Page 44 of His Dark Delights
A heartbeat later and I schooled my features, reminding myself that while the knight was friendly within the palace, he still sported a sword on his hip that was crafted for fae killing. I didn’t doubt that fairy blood had already soaked his steel.
“Lady Lilliana, it is good to see you smiling finally. I didn’t think you would.” The knight crossed the clearing, striding easily with his arms clasped behind his back.
I plucked the strawberry from my lap and sighed half-heartedly. “The circumstances of my arrival weren’t worth a smile.”
Rhydan dipped his head, and the corner of his lips twitched. “It would displease His Grace to hear it, but I’d have to agree with you.” Glancing over his shoulder, he noted the cow watching him from around a hedge. “Though it would appear those circumstances have improved. Much to the frustration of the groundskeeper,” he sniggered.
“Groundskeeper?” I almost choked on the bite of fruit. “I hate to think my animals’ arrival displeased someone.”
His shoulders lifted and dropped. “Just a crotchety old man who’s overseen the garden his entire life. He wouldn’t let anyone set foot here if given the choice. But who is he compared to the king?”
“Everyone is important,” I replied. “Without the groundskeeper, would His Majesty be out here tending to the garden?”
Rhydan’s smirk was playful. “Once upon a time, he might have. Ren was known to get his hands dirty when he needed to.”
My expression fell as I recalled the state he was in when he stumbled into my room. The blood on his shirt and the bruises on his knuckles. But I also remembered his smile when he fixed my barn, regardless of his wounds.
I cleared my throat. “And where is His Majesty? I’d like to thank him for this wonderful surprise.”
The knight leaned on a young tree, staring pensively at the grass between our feet. He crossed his arms over his chest to hide the rise of a heavy breath. “Trapped in the council chambers with old men who’ve never lifted a sword. His Grace argues for the need to return to the front lines.”
Don’t react. Don’t react. Don’t let him see the fear bubbling under the surface.
“Ah, I see,” I forced off my tongue.
The war.
I’d gone blind in my fleeting moment of joy. A naïve farm girl swayed by luxuries. All the while, the Fairy Butcher was in one of those sapphire towers looming overhead across the garden. He distracted me with something guaranteed to make me happy while seated at a table with his council demanding provisions and men to return to battle.
“He is a restless creature of vengeance. No shiny thing or pretty flower can keep him from his cause. Not for long.” Rhydan’s words seemed casual on the surface. But I heard the warning hidden beneath them.
I swallowed my growing apprehension, shifting on the bench against the anxiety gnawing in my belly.
“What are your views on the war, my lord? Do you revel in killing fae as your king does?”
He kicked off the tree, mouth jerking with a rueful smile. “Aye, I won’t deny I enjoy a good fight almost as much as a good fuck, my lady. But personally, I have no quarrel with the fae. I fight because my king commands it and I have an oath to serve the realm.”
That reply provided me with an ounce of comfort. I’d viewed Rhydan as a safe person without knowing the extent of his views on the war. Though it didn’t reveal how trustworthy he’d be with my truth.
If he’d approached ten minutes earlier, he might have seen the flowers behind the bench bending to meet my outstretched hand. Would he have gone to Soren and given me away? Or would he have killed me himself based on an oath?
“Fucking and fighting,” I giggled. “What if we weren’t at war and a lovely fae woman landed in your lap? Would you fight or fuck, my lord?”
A bark of laughter cracked through his lips, and he tossed his head back. His shoulders shook with the force of his hysterics, and he nearly bent over to draw breath again.
“Aye. If the woman had wide hips and a round ass, she’d garner my attention, fae or not.” Then he stepped closer, looking over his shoulder to ensure we remained alone. “Don’t tell His Majesty, but I have bedded a fae before.”
My jaw dropped, and I balked at the smirking knight. “You seem to be his closest friend, yet he doesn’t know?”
“She was a selkie I met off the shores while traveling as a young man. Roundest most perfect ass I’d ever seen. We had a fun two weeks together before I joined the ranks. A few years later, Ren became king and things changed. I never saw her again.” The lighthearted tone he started with drifted into something thin and wistful.
“I am sorry,” I broke through the silence.
Rhydan waved his hand through the air. “Think nothing of it, my lady. I’m sure she’s out at sea, living her life as far away from the war as possible.”
“But what if she wasn’t? What if your selkie got caught beneath your sword, sir? Would you act as an executioner for one you shared pleasure with?” It was risky to ask. Like playing a defenseless move in a board game. But one that might provide substantial reward.
He looked me up and down then, observing me thoroughly from the corner of his eyes. If I didn’t hold my breath, he might crack me open and find my truthlaid bare. A reply clung to his lips, yet the silence stretched with his hesitation.
