Page 42 of A Bargain with the Fae King

“I’ve assumed it for a while, but he’s not bothering to hide it now.” Riven runs his hand through his hair, which came loose from its tie at some point. The movement, along with the sweat and blood, has it sticking out like a wild mane around his head.

Riven whistles, a long shrill sound that has the members of the fae guard rushing over. He shouts assignments in pairs and trios, ordering his guard to scour the woods for any sign of May or the Unseelie, return the extra horses and equipment to the city, and other tasks. I tune him out until a particular command snags my attention.

“—return with us.”

“What?” I interrupt. “We can’t just leave. Not without May.”

“We can, and we will. It’s too dangerous right now with how little we know. We’ll return at the first sign of something promising. You’re covered in filth, we only have a day’s worth of food, and May will be much better served by more of my guard looking for her and not just this handful. Not to mention, it will give us time to find something to trade for her if it comes to that.”

I wince as he details each item in exasperation. Freaking fae making it seem so simple and orderly when all the world is one big disaster.

“Do you still want to stay?” he asks.

A retort hangs on the tip of my tongue, sour and bitter. Gosh, I’d love nothing more than to scream at him, but everyone is watching me, waiting. Every minute I spend arguing is one less that they’re searching for May.

Not to mention that his comments made me painfully aware of the gunk still coating my body. Even now, something sticky is drying to the side of my neck. The wretched metallic scent I’d somehow managed to block out is back now too, and with a vengeance.

“Let’s go.” Riven senses my defeat. He holds out his own grime-coated hand.

The moment we touch, the world warps and bends. When he did it before, the sensation faded quickly before planting us in our destination. Now, the magic takes its time. The world skews wildly around us, sending my stomach on a rollercoaster ride. My hand clenches his in a death grip. I never want to find out what happens if we separate.

The moonlit forest fades into darkness black as a tomb. Colors and shapes return slowly, bit by bit in wavering forms, until a room—Riven’s—coalesces around us. The wavering stops as the room solidifies.

A captured breath escapes from my lungs in a whoosh. The scent of budding leaves and honeysuckle, which cling to the room like spilled perfume, refills them. Riven releases me to yank on a long rope hanging from a bell on the wall. A tickling wind chime fills the room, the only sound other than my heavy breathing. Riven pokes his head out the door and speaks to a guard standing watch.

Everything is a blur of loss and pain, so much like that night after the crash.

“When Karin or one of her women arrives, have her bring food for Lia and me.” Riven’s gaze flits back over one shoulder before returning to the guards. “And call for Solona.”

I flinch. Karin sounded like a maid, but that likely means Solona isn’t. So many women’s names keep coming up, and I know nothing about any of them. Even now, Evelyn’s name still clangs through the back of my mind, taunting and teasing every insecurity I’ve ever had. Who is she? What is she to him? I hug my arms around my chest, as if I need one more thing to hurt over.

Ridiculous. I give myself a shake. He’s not mine, he’s not…

But then, I guess I always thought of him that way before yesterday. He was mine, my secret companion I never had the courage to tell anyone about. Not that they’d have believed me anyway. Dad would have given me a side-eye look at best, and Elise would totally have insisted on more therapy. My friends… Well, they hadn’t really been there for me when I needed them either. Funny enough, the only one who might have believed me is May.

It’s hard to reconcile the man of my dreams with the fae king before me. Not just that he’s real but all that realness entails. Responsibilities, relationships, lovers…

My teeth bite into my lip, almost drawing blood.

This isn’t like you, Lia. Jealousy isn’t normally my thing, but tonight I can’t shake it. It’s just one more wave in a sea of churning feelings.Think about something else, anything else.

As always, my thoughts float back to my sister, however painful it may be.

Riven stalks toward me, and I can’t handle the silence anymore.

“If you can teleport, then why didn’t we just drop down next to my sister, grab her, then come back?” I ask.

“Telep—”

“Shift. Whatever you call it.”

“All magic can be felt. Our best chance was to travel the normal way and sneak up on them.” His hands are in his hair again as he paces in front of a sofa. At one point, he started to sit but halted halfway, maybe remembering the grime and blood clinging to him too.

“You couldn’t feel that Unseelie, the one with my sister.”

His grimace deepens. I’ve wrenched the knife, but I don’t regret it a bit.

“And what about in the clearing, huh?” I spit the accusation. “Even I saw her on the ground. You couldn’t just shift in and get her then?”

---