Page 34 of Straw and Gold
Alista had come by once with a tray of fruits and cheese. I’d picked at them, stewing in the embarrassing spectacle I’d made of myself just that morning. I should have told Killian that I couldn’t make it across the canyon. Instead, my Ravenfae stubbornness had wanted to try to prove I could. And now,my husband was nowhere to be found—probably scheming with Fedir on how to get rid of such a weak and damaged creature.
Tsking aloud, I sprang from my bed, landing flat on the floor a moment later with a thud. I’d seen this in myself before and knew the remedy. But the scoopful of thistle nuts I had left were in the pocket of a gown across the room in my wardrobe. Rising on wobbly legs, I made it, stuffing down a mouthful and chewing heartily, gulping them in a nut paste. They wouldn’t cure me immediately, but I would be feeling stronger in the next twenty minutes or so. I slid out of my nightgown and managed to pull a clean dress from the wardrobe. When my arms got tired and my wings didn’t shift right to accommodate the fabric, I tore it off in frustration, tossing the burgundy gown across the floor.
Naked, I wandered to Killian’s wardrobe instead, finding pants that would never fit me and one of his soft linen shirts that draped down my legs like a dress. The front was generous in its V neckline, and in an ingenious moment, I flipped it backwards, my wings able to sit outside the shirt from the front opening. Proud of myself, I grabbed one of his neatly organized belts and wrapped it around my waist to tie off the shirt that draped to the top of my knees. A midnight blue jacket hung pressed in the back of his wardrobe, and I grabbed that, too, tying the sleeves around my waist.
Slipping on my simplest black shoes, I crept to the door, careful to open it quietly in case Killian was in his study. I stepped lightly into the corridor, shook my head at the room that he’d meant to be mine, and headed straight to the western tower to produce the day’s straw into gold—just as I’d promised in our bargain.
Two hours later,I was done, starving, and struggling to keep my eyes open. I was also thoroughly put out that my husband hadn’t come looking for me yet. Surely, he’d discovered I was missing? Surely, someone had?
I was used to attention. My brother was forever asking me how I was feeling, or if I had eaten, or whether I’d gotten enough sleep. Even my mother watched me closely growing up, ensuring I was taking care of myself. It was a strange thing to be in a new land, in a new position, and to be left to my own wanderings.
I pressed my hand to the wheel of the spindle, taking my foot off the footman, allowing it to slow on its own and pondered my new life. Did I like having this much freedom? It was certainly…strange.
I missed some of the attention, that I could admit. But not just any attention—praise in particular. It was no wonder I’d been counting how many times my husband had complimented me. I was always seeking praise from others. My entire life, my normal was different. I couldn’t keep up with the other Ravenfae children, never reaching their heights, never soaring the same skies with my friends. Compliments were few and far between, and even now, I could list each one my husband had given me.
I released the last spool of golden thread and held the bundles to my chest. Killian’s jacket loosened from my waist and fell to the floor in a heap of fine silk. I folded it neatly, setting it back onto my stool, deciding it could use some embellishment at another time.
I began my shuffle down the winding staircase, muttering to myself about how I was going to find more thistle nuts when neither Killian nor Fedir seemed to know what they were.
“I distinctly remember telling you to stay in bed.”
Killian’s voice startled me at the end of the stairwell and I jumped, the spools of thread flying from my arms. He caught each of them with a swiftness I envied and held them in one hand.
“Well?” he asked, blocking my way through the rest of the stairwell. His gaze flitted over my attire and he frowned further. “Is that my shirt?”
I bit my cheek. The frustration coming off his body told me I might actually be in trouble this time. I decided to take an innocent approach and replied, “It was so soft and fit my wings, I couldn’t help but wear it.”
His eyes narrowed and I gulped, clasping my hands in front of me. “Only to the tower and back. No one saw me…”
“And that was luck,” he finished.
I decided to change the subject. “How long have you been waiting here?”
“Why did you leave your bed?” he retorted.
“I made a bargain,” I said simply. Pointing at the spools, I added, “Three spools of straw turned to golden thread. Though I will need a few more spools for tomorrow’s quota.”
“You will not be spinning tomorrow or the next day or the next until you have returned to full health.” His eyes darted to my wings, which sagged on my back.
“Nonsense,” I said flippantly. “I can manage?—”
“I don’t care what you canmanage. You will be resting until you have your strength back. Thistle nuts will arrive tomorrow and you will be given other remedies for your…condition.”
I scoffed. “Mycondition?” I stepped down two more stairs, finally meeting him in his own towering height. “I’ve managedmy condition for longer than you’ve even known of my existence, husband, so your assistance is unnecessary.” I scrunched my nose, adding, “Except the thistle nuts. I’ll take those.”
He lifted his chin, not backing down, but I didn’t really expect him to. “Are all Ravenfae as stubborn as you?”
“Ha!” I laughed in his face, poking a finger in the soft part of his shoulder, finding just more solid mass instead. “And what about you?”
“I’m not stubborn. I am practical.”
“Oh, yes,” I mocked, “the great King of the Citrine Cliffs is so practical in his bargains, and compliments, and kisses for his wife—after all, why do more than what’s strictly necessary to get your wife to give you what you need?”
“You don’t know what I need. And you’re obsessed with me praising and kissing you.”
“Am not,” I replied quickly, backing up a step to remove myself from the heat of his stare.
He followed, closing the distance between us. “Are so.”
