“It was an accident,” I said. “He didn’t mean to hurt me. Maybe if he was around people more, he’d learn how to control those impulses.”
“You have such a kind heart,” Briar murmured into my hair. “It’s what I love about you. You see the good in people when they can’t even see it themselves.”
“You’re also too trusting because of that kind heart,” Maddox said. “And it worries me.”
Nothing I said would ease his worries, so I kissed him instead. Maddox made the softest of sounds as he returned it, pressing his mouth firmer to mine. Seconds passed as our lips moved together, and then he grabbed my chin and turned my face so Briar could kiss me. Briar’s mouth crashed against mine as Maddox moved to my neck, nipping at my pulse point.
The way I felt when kissing them? Like sparks traveling through my bloodstream. It held no comparison. The only other man who’d ever made me feel the same way… was Lake.
Lupin had said I was destined to have five lovers in this world. Fated mates. And I knew without a doubt Lake was one of them.
Chapter Five
A Royal Invitation
“Are you sure this is okay?” I asked as Sawyer led me up the front steps of the castle. “I'm not exactly dressed for royalty.”
“You look great.” Sawyer nodded to the guards stationed outside the entry doors. “Normally we’d eat lunch in the garden, but it’s much too hot today.”
True. The summer afternoon was sweltering hot. Sweat dampened my hair and coated my back, making my shirt stick to me. I was like a sweat-drowned rat and probably smelled like one too. Definitely not the way I’d imagined my first trip inside the castle to go down.
“Am I even allowed to go in?” I smiled at the guards as we passed them, paranoid they’d stop me. I debated on offering them one of the sweets I’d brought with me as a bribe.
“Of course. You’re my guest.”
“What about your brother?”
Sawyer’s smile became tight at the edges. “If luck is in our favor, we won’t encounter him.”
“That makes me feel so much better. Truly.” Cedric was the crown prince and a class A asshole who got off on intimating people. He was also mean to Kuya, which made me dislike the blond-haired bastard even more.
My reservations fled as soon as I stepped into the entrance hall. The grandeur of it far surpassed my expectations. Marble floors, gold lined columns, jeweled chandeliers, and a grand staircase that stretched up and split into two.
“Allow me, sir,” a woman said as she stepped toward me.
“Huh? Oh.” I handed her the basket of sweets. “Thank you.”
“Please follow me.” She bowed to Sawyer before walking toward a doorway to the left.
“This place is massive,” I said as we followed her down a long corridor. “Do you ever get lost?”
He laughed. “I have once or twice. Not so much anymore. As a boy, I used to run these halls and hide from the servants, usually before bath time.”
One of the older men we passed smiled at that.
“That changed when my illness worsened,” Sawyer said. “No more running down the corridors or climbing trees.”
“Can I ask what kind of sickness?”
“The court physician at the time said I was born weak,” Sawyer responded. “I caught colds easily, became fatigued quickly, and sometimes if I overexerted myself, I wouldn’t be able to breathe. There were some mornings when I couldn’t leave my bed. I’d be fevered for a few days before regaining my energy. Then one day, I never recovered. That bed became my prison.”
Sounded like he might’ve had some kind of sickness that attacked his immune system, but my specialty was in desserts and coffee, not medicine.
“My memory from that time is somewhat of a blur,” he continued. “I remember feeling weak and unable to hold down solid food. I coughed a lot and suffered bouts of nausea, headaches, and chills that came from fever. There was a tree I used to stare at from my bed, one that bloomed in early spring. I remember seeing it bloom once and wondering if it was the last time I’d ever see it.”
My heart ached. “Then Briar healed you?”
That was how Briar had been given the position as the court physician, a highly sought after and coveted title. Bremloc wasn’t just a kingdom; it was the capital.
