Page 70 of Love & Letter Charms
“Perhaps fate itself is telling us we are on the right path,” she continued. “That this was the correct choice, this gathering, this method. By Season’s end, you’ll have your bride, and your magic will stabilize as it was always meant to.”
Ryden drew a careful breath, willing the tightness in his chest to ease as the activity moved closer, the chasing crowds following a cluster of particularly active gleams that seemed to be playing with their pursuers. A group, headed by Evryn and Mariselle, moved toward them, so focused on their quarry that they seemed unaware of their proximity to royalty.
Evryn very nearly crashed directly into Ryden’s mother while attempting a particularly athletic leap for an air-koi, his net sweeping dangerously close to the High Lady’s head.
“Your Grace!” He landed awkwardly, his face flushing. “My deepest apologies. I didn’t see—that is, I was watching—forgive me?—”
“No harm done, Lord Rowanwood,” the High Lady said with more amusement than censure. “The gleams can be quite distracting.”
As Evryn retreated with a smothered grin, Mariselle giggling on his arm, the group shifted, and Ryden’s heart leaped as the movement revealed Aurelise standing almost directly before them. She looked as startled as he felt, her net lowering, her eyes widening as she realized how close she’d come to the royal observers.
She dropped into a hasty curtsy, Lady Willow following suit beside her. “Your Grace. Your Highness. Please forgive the intrusion.”
“It’s quite all right,” the High Lady said as Ryden bowed to the two young women, his eyes remaining fixed on Aurelise, a small smile curving his lips.
Aurelise looked as though she might flee—Ryden could see the instinct in the way her weight shifted—but then something made her pause. She straightened her shoulders, and he recognized the gesture. It was the same way she’d steeled herself before stepping into the rain, before wading into the lake. His quiet, careful L gathering her courage.
“Actually, Your Grace,” she began hesitantly, “there was something I wished to discuss with you, if I might be so bold.”
Bold indeed. Ryden almost laughed out loud, his earlier anxiety easing, delighted at how bold his shy, careful L was becoming. For one reckless heartbeat, he wanted nothing more than to draw her into his arms and kiss her.
“Go on,” his mother said, one eyebrow arching upward
“My brother delivered something earlier today,” Aurelise said, her voice gaining speed as though she feared her courage might desert her. “He crafted a small crystal drop for the Green Drawing Room chandelier, based on my description of it, and a—well … an idea I had. Relating to my music magic, that is. Just a silly experiment, really, but I wondered if I might be allowed to have it fitted in place of one of the existing pieces. I thought it might …” She faltered, then finished with a simple, “help.”
Ryden’s gaze darted to his mother, who regarded Aurelise with patient amusement. “Your music is quite lovely, my dear, so if that chandelier were to hum a melody instead of prattling so incessantly, I daresay it would be an improvement.”
Aurelise hesitated. “Oh, well, it … that is …”
“Yes, you are welcome to try,” the High Lady continued, waving a graceful hand. “I shall have one of the artificers fetch the piece from your chambers tomorrow and see it installed.”
Aurelise paused again, her gaze flickering between Ryden and his mother, as though something more pressed at the edge of her tongue. But whatever it was, she swallowed it back. “Thank you, Your Grace.” She curtsied once more, Lady Willow following her lead, and together they withdrew into the crowd.
Ryden’s eyes followed her as a rush of feeling swelled within him. Longing, frustration, and the unspoken dread that someone else in this glittering crowd would soon be chosen for him, no matter what his heart already knew. He drew a steadying breath, forced his thoughts into order, and turned back to his mother.
“If you’ll excuse me, Mother,” he said, “I think I shall join the festivities.”
“Of course, darling. Do enjoy yourself.”
Ryden retrieved one of the enchanted nets, testing its weight experimentally. The silver threads hummed against his palm, already attuned to the frequency of gleam magic. Around him, the gardens were still a battlefield of joy, ladies and gentlemen abandoning dignity in pursuit of the dancing lights.
“Finally decided to participate, Your Broodfulness?” Evryn appeared at his elbow, his own net already showing signs of enthusiastic use. “I was beginning to think you’d spend the entire evening smoldering mysteriously at the edges of the gathering. Very dramatic of you, but hardly sporting.”
Ryden’s laugh came easily. “Smoldering mysteriously?”
“Yes. Gazing moodily into the middle distance while the rest of us have fun. Dreaming of your mystery lady of letters, were you?”
Ryden tensed, his guard rising at once. He’d had to take care in his recent interactions with Evryn that nothing in his manner betrayed what he now knew—his ‘lady of letters’ was none other than the sister Evryn had firmly warned him away from. Aloud, he only said, “Perhaps.”
Evryn laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. “You truly are smitten with this mystery woman, aren’t you? Oh, and that reminds me. You still haven’t shown me that enchanted letter box. Perhaps once the festivities wind down, we could adjourn to your study and have a look?”
A sharp chill swept through Ryden. His eyes darted immediately to find Aurelise, terrified she might be within earshot, that she might make the connection between an enchanted letter box and her mysterious correspondent. Relief flooded through him when he spotted her a good distance away, laughing with complete abandonment as she and Lady Willow attempted to corner that single moonflare everyone was so determined to claim.
Stars above, had he ever heard her laugh so unabashedly before? It was captivating, the way joy transformed her face, erasing all traces of the shy, nervous girl who so often let her smiles fall unseen, tucked away behind a downward glance.
“I do hope,” Evryn said, his tone carrying a subtle warning, “that it’s Lady Willow you’re observing with such particular attention.”
Ryden forced his gaze away from Aurelise, affecting casual interest in the general crowd. “Merely lost in thought, my friend,” he said with a practiced smile. “And as for that box, we’ll examine it at some point. Perhaps not tonight. We’re all having far too much fun here.”
