Page 86 of Winter's Scorching Kisses
She turned her gaze to the arena before her. They’d cleared off any of the snow that fell last night. Ice giants poured into the arena, finding their seats or a place to stand.
Dryden walked into the middle of the arena, and the crowd quieted down.
“My queen,” he motioned to them all the way up in their comfortable seats, “and I welcome you to these celebrations. We both thank you for coming to celebrate our wedding. Enjoy the games and the feast that will follow tonight!”
The crowd erupted into cheers at the delight of being entertained by games and a feast to follow.
Even Adorra found her palms sweating with the growing excitement of a day with games. She’d enjoyed these back in Arcaern, and she was excited to see the ice giants and their skills. If jousting had been a thrill to watch back at Arcaern’s castle, then she was sure this would be even more thrilling.
Dryden left the center of the arena, and a couple of snorting horses with armored men took his place. They lined up on opposite sides of a small fence that ran down the length of the arena.
Jasmine reached over and gripped Adorra’s hand. “I fear I might not be able to look!”
“I’m sure it will be fine.” But even Adorra had a lump in her throat. This could be thrilling but also dangerous.
The men dug their heels into their horses’ sides. The stallions’ large hooves threw frozen dirt as the men on them leveled their lances. Time seemed to go slowly as the men neared each other and then they collided, and everything sped back up. One man was knocked back, but no one unseated each other.
The crowd erupted into a roar.
Jasmine sighed in relief as the men exited the arena, and another two entered. She released Adorra’s hand as she calmed.
Adorra, who now had her hand back, reached over to grab her cup of tea. The hot liquid rushed down her throat as she watched the next round of men take their place. They leveled their lances as they charged down the line at each other. As they reached the middle of the arena, one of the lances hit true knocking one of the men off their horse as the other lance shattered into a brilliant display of splintered wood.
The man flew through the air before landing on the ground.
Jasmine and Adorra sucked in breaths, as did the rest of the crowd as they all waited in silence to see the fate of the man. The man rose and waved at the crowd.
“He’s fine,” Adorra said out loud, not only to reassure herself but her sister. She finished her tea and set it back down on the table.
A servant rushed over, grabbed the empty cup, and disappeared. It was strange for her to be waited on by ice giants. She felt as though the roles should be reversed, with her being the servant in this strange new world she found herself.
More men rode into the arena and took positions. Then the servant rushed back with another cup of piping hot tea. Adorra picked up the cup and slowly sipped the hot liquid as the men charged at each other. She placed the cup back on the table.
They sat there enjoying the jousting. As of yet, there hadn’t been any major injuries, and she found herself hoping the rest of the day would go just as well. She had no idea why she wasn’t wishing them dead, but she didn’t wish to witness a severe accident.
“This is Dryden!” Jasmine nearly leaped out of her seat with excitement as Dryden pulled his snorting stallion up along the fence.
Adorra didn’t know who to watch, Dryden or Jasmine. There was a gleam of pride in her eyes that caused Adorra to worry how her sister might react if Dryden was dealt a life-threatening blow.
The two men galloped towards each other, and Adorra sucked in a breath as she waited for the end of the joust. Her hands tightened around the armrests until she was sure it would splinter under the pressure.
Dryden’s lance met its target, and he unseated the other man, but he stayed seated.
Adorra let out a breath of relief and scooted back in her chair.
Once the man was up and off the field, they both relaxed.
“Dryden did a good job.” Adorra looked over at her sister and smiled.
“I did everything I could to try and convince him not to participate, but you know men.” Jasmine rubbed her stomach. “I’d love a son, but after seeing how Dryden behaves, I think I would prefer having a daughter.”
Adorra nodded. “I’m sure you’ll love either, even if one gives you more headaches than the other.” She couldn’t help but reassure her sister.
Another set of men rode into the arena, and Adorra only gave them half a mind. “May I?” She reached a hand out of the warm air in her cloak and motioned to Jasmine’s stomach.
“Of course.”
Reaching out, she placed a hand against Jasmine’s stomach.
