans in my kingdom. I want him returned to the human world.”
Tiernan"s expression darkened a bit. She realized, too late as usual, that she should have waited for a better time to voice her displeasure. His people lived differently than hers, and she would have to get used to it, or choose not to stay here at all.
“We will discuss this later. Privately.” He seemed highly annoyed, curbing his temper just for his people as he took her arm and moved her toward the dais where the royals would sit at the high table.
She took a deep breath. She wanted the boy returned to the human world. But for now, she"d pretend to be the princess guest who was happy to be here and took the seat where Tiernan directed her. She figured she could manage to get through one meal without causing a scene between them.
Once everyone had a glass of red wine, he proposed a toast. “To the woman who shall be my wife. Soon.”
Oh, no he couldn"t have said that. Before this, when he"d announced who she was, he"d called her
their honored guest from the lion fae kingdom. He had made no mention she would be his wife, which was the way she wished it. For now, she had to learn all there was to observe about his kingdom. The good and the bad. She would see just how things worked out before she made up her mind whether she was staying here or not. But the fae in his court seemed thrilled their king had finally found his betrothed.
When he sat next to her, she noted her guards were seated with Melissina at one of the lower tables. The human boy was gone. He was probably sitting with the lowest servants in the kitchen or elsewhere.
Maybe Tiernan didn"t want her to see Romero and insist on speaking about him further.
But she had no intention of doing so. Not at the meal. She would not make another scene.
Instead, she said to Tiernan, “I do not recall meeting Sophia, your mage. Is she here? I was hoping we could have her dispel the magic on the jewelry however she does such a thing and then—”
“You have no need to worry about that. I will take care of it,” Tiernan said shortly, and she thought he was still annoyed with her over her comments concerning Romero.
Fine. He could be irritated with her all he wanted. But the ring and the snake medallion were hers from her mother"s dig site, and they didn"t belong to the hawk fae king, nor his people.
The first portion of the meal had been served, although she wasn"t hungry. She poked at the soup with her spoon, but didn"t take a bite.
He watched her for a few minutes, then finally said, “Do you always play with your food?”
She turned to scowl at him. “Do you always dictate everything, even how someone eats or doesn"t eat at a meal?” She hadn"t meant for the ring around her eyes to glow gold, but she saw them reflected in his eyes.
He finally took a deep breath, still looking angered and said, “Eat or do not eat. It is up to you.”
“Where is the boy?”
“Romero may look like a young man, but he is a couple centuries old, my lady.”
She stared at him blankly.
“He cannot return to his home, to the people he knew. This is his home and has been forever. He was so young when the fae brought him here, he doesn"t even know the human world.”
She"d never considered such a thing. She gathered her wits and asked, “Why does he not eat with us?”
“I believe he feels you do not wish him to serve you.”
“Me? Are you saying you did not have him sent away? Where does he usually eat?
Somewhere hidden from the rest of your court? And now it is my fault?”
“He normally sits where your maid is seated,” Tiernan said darkly.
Ritasia felt very small then and wanted to rectify the situation with the “boy.” She took a deep breath and said, “Where is Romero? I"ll go and speak with him.”
“Nay, you will not,” Tiernan said, with a hint of humorless laughter in his response. “You will be my queen and you will remain seated, eating or not eating as you so choose, until I say so. After that, we will take a courtly walk in the gardens and by then, your guest chambers will be ready for you to retire to at your leisure.”
She considered rising from her seat and stalking out of the hall to show Tiernan just what she thought of his ruling her. She was his guest! Nothing more. And if he thought to treat her this way when she was his queen, forget that.
But she had to speak with Romero, and she had to find the ring and medallion. They were her responsibility, not Tiernan"s.
She was pretty certain Tiernan would stop her if she tried to walk out on the meal on him without his permission, so she did what any good fae princess who was pissed off would do. She fae transported right out of the great hall, wishing to be in the gardens, and hoped she would end up on a path and not on the…
…top of a hedge maze. One that"s shrubs were so stiff and compact, she sat right on top of them, way high up. Which was just the problem with wishing to transport somewhere that a fae hadn"t visited before. She could have ended up in a pond in the gardens, or somewhere else even more disagreeable. The maze must have towered fifteen feet, and she wondered just what they fed their plants here.
She supposed her knights and Melissina would be frantic to see she had vanished from the great hall, which would have revealed she was perturbed with the king and would not abide his company a moment longer. His own people would either be silent in horror, or speaking in such a torrent, wondering what had happened to their illustrious guest.
The king? He was probably ready to kill her. He probably wasn"t ready to send her home yet though.
Well, most likely not, and still save face.
She meant to transport to the golden brick path, but when she tried, she didn"t move. Not an inch. What was wrong with her?
She tried again. But again she had no luck. She stared at the ground. She couldn"t get down from here without breaking her neck. She had never heard of anyone being able to cast a manacle spell on anyone without them being within sight.
But no one was out here but the birds, bees, and a multitude of butterflies. And one dark fae princess stuck on top of a hedge maze.
***
Tiernan really didn"t want his bride-to-be to see how angry he was that she had left him alone at the beginning of the meal in front of all his courtiers. He would not make excuses to his people for her behavior. He wanted to go after her, shake her, make her understand she could not behave in this way. Not if she was going to be his queen.
And yet, her flagrant disregard for his rules was what made him love her all the more. He had to understand how different her people lived, how free-spirited she was, and he had to make allowances. He was not a tyrant king, although right now he was feeling like locking her in a fae collar and making her stay by his side when he desired it of her.
The next best thing was calling Sophia forth and giving her a whispered command, “Stop all fae travel within the castle and extending out for one hundred miles beyond.”
She was extremely capable of the task, and she curtseyed, then he knew she did her duty.
For the princess"s safety and his peace of mind, he would not allow Ritasia to fae transport anywhere. When she came to her senses, after trying to walk all over this huge kingdom in search of Romero, she would finally return to the hall. Or seek out Tiernan wherever he might go following the meal. For he was certain as determined and stubborn as she was, she would not return soon.
Everyone in the hall waited for his word. He thanked Sophia, and she went back to her seat. With a dark scowl on his face, one of Ritasia"s knights finally rose, then walked over to the head table. “We are to watch the princess at all times, King Tiernan.”
“She is safe, Sir Conklin. She can only walk wherever she wishes to go, so she will not go far.”
“But—”
“Enjoy your meal. You may search for her afterward. She wishes to speak with her page.
That is all. She will return before long.”
The knight did not look like he believed it. But he didn"t have a lot of choice and returned to his seat where he explained what the king had said to him to the other dark fae knight and her maid. They all looked at the king with a mixture of disbelief and irritation. Their conversation began again in earnest, and Tiernan believed as soon as he ended the meal, the three of them would be off, searching for the princess. But they would have to do so on foot.
The conversation had died down to a mere lull, like it had at Ritasia"s court. He was beginning to think that wherever the princess took her meal, the people would be more fascinated with her, than with their own dinner companions and conversation. They probably also didn"t wish to miss anything that occurred at the head table, if anything more newsworthy were to occur.
Tiernan sliced up a piece of partridge, though he was no longer hungry, and though his advisor tried to speak to him about the wedding date and such, Tiernan only half listened to him.
He couldn"t help watching the entryway to the great hall and hoped Ritasia would come to her s
enses. Or that she"d speak with Romero, realize the human was happy where he was, and she"d come back to sit beside Tiernan for the rest of the meal. Maybe even eat a bite or two. And look as though she was happy to be his bride-to-be.
When the next course arrived, he said to Lord Srenton, who had lapsed into silence,
“Where would Romero be if he does not take his meal with us?”
“The kitchen, mayhap, my lord. Beyond that, I wouldn"t know. His chamber belowstairs, mayhap.”
“Have them searched.”
“And if the princess is in either location?”
King Tiernan raised his brows. “If she is in the kitchen with him, I wish to know this. If she is in his chamber…”
His advisor waited.
Tiernan frowned. “Send her to her chambers and have a guard posted, then let me know.”
“Aye, my lord.”
When Lord Srenton rose from the table, Tiernan stared up at him. “I did not mean for you to have the task.”
“I would wish it to be me who finds the lady, and not some servant who would gossip to the rest of the court, my king.”
“So be it.”
Of course everyone watched his advisor leave the great hall, and everyone had to know he was searching for the princess. Tiernan was certain his people could not wait for him to end the meal so they could look for the princess. But Tiernan had no intention of ending the meal early while his advisor searched and hopefully located the princess himself first and gave him the news.
***
Ritasia contemplated climbing down the shrub she was sitting upon as she"d been here forever no matter how many times she"d tried to transport herself down and couldn"t. She didn"t want to wait until the meal ended and have any of the king"s people find her up here. Her own, wouldn"t be so bad. They knew her well enough. But his people…
She took another annoyed breath. She thought to call out, but she figured everyone was at the meal or someone would be passing through the gardens at some point. Or at least some would congregate somewhere out of doors and she"d hear them.
Which was when she heard running footfalls and a child"s laughter. And then another.