Alicia quickly attempted to copy Ritasia’s graceful curtsey, but because her equilibrium was still slightly out of whack, she ended up sitting very quickly in her shimmering purple gowns on the terra cotta tile floor.
Ritasia hurried to help her up. “My dear cousin, Princess Alicia, who is ill,” Ritasia introduced her to the prince.
Alicia was sure her face looked feverish and perfectly ill as she unconsciously played her part so well. She caught Deveron’s actions as he hurried to help her. His face looked quite aghast. And Lorelei attempted to prevent him from going to Alicia’s aid as she dug her claws into his arm.
Prince Phillinois stared at Alicia for a moment, then nodded. He turned his attention to Ritasia and smiled. But it wasn’t a warm smile, rather a look like she should be pleased she would be his. “You will sit beside me at the high table.”
“And Alicia,” Ritasia said, pointedly.
Alicia liked the fae’s determination when Ritasia was on her side.
He glanced at Alicia with condescension. “And your cousin.”
When they reached the high table clothed in a shimmering gold cloth, the king and queen were absent. Ritasia explained to Alicia they were away on holiday.
But then the shuffling of seats began.
Deveron insisted Alicia sit between him and his sister to ensure they could both watch her during the meal—owing to the fact she had collapsed in the great hall already.
Lorelei seemed more than a little perturbed as Alicia assumed the girl wanted to sequester Deveron as far away from her as she could.
When they settled down in their embroidered golden seats, the feast began.
Deveron immediately leaned over Alicia and spoke to Ritasia. “Be sure she only eats part of your food. And she can share mine.”
Lorelei would have Alicia poisoned? The viper. But Ritasia had said the fae liked dangerous games. And what if Alicia died at the meal?
Then she thought of her grand entrance to the great hall. Again her cheeks burned just thinking about falling on her butt. Here she thought she’d mastered a pretty good curtsey, until her knees melted into heated butter, and she collapsed in a non-too graceful manner.
Deveron grasped her hand and squeezed. “Do not eat any portion of your meal, nor sip from your goblet.”
He wouldn’t have to tell her twice.
She nodded.
He leaned over and whispered in her ear, “You are playing your fragile role very well, my faery princess.”
She poked him in the ribs and scowled at him. How could he mock her after she had thoroughly embarrassed herself in front of the entire fae court of Venicia?
He chuckled, then handed her his goblet.
Lorelei said, “She has her own.”
“Yes, but she prefers to drink from mine.”
Lorelei’s green eyes narrowed with vengeance. Alicia had no doubt whatsoever that the spiteful fae would speed up Alicia’s demise if she could manage it. Alicia also noticed that the steward watched her, too. Had he a hand in this? Most assuredly. Alicia was from a minor royal house, or at least pretending to be. Would it be presumed that no one would miss her horribly if she took a fatal bite from her meal?
Ritasia handed Alicia a wedge of cheese.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, or perhaps because of it, Alicia couldn’t help the fondness she felt for the dark fae sister and brother for attempting to keep her safe. They genuinely seemed to like her. Or was it just another deadly faery game?
Stir up the Venicians as neither Deveron nor Ritasia wished to wed their royal offspring? Use Alicia as the wedge? The human girl of no consequence?
She groaned inwardly with the notion.
“How are you feeling now?” Deveron asked her as he slipped his spoon underneath a stuffed mushroom, then leveled it at her lips.
She reached for the spoon, but he refused to give it to her. Her gaze shifted from the mushroom resting on the spoon to Deveron’s face and that roguish grin he so often wore in her presence.
How could she not find the dark fae so totally appealing? She had to face it. She was a genuine human sap when it came to his charms.
“Open up,” he said pointing the spoon at her sealed lips.
“I’m not a baby bird.”
He chuckled. “Come on, Alicia. Please me.”
She folded her arms. Please him? Who did he think he was? Okay, so he was a dark fae prince of one of the major kingdoms. Didn’t matter to her. She didn’t need to please him unless it was her idea. “You’re making me look foolish.”
“I am not. A fae who offers sustenance to another is being—”
Ritasia interrupted, “Chivalrous beyond reason.”
But the way she spoke, Alicia wondered if Ritasia hadn’t a different sentiment in mind. Her brows were raised as if she didn’t think her brother was being chivalrous, rather something else.
Alicia wished she knew more about fae culture.
“Go ahead, Alicia. It’ll irritate Lorelei all the more,” Ritasia whispered in her ear.
All right. That she could do. Particularly since the vamp might be trying to poison her.
Alicia took the mushroom and enjoyed the sautéed breading and cheese-covered shrimp stuffed into the mushroom cap.
He watched her enjoy the morsel, then smiled. “See now? That wasn’t so bad was it?”
She noticed then that Lorelei’s face had reddened to the same color as the brilliant roses in the garden.
Good. Was that Deveron’s plan? To stir up the witch who was trying to poison her? What if she wasn’t?
But then again, the dark fae would know better than she would.
Alicia grinned. “Can I have another?”
She couldn’t be sure, but she thought she heard Lorelei hiss a curse under her breath.
CHAPTER 9
Deveron felt remorse for what he was putting poor Alicia through. How could a human hope to understand the ways of the fae…the dark, dangerous, deadly ways they handled matters when they so chose to sway a situation in their favor?
He needed her to help ensure he’d never wed Lorelei. Though he hadn’t realized how much she’d turn the stakes. Especially since he’d only kept her with him initially to prevent her from being caught by his mother and her royal guard. No telling what the queen would decide to do with Alicia. He was bound and determined to protect her, just like he’d promised. Another dark fae quality—extreme loyalty despite the dangerous consequences.
Alicia was a natural at fae games and couldn’t have done a better job if she’d been born of the fae. But if Lorelei injured her, he’d never forgive himself.
When he’d fed Alicia the mushroom, he’d done it in fun—at least that’s what he’d told himself. Though he knew what the significance of his actions meant to the fae, he was certain Alicia didn’t. At first he was afraid Ritasia would try to stop him. But then she seemed to realize he was pushing the issue forward as forcefully as he could. Never would he consider marrying Lorelei. If he showed Alicia endearments that he would only share with the one he had chosen for his own, then Lorelei would come to realize, she’d lost him.
Of course, if Alicia had known what his action had meant, she might not have gone along with it. But then again when she realized how mad it had made Lorelei, she’d played the game with great enthusiasm…pointing at this food or that on his plate and smiling and laughing with gusto. He’d never enjoyed a female’s company so much, either human or fae. The only problem was that her previous state of being so incapacitated seemed to vanish with every bite.
Her clear green eyes shimmered with frivolity and her full pink lips shined with a glossy coating of peach wine—his peach wine. Her tongue swept over her lips absent-mindedly, and he wanted to taste her lips again.
He forced himself to drop that notion before he started a virtual war between his kingdom and the Venicians. It was one thing to take care of his cousin, another to seduce her at the table.
“You seem to be fe
eling better,” he whispered in her ear.
“I am. I’m afraid I’ve lost some of my fragility, however.”
He smiled. “You will have to regain some of it, but I’m glad you are feeling more yourself.”
His next major worry was the masked ball though. What had Lorelei intended for that? He was certain he would have to remove Alicia from the deadly fae game sooner than later. Fae had played these games for centuries. The human girl wouldn’t stand a chance. But he was still trying to figure out where to take her to ensure her security. One wrong move could mean imprisonment for her or worse.
“You stick close to either Ritasia or me for the entire ball,” he whispered to her.
“Do you think someone will try something?”
“I don’t know. But always stay alert.” Somehow between his sister and him, they would have to maintain Alicia’s well-being.
Was he being conceited to think he could keep her safer at his side than if he returned her home? No, he knew it would be only a matter of time before the Denkar learned where Alicia lived. If she’d been alone, he would never be able to save her.
If he’d been as evil as Alicia seemed to think the dark fae kind were, he wouldn’t have cared. But his people weren’t evil like that. Well, not all of his people. And certainly not his sister and him.
He took a deep breath as he watched Alicia sip some more of his wine.
He couldn’t fall for a fae-knower. He wouldn’t allow his thoughts to drift in that dangerous direction. Not that anyone would kill him for it. But Alicia would be in more danger than before.
***
After the meal, Lorelei managed to pull Deveron away for a game of archery, a favorite pastime of the nobility.
“Do you want to shoot, too?” Ritasia asked Alicia as they sauntered to the target practice, following Deveron, Lorelei, and her maids from some distance back.
Alicia shook her head.
“Oh, I should have asked first, do you know how to shoot?”
“Yes.”
Ritasia’s brows rose in question. “Well?”
“Yes, I’m good at it, but why would I want to?”
Ritasia smiled. “Because if you can shoot better than Lorelei, and she is a pretty good shot, it could vex her further.”
“Don’t you think she hates me enough already?”
“No,” both Ritasia and Alicia said at the same time.
They laughed and folded their arms while they watched first Lorelei shoot, then Deveron.
Deveron’s muscles flexed so beautifully as he concentrated on the target that Alicia couldn’t help but admire his form.
He shot 50 yards farther than Lorelei, which was to be expected being that he was a stronger male.
Lorelei grinned at him, then leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Alicia squelched the urge to slap her. Again, she chided herself for the insane surge of jealousy that erupted deep inside of her. She couldn’t, wouldn’t allow herself to grow soft where the dark fae was concerned. He is evil, she reminded herself. And beautiful.
She sighed deeply. So she could fantasize over him, pretend he was the cutest guy she’d met in a long time, that kissed her with the kind of passion only…only, jeez, only a dark fae could kiss her like.
She’d have to take second best. Only problem was a human might end up coming in a distant tenth place.
Ugh. Stop thinking about him, Alicia. He is not in your league. Not in your realm. He has taken you prisoner on the pretense he must protect you. And he’s evil! Maybe in a sweet kind of evil way.
She could protect herself, thank you very much.
“I would have you by my side protecting me from my enemy any day, Deveron.” Lorelei turned to Alicia and said, “Do you shoot?”
“A little. But you would find me poor competition.”
“Ritasia is poor competition,” Lorelei said with a malevolent gleam in her eye.
Deveron’s jaw tightened.
Alicia ground her teeth, furious that Lorelei would put Ritasia down so. “Then perhaps I would do better to be pitted against Ritasia.”
“All right. Since I have already gone once, you go against Ritasia first. If you are better than she, you can go against me.”
Alicia shook her head.
“Are you afraid to compete with me?” Lorelei tilted her chin up with the taunt.
Afraid of the viper? No!
Deveron seemed torn between wanting to see Alicia prove herself better than Lorelei, but not wanting to see her fail miserably and lose to the snooty princess.
It didn’t matter one way or another to Alicia. She’d do her best, and maybe, she could win. Or not. At least she’d show she wasn’t afraid of the competition.
“All right.” She’d won several competitions in archery when she was in Girl Scouts, but the fae bows were thinner, more curved and slightly twisted. She wasn’t sure if being human would make a difference, and she was afraid never having practiced on a fae bow would give her a decided disadvantage.
Ritasia went first, and as Lorelei had said, she did poorly. Alicia thought if she lived long enough, she might be able to give Ritasia some pointers at some other time.
Alicia patted Ritasia on the arm. “Good job. Maybe I can practice with you later.”
Ritasia’s face lighted up with impish delight.
Of course if Alicia did poorly…
Lorelei glared at her and folded her arms.
Alicia twisted the bow around in her hands. “I’ve never used a bow quite like this before.”
“Oh? I thought the Neferonians used the same bows as we do.”
“I’ve become quite fond of human bows,” Alicia said. “So I’m not sure how well I’ll do at this.”
“Have you never used a fae bow?” Deveron asked, his voice concerned.
Though she assumed he already knew this. But then maybe he said so to get her off the hook with Lorelei.
“No, I haven’t,” Alicia said.
“Then take a practice shot first,” Deveron said, and she was sure he was trying to rescue her.
Lorelei laughed with dark humor. “Take several. Take a week. We are not doing this for any kind of reward. So be bold.”
Alicia aimed the arrow, but the bow twisted in such a strange way, the missile dropped onto the ground only a few feet away.
Muttered chuckles from Venician onlookers resulted.
Her blood heated. She turned to Ritasia, whose wide eyes and parted lips gave Alicia the impression her poor attempt at archery horrified the dark fae princess. Alicia smiled at her, trying to reassure her it didn’t matter to the human how poorly she’d done. “Well, Ritasia, let me amend my offer. I can show you how to shoot well with a human bow.”
Ritasia nodded with only a smidgeon of a smile. Alicia feared Ritasia was still worried about the outcome of the game.
Alicia handed the bow to a servant, done forever with fae archery competitions.
Lorelei said, “No, you are to shoot against me now.”
“If I won against Ritasia I was to shoot against you. I didn’t get close.”
Lorelei’s lips turned into a vile grin. “Amuse me again then.”
“Very well. Anything to please you. Go ahead.” Not.
Lorelei motioned to the target. “After you, as you are my guest.”
She was giving Alicia no chance to rest her arms.
Alicia took her stance again, but this time she considered what she’d done wrong the first time. Maybe if she twisted the bow slightly to her right and tilted it up higher, she could compensate for the problem she had initially.
She’d have to practice for weeks to get the hang of the strange faery bow.
But with all eyes on her—as she noticed several more courtiers had gathered to watch the competition of the royals—she hadn’t any choice. Shoot the arrow and hope it fell farther than the last few feet at least.
She closed one eye and released the arrow.
CHAPTER 10
&nbs
p; Whispered murmurs filled the crowd as Alicia stared at the distance she’d sent the arrow…two feet farther than Deveron’s even. She hated to look at Deveron. Would he be upset with her? She had won several archery competitions. She couldn’t help that. And she had tried to decline playing the game.
Lorelei stared at her with such contempt Alicia figured she could have turned her to stone. She offered the bow to Lorelei.
Lorelei shook her head. “No, my arms are too weary to shoot again.”
Deveron rubbed his chin while he considered where her arrow had struck the farther target.
Ritasia looked mortified.
Well, that hadn’t gone well.
“Can we do something else?” Alicia asked, handing the bow to the servant again.
“You will shoot against me,” Deveron said, reclaiming the bow. He didn’t seem at all happy.
Alicia’s mouth dropped open as she stared at Deveron. Was he miffed at her for beating him? When she was a mere human? And even worse, a human female who had never used a fae bow? Heaven have mercy. What a crisis to his dark male fae heritage.
“It was a lucky shot,” Alicia said. “Probably couldn’t do it again in a million years.”
Lorelei’s mutinous expression hadn’t changed. Ritasia still seemed ill at ease.
What? If she bested Deveron again, would they hang her at high noon? Had she done some unforgivable deed?
She supposed she was never to best a male fae at archery. So should she hit short this time to give Deveron the chance to prove his superior male archery ability?
Or should she try her best to beat him again?
He pulled back the string and with everyone quiet as a black void in space, he released the arrow. It smacked the wooden stake target, splitting it in two.
Several clapped and expressed their congratulations.
A servant quickly placed another stake the same distance, but Alicia aimed at one several feet farther out. Competition was competition. She didn’t figure she’d have mastered the bow this quickly, but perhaps it was just that she knew so well how to apply her skills in archery and it didn’t matter the strange shape of bow.
Or not.