A Sprinkle of Stardust

Chapter 32 - Candlelight

Lyrani remembered the fear that had come with sneaking up to the royal apartments that day she went exploring. It had since turned into an excitement beating its wings against the inside of her rib cage.

She stepped onto the landing gracing the top of the palace like a crown. The guards bowed their heads and let her pass. That was a welcome change from the stunts Lyrani had pulled to sneak past them before. She should feel at ease, but she only felt like an imposter.

Don't be silly.

Nash had asked Lyrani to dinner for who she was. She may have been his assassin, but her plans had since changed even though she hadn't been able to contact Gazana since they lost connection that afternoon.

Lyrani had no reason to feel bad. There was a lot she couldn't tell Nash, but she wasn't planning on hurting him. Not anymore.

She rapped her knuckles against Nash's apartment's dark glass door.

"Come in!" His voice was like sunlight shining through raindrops.

Lyrani entered to find the dressing table cleared of alcohol decanters and the king lighting candles on it. They shone twice as bright in the mirror they stood in front of. The room was dark but for their light and that of the stars.

The cosy apartment's atmosphere was soft with the fragrance of scented wax and romance. It immersed Lyrani in a vaguely familiar mood.

It was over a year since she had been on a date. Work kept her busy, and she hadn't met anyone she was serious about since her ex-boyfriend.

Until now.

The candlelight darkened the faint shadow of Nash's beard. He had tied his hair at the nape of his neck but left a loose lock to border his face on one side. He wore a black velvet tunic. It brought to mind secrets whispered in the shadows. There were more than enough of those in Vlitavia Palace.

Looking at him, Lyrani felt underdressed.

Her knee-length dress was sewn from the large green leaves of a tropical tree in a distant land. The choppy layers of her hair escaped from her braid, and she let them. They had never submitted to her control, and they wouldn't now. Around Lyrani's neck was a diamond necklace. She wore a ring on her finger.

As pretty as both items of jewellery were, that wasn't why Lyrani had worn them. They were weapons in disguise, brought along in case this night would turn nasty.

She hoped that it wouldn't, but Rayn was unpredictable. Letting her guard down could cost Lyrani more than her life. It could cost her ECISI, Elvenland, and Nash.

Once the last candle was lit, the king turned to her.

"Lyrani." He smiled, and it wasn't the quick, shallow smile he reserved for nosy guests or tardy servants.

It was the smile of a happy man, not a king of pretences.

Lyrani thought back to their conversation in the sunlit clearing in the forest. Nash had said that the most important thing was to be happy. If Lyrani didn't succeed, he would never get that happiness. She might never see him or that smile ever again.

Her path was clearer than ever before.

"You look beautiful." Nash took Lyrani's hand and dropped a kiss on it.

The simple gesture took her breath away.

Lyrani had always considered dark clothing elegant but grim. On Nash, it was breathtaking. For a man whose power was light, he fitted well with the darkness.

Almost as well as he had fitted with Lyrani when he held her to him beneath the stars the previous day.

Gathering enough air to speak, Lyrani hung her cloak on the stand beside Nash's door. "You look...even more beautiful."