“Sinjin!” Jolie rebuked him even though I heard her suppressing a giggle.
I just frowned and let it be known that the obvious amusement in his expression was not appreciated at all. Then I focused my attention on Odran, who was busily scowling at the vampire. “I’m sorry, Odran, but my answer is no, I can’t marry you,” I told him in a monotone voice before thinking I should have probably been nicer about it. “Um, but it was nice of you to ask.”
Odran pulled his attention from Sinjin and faced me with surprise. “Nae?” he repeated, as if it were the last response he ever expected.
“And what a pity it is too,” Sinjin continued as he shook his head and made a tsking sound. Then he glanced over at Odran with a broad smile. “Just think of all that wasted seed, my dear oafish cousin to the north.” He glanced at me and continued shaking his head. “The silly twit does not know the joys of what she refuses.”
“Aye,” Odran responded with a nod and an angry expression aimed at me. “She doesnae.”
I didn’t say anything because there wasn’t anything left to say. Jolie looked like the cat had her tongue as well.
“And on that happy note, which strangely enough, does not even resemble the English language, what say you and I begin our evening, Bête Noire?” Sinjin asked as he held his elbow out to me and raised his left eyebrow inquiringly.
Glancing back at my sister, I smiled. “You should be getting to bed anyway,” I said. “You need your rest.” She just nodded as I centered my attention on Odran. “I’m sorry, Odran, but I appreciate your offer all the same.”
“Ye are a foolish lass,” the fae king spat out angrily. “Ah offered ye a way ta forgit yer past an’ truly become one o’ oos.”
Little did he know there was no way I could ever forget my past. It haunted me day and night. Even though I hadn’t seen or heard anything from Luce since his visit nearly seven months earlier, there was a burden I carried that kept Luce very much in my thoughts. Truly, I hoped never to hear from him again because I knew that if I did, I wouldn’t like the outcome. But I also knew better than to think I wouldn’t. Nope, he had me right where he wanted me; and it was just a matter of time before he would, no doubt, exploit his bounty.
“Perhaps the little heathen will come to her senses and change her mind in time, old chap,” Sinjin told Odran as he patted the bigger man on the bicep.
Odran didn’t respond, which was just as well. Sinjin opened the door for me and we both walked into the hallway. I was quick on my feet, wanting nothing more than to retire into the solitude of my room. As was becoming customary, my anxiety level was in the process of rising to full steam ahead because I was thinking about Luce again. And those thoughts inevitably led to worries of what would happen if my tribe decided to attack my sister’s people, people whom I now considered … friends.
“Well, you have had quite a prodigious day, have you not?” Sinjin asked, eyeing me with keen interest.
He held the front door open for me and I stepped outside, feeling the chill of the ocean air as it whipped around me. At least the rain had subsided for the moment. “I’m sorry, what?” I asked the vampire, facing him with confusion and frustration in my face.
“You do know, dear hooligan, that it is considered impolite not to pay attention to the other party whilst engaged in a conversation?” Sinjin asked with a shake of his head as if to say my obvious lack of manners disappointed him.
“My mind was preoccupied with other more important subjects,” I answered with no amount of apology or regret. I led us down the cobbled walkway toward the guesthouse of Kinlock Kirk.
“Your mind was on other subjects,” Sinjin repeated. “The oaf’s marriage proposal, no doubt?” he asked, one eyebrow elevated dramatically. “Perhaps you are reconsidering his valiant promise to fill your belly with his seed?”
I turned around and glared at Sinjin, trying to show him how completely unimpressed I was with his comment. “No, I wasn’t thinking that, thank you very much,” I grumbled before cocking my hips to the side as I studied him with narrowed eyes. “And, just how did you manage to walk in on the conversation at exactly the moment that Odran asked me to marry him?” I demanded, raising my eyebrows at him while I tapped my foot on the ground impatiently. “Methinks that perhaps the six-hundred-year-old vampire is nothing more than a nosy, elderly eavesdropper?”
Sinjin chuckled as he sidestepped me and continued leading the way to our accommodations. “I will admit, my little fury, that my exceptional hearing allowed me to bear witness to your inane conversation as soon as I set foot in the hallway; but that was not the reason I came after you.”
“Oh?” I replied, to which he simply nodded. “Then what was the reason? I mean, the real reason?” I corrected myself, obviously having a go at the ridiculously pompous vampire.
“I was en route from a meeting with the prophetess,” he began as he pushed the front door open. He held the door open wide for me, but I didn’t enter.
“Otherwise known as Mercedes,” I interrupted him, becoming irritated. “She does have a name, you know?” I prodded, shaking my head and mumbling to myself. “I don’t know why none of you ever use it.”
“Are you planning on stepping inside, my paramour?” he asked while motioning to the door which he was still holding ajar. “Or shall I play the part of doorman all evening?”
“No, I wasn’t planning on entering,” I answered with my nose in the air. Then I took a few steps away from the door, aiming for a grassy knoll, which lay off to the side of the guesthouse. It offered a breathtaking view of the craggy shoreline below, as well as the waves crashing into the rocks. “I still feel the need for some fresh air,” I added.
“Very well,” Sinjin said as he closed the front door. He walked alongside me and up the embankment. I stood at the edge of the precipice and beheld the view of the white-capped ocean waves as they crashed against the face of the mountainside.
“So, what did Mercedes have to say?” I asked, facing him squarely. “I mean, I imagine there was a reason you said you’d just come from seeing her?”
Sinjin nodded. “Ah, yes, of course, I did.” Then he smiled broadly. “She is doing well.”
I waited for him to add to the comment, but after a few seconds of him just gazing at me blankly, I frowned and shook my head. “And? What was the reason she wanted to see you? That can’t be the full extent of your story?”
Sinjin chuckled. “You know, Bête Noire, you have an uncanny way of stripping the fun out of all my games.”
“Well, your games are usually juvenile, bordering on infantile, so I’m happy to do the honors.”
He chuckled again and studied me pointedly. “I have not felt that particular warmth in my veins your blood provided for many months it seems. I daresay I miss it.”
“Stick to the topic, Sinjin,” I muttered beneath my breath. “What was the reason you met Mercedes and what does it have to do with me?”
“It has everything to do with you, little heathen,” Sinjin replied. “Our good prophetess is convinced that there is more to you than meets the eye,” he said, studying me in a way that suggested he didn’t disagree with her. “I am not certain if you are aware, but the prophetess heads a Lurker task force. She makes a mission of gathering as much information on your people as she can.”
“Interesting,” I responded, eyeing him narrowly because I immediately glimpsed the challenge in his eyes.
“You can well imagine, I daresay, how interested Mercedes is in grilling you for any and all information she could manage to squeeze out of you.”
“I imagine she would be very interested in anything I had to say,” I admitted.
“Yes, she is.”
“So why hasn’t she been squeezing all my information from me?” I asked.
“Because your dear, loving and naïve sister will not allow it,” he replied.
“Naïve?” I repeated. “Is that a good way to describe your sovereign queen?” I inquired, eyeing him n
arrowly.
The smile vanished as he approached me until mere inches of salty ocean air separated us. “I know you have swayed your sister to believe that you are trustworthy. And I believe Rand is less concerned about you now than he was when you first came here.”
“But what about you, Sinjin?” I countered. I was strangely attracted to him at the same time I was annoyed by the obvious threat that existed beneath his cool candor. “Have I swayed you over?”
He chuckled, but his eyes were piercing in the darkness. “No, my little villain, you have not.”
“Well, thanks for the pep talk,” I said through clenched teeth, suddenly annoyed. I sorely wanted to retire into the privacy and haven of my bedroom. I pivoted on my toes, taking a step toward the house, when Sinjin’s hand on my arm stopped me. He was right—his touch felt much colder than it had after he’d feasted on my blood.
“I am not certain which side you are playing,” he started, his tone of voice turning steely, “but if you hurt the queen …”
“I would never hurt my sister or her baby,” I spat back at him, offended that he could even think I was capable of such treachery.
“Good,” he replied, his hand still wrapped around my arm. “I wanted to ensure such was the case. You must also know that should any harm come to your sister, or to her baby by your hand, be it directly or indirectly, I will hunt you down and end your existence.”
“Thanks for the warning, but you’re just wasting my time,” I barked at him, trying to yank my arm from his grasp. “Now let me go.”
“Then we understand one another, do we not?” he continued, his iron grasp no doubt leaving its mark on my skin.
“Yes,” I answered in a hiss. I again attempted to free myself from his manacle-like grip by pulling against him as hard as I could. He held me for a few more seconds before letting go unexpectedly. I lost my balance, and the rocks beneath my feet made me wobble. I felt myself starting to fall backward and gasped when I saw how precariously close to the edge of the cliff I was. In a split second, Sinjin reached out and gripped me around the waistline of my stretch pants. He yanked me forward until I found my face smashed against his chest.
“You must be more careful, Princess,” he said in a throaty, deep voice. I didn’t pull away from him. I couldn’t. Instead, I inhaled the coolness of his scent and allowed my eyes to close. Even though it was complete insanity on my part, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was somehow … safe with Sinjin. “I sincerely hope that you will one day prove yourself to be the woman that your sister believes you are,” he whispered.
I opened my eyes once I felt his hand on my hair, caressing it. “And what do you believe, Sinjin?” I asked. “Do you believe my sister is right about me? Or do you believe Mercedes?”
He chuckled. “I find, little hellion, that it is not in one’s best interest to be a betting man.” I could feel the chill of his breath against my face. “I allow the chips to land where they may.”
THIRTEEN
The evening of Jolie and Rand’s wedding was raining, windy and bitterly cold. As I stood in Jolie’s bedroom with her, Christa and Klaasje, I couldn’t help wincing as the skeletal trees outside rapped against the windows, scratching the glass with their bare branches. Moments later, a volley of lightning lit up the stormy sky and the rain began pounding in earnest.
“Isn’t rain supposed to be good luck on your wedding day?” Jolie asked with a hesitant smile. “Isn’t that what everyone always says?”
I turned to face her from where I’d been frowning at myself in the mirror, not appreciating the dress I had to wear as maid of honor. Granted, I’d never heard of a maid of honor decked out in fighting gear, but that didn’t make dress-wearing any easier for me. “Who cares what everyone says?” I asked her before realizing my voice sounded a bit strident, so I smiled warmly. “You and Rand were meant for one another, which means it doesn’t matter whether it’s sunny or raining tonight. All that matters is that tonight is the first night of your happily ever after.”
Jolie smiled at me, gratitude in her eyes. “You’re right.”
“Now, if I could just feel halfway normal in this dress, the night could start looking up,” I grumbled as I turned back around to face myself in the full-length mirror. My hair cascaded over my bare shoulders in an array of curls, the section at the top of my head pulled back tightly into a hairband. The dress was satin, the color of champagne, and very fitted, so much so that I found it difficult to walk in the pencil skirt. The bodice of the dress was just as tight as the rest of it, which made my breasts look like they were merely seconds from exploding out of the top. In fact, I was pretty sure that if I inhaled deeply enough, I’d blow the zipper in the back. As it was, the material stretched so tightly across my bust, I imagined the zipper was already screaming. If not for the thread-thin spaghetti straps, I didn’t think the top would even stay up. Feeling my hair tickling my right elbow, I pushed it behind my shoulder before the rose corsage on my wrist got stuck in my hair yet again.
“Ugh,” I muttered as I glanced up at all three of the women surrounding me. “I don’t know how you all are able to function when dressed like this.”
“Sometimes we have to make sacrifices to appeal to men,” Christa responded with a dramatic sigh.
I looked at her and frowned, my eyebrows furrowing in the middle of my forehead. “The day I make a sacrifice for a man is the day I give you all permission to strike me dead, right where I stand.”
I heard Klaasje laugh as she approached me, wearing an identical version of the dress I wore. Christa was too. Only they both seemed way more comfortable in theirs. “You look beautiful, Bryn,” Klaasje commented as she presented me with my headpiece. It was a wreath of white daisies, woven into a circle with various lengths of white, satin ribbons spilling from the back. It was meant to sit atop our heads, with the ribbons flowing down on our hair. Mathilda created them for each of us; and while I thought they looked beautiful on my sister, Christa and Klaasje, I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of wearing one, myself. It was just the complete antithesis to utilitarian attire.
After Klaasje plopped the delicate thing on my head and trailed the long, flowing silk ribbons over my shoulder, I frowned. Klaasje laughed again. “Repeat after me: it’s just a dress and I’ll survive wearing it,” she said.
I shook my head and sighed at the same time. “It’s so tight, I’m not sure I’ll survive wearing it,” I grumbled. Then my feet reminded me that they were being pinched to no end in the three-inch heels Jolie insisted I wear. “And if the dress doesn’t suffocate me to death, these heels are so high, I can just imagine myself tripping and breaking my neck.”
“She’s got a point,” Christa announced as she studied me, tapping her manicured fingers against her lips. “Have you seen her trying to walk in them? She’s not exactly graceful.” Then she faced Jolie. “Maybe someone should hold onto her while we’re walking down the aisle?”
“She will be fine,” Klaasje said as she smiled at me knowingly. She smoothed out the ribbons in my hair and stepped back, admiring her handiwork. “First find your center of gravity, and then just take your time when you’re walking, Bryn.”
“Besides, you’ll be walking down the aisle, arm-in-arm with Sinjin,” Jolie said with a little impish smile as she turned around to face me.
“I’m walking down the aisle with Sinjin?” I repeated, frowning at her because this was the first time I’d heard this.
“Yes,” Jolie answered. “And I’m more than sure he’ll be happy to offer any assistance, should you need it.” Then her left eyebrow arched for the ceiling as she continued to smile at me knowingly.
“Amen to that,” Klaasje answered with a laugh.
Then it was Christa’s turn to face me with shock and realization plastered all over her features. “Ohhh, does someone have her eyes set on the sexy-as-hell vamp?”
“No,” I announced automatically, crossing my arms over my chest. “Someone does not.”
/> “Well, regardless of what ‘someone’ will admit,” Klaasje continued, all three of them staring at me with expressions that said they all knew better, “our esteemed Mr. Sinclair is definitely interested in her.”
“No, he’s not,” I protested staunchly.
“We all have eyes, Bryn,” Jolie argued. She was sitting at her vanity and doing her makeup, but relying solely on her magic. She glanced back from me to the mirror and studied herself as her eyes lined themselves in charcoal. She moved in closer to the mirror just as her eyelids were dusted with a translucent, glittery celadon green. She’d already magicked her blond hair into flowing ringlets that were pulled up into a hairstyle that looked like Cinderella’s.
“Yep, we do,” Klaasje continued, throwing her hands on her hips as her blue eyes glittered from her pretty face. “And girl, that boy is interested in you and then some.”
“Oh, please,” I started, shaking my head.
“I’ll bet he’s just dying to know if those boobs of yours are real or fake,” Christa added as she studied me purposely.
“What?!” I asked, appalled, my mouth dropping open in accordance. “Of course, they’re real!” Christa considered me doubtfully. “Oh my God,” I continued. “They are real!”
Jolie started laughing, and Klaasje and Christa followed suit. As soon as I realized they were all making fun of me, I started to laugh too. Right then, I was suddenly overcome with the feeling that I was exactly where I was supposed to be, at my sister’s side. I’d never felt such an uncanny sense or feeling of belonging before, but it was bittersweet. Bittersweet because I knew it was transitory. I couldn’t stay here, at Kinloch Kirk, forever. Even though I might have felt as if I somehow belonged here, I didn’t. This wasn’t my home and these weren’t my people.
But what if I want them to be? I asked myself. What if I’m right where I’m supposed to be? What if there is something to fate and destiny? What if this is mine?