Shadows & Lace (Spellbound Prequel)

Chapter 16: The Guest

Aurelian sat by the crackling fire in a clearing where the residents of Nowhere liked to gather as darkness descended. He was silently cursing his own foolishness, as he was watching the play of light and shadows over Braithe's masked face. Kissing her had been a mistake. An enjoyable mistake, but a mistake nonetheless, since now all he could think of was doing so again.

She had remained in Nowhere several nights during the past week, and he'd been the perfect gentleman, not even attempting to kiss her again. As much as he may want to claim that he was just that honourable, it wasn't strictly true. He was not above an affair with an unmarried woman. But he had never been their first, and they certainly had not been princesses expected to be virginal on their wedding night.

Taking a swig from his drink, he tried to stop staring at her where she was chatting with the tall Jowan. People might get the wrong idea. Well, he supposed technically they would get the right idea. He was definitely pining over the vigilante. It wasn't very dignified.

Not touching her or kissing her had been difficult. Especially after their kiss in the stream. The mere memory made him want to groan in frustration. Knowing that she was equally attracted to him definitely didn't help his restraint, but it would be pure torture to do anything more at this point. They had no future together. He didn't even want to consider the political ramifications of stealing away a princess against her parents' wishes.

There were few things in life he wanted as much as this extraordinary woman. And yet she was the one thing he could never have.

Suddenly there was a shocked murmur and a shuffle of bodies as men and women got to their feet, looking at each other in consternation. Aurelian felt a prickle of unease at the base of his neck as he caught sight of three shapes coming towards them from the wall.

"Is that..." a woman was whispering. "Is that Prince Baudwin?"

"I don't know," a man replied. "It certainly looks like him."

"But what is he doing here?"

Aurelian watched as Braithe stood up and rolled her shoulders. Judging from the uneven gait aided by a cane, it was indeed Prince Baudwin. A moment later the three people reached the light of the fire, the prince's grim face lit by the crackling flames. Slightly behind him stood the pretty, blonde lady-in-waiting Lyssa, fretfully wringing her hands, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen. The third member of their group was a man who had stood guard at the passage to Nowhere.

"I need to speak with you," Prince Baudwin said in clipped tones to his sister, then looked over to Aurelian who quickly stood up. "And you."

"This way," Braithe said stiffly, motioning for them to follow her down the slope towards her hut.

Aurelian could hear the apprehensive whispers and questions behind them as their small group walked away. If Prince Baudwin had made the journey to Nowhere, it had to be serious. He hadn't even bothered to disguise himself.

As they entered the simple hut, Braithe hung a lit oil lamp she'd brought on the hook in the ceiling before taking off her hood and face-cloth. Giving Aurelian a wide-eyed, worried look that made him want to embrace her, she scratched at her chest.

"What's wrong?" she asked as the last of them filed into the compact space. They all fit, but the hut definitely felt crowded.

"They know." Prince Baudwin leaned heavily on his cane, suddenly looking exhausted.

Braithe took a nearly imperceptible step backwards. "What do they know?"

"Everything," her brother bit off. "Mother came to see you in your chambers tonight, and you weren't there."