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“I’m right here,” she said. “I’m not going anywhere any time soon.”
Lucy pouted, and wrapped an arm around her back, drawing her towards the path they’d taken from the castle. “Let’s get back. You need to get cleaned up and ready for your dinner with the king.”
Mina rolled her eyes. “There really are no secrets in this place, are there?”
“You weren’t exactly whispering, or in private,” she laughed.
“True.” Mina nodded, as they approached the side gate to the palace. Its red stone casting a crimson haze over the ground in the afternoon light.
“You like him though, don’t you?” Lucy teased, giving her a wicked side-eye glance.
“What?” Mina felt her cheeks burn. “What do you mean?”
“I saw the way you looked at him. You’re falling in love, aren’t you?” She laughed, elbowing her in the ribs.
Mina couldn’t help but laugh too. “Love is a strong word. I barely know the man.”
“Yeah, okay,” Lucy laughed, and as they stumbled laughing into the garden.
The sound of a familiar voice crying out in pain made her jump and Mina’s eyes swept over the garden to see the two figures rolling through the bushes.
“By the Crone. What is going on?” Lucy gasped.
Harker snorted coming up behind them. “They’re sparring.”
Mina nodded as Erik broke free from Alaric’s grasp, his tan body moving with the ease of a jungle cat, circling around the massive beast across from him.
If he sensed her watching him, he gave no sign of it until Alaric jerked up out of his fighting stance. “Your Majesty, we have company.”
Erik turned and his mouth lifted in a smile that made her knees wobble. “Good afternoon, ladies…Harker.”
“What are you two doing?” Lucy asked, pulling Mina with her along the garden path.
Mina couldn’t quite bring herself to look away from Erik or his chiseled body. With no sun above her to mark the day’s passage, in just a few short days she’d come to rely on the enchanted lights and torches that lined every spare inch of the castle and its grounds. And those lights danced across the planes of his chest like living fire.
“Just some afternoon exercise,” Erik said, his lips twitching in a wicked grin. “How was your game in the quarry?”
“It went well,” Lucy said, her voice hesitant.
“Princess Mina outlasted all of us. I’m pretty sure she set a record for hiding the longest,” Harker chuckled, dropping a hand down on her shoulder.
Mina jumped and her cheeks burned. “I…I fell asleep in the tree.”
“Using the tree’s enchantment to hide. That’s smart.” Alaric whistled through his teeth.
“You fell asleep?” Erik’s features pinched as they stepped closer to him. “Are you alright? Do you need a healer?”
“I’m fine.” Mina shook her head, biting her lower lip. It was hard to meet his eye. She’d had such a strange dream in the tree. That meadow had felt so familiar, but she’d never been there before, and that was the second time she’d heard that name.Evangeline. By the long memory of the Crone, who the hell was Evangeline?
Erik tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear, and she tensed finally meeting his eye. “We can talk about it tonight at dinner.”
“I’d like that.” She nodded.
He smiled at her again. “Good. Now, I won’t keep you from your fun. Go enjoy the rest of your day. I’ll see you tonight.”
Mina couldn’t help the smile that rose on her lips in return, nor the urge to press up on her toes and kiss his cheek.
She sank back on her heels, and Erik blinked in surprise, his face almost comical. She chuckled under her breath. “I’ll see you tonight.”
