Flames of Auriel (A Caeles Adventure Book 1) (23 page)

“Yes?”

“Teach me to fight.”

Garrett was taken aback by the forcefulness in her voice. He had not expected such a request from the young girl, let alone for it to demand him in such away. He crossed his arms over his chest as he surveyed the girl and smiled.

“And why would I do that?”

His grin widened when Rebekah bit her lip. She focused on her feet and fiddled with her hands. He could not help the small part of him that was overjoyed that he could make such a girl nervous before him. After his recent rejection it was nice to know he still had some kind of effect on the fairer sex.

Rebekah pulled her braid over her shoulder and played with the tie. “Well…um…you see, I’m really good with knives.”

She picked one up off the table leftover from dinner and twirled it in her fingers for a few moments. Garret jumped a little when she slammed the knife back on the table and gave him a dark look. Rebekah splayed her hands out to him, her speech jumbled together.

“Look, Zoe said that all women should be able to defend themselves and I know how to use knives, but what if someone comes at me with a sword? My little knife won’t do me any good and when Zoe gets her throne back, she’s going to get married to the prince and ride into the sunset and not have any time for me.” She took a deep breath in and looked to him. “So that leaves you.”

Garrett rubbed his jaw and took in the girl before him. Yes, she had feminine features that would someday turn her into a beautiful woman, but she also had the makings of a warrior. Rebekah’s body was already hard from the rough life of a gypsy and the exercise of throwing knives kept her arms nice and strong. Overall, she would not be hard to train and he could not think of any reason not to do it.

He agreed that once Zoe got her kingdom back she would be busy with being queen and a wife and he would be without a job. He could always go back to being his brother’s squire, to take his place as a knight when he took over for their father as Duke, though no one said he had to return right away.

Rebekah’s face turned bright pink when Garrett circled her form. She had to hold back a gasp when he grasped her bicep and then released it with a satisfied grunt. She looked up at him through lowered lashes.

“Well?”

Rebekah’s face fell when he turned his back to her without answering. He leaned back over the map, seemingly ending their conversation. She let out a growl of frustration and turned to stomp away when his voice stopped her.

“I am assuming you will be accompanying us back to Aurelius, yes?”

She turned back around, a cautious smile grew on her lips. “Yes?”

Garrett kept his eyes focused on the map. He did not notice the excitement growing in the lass behind him. “Then we will start after Zoe’s coronation.” He threw his hands up and steadied himself when she launched herself at him with a squeal. With a small laugh, he placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her away from him.

“Alright, alright. You might not be so happy after I’m done with you.” He wagged a finger at her. “It will be hard and you will probably cry. Can you handle that?”

Rebekah nodded her head, still not believing he had said yes.

With a satisfied nod, Garrett turned back to the map to hide the small smile on his face. “Good. Then go say your goodbyes. You probably won’t be back for a while.”

Rebekah suppressed another squeal and hurried to find her uncle and brother. They were not going to believe this! She gave Zoe a huge smile as she passed her and Asher approaching where Garrett was.

Zoe quirked a brow at her old friend and gestured to the girl practically skipping her way through the camp. “What was that all about?”

Garrett looked to his sovereign, drew a hand through his hair and chuckled. “It would seem I have a new apprentice.”

Zoe pursed her lips. “Garrett, be careful. She is quite a bit younger than you and a female at that.”

“Auriel help me, Zo. I’m not going to ravish her. I’m just going teach her how to fight.”

She glanced to Asher for help, who only shrugged in response. She gave an unhappy sigh. This could not be a good thing.

“Please just be cautious. Rebekah is my friend too. I would hate to see either of you get hurt, even if it is unintentional.”

The former bodyguard glared down at the table. “I don’t see how what I do is any of your business.”

He tossed a scowl toward the prince, who only crossed his arms, his usual arrogant smile on his face. Garrett could not stand that man. He did not know how she put up with him.

“Don’t you have other things to worry about?”

Zoe gaze hardened and then took Asher’s hand in hers with a squeeze. She wondered if Garrett would ever forgive her for choosing Asher over him. She guessed only time would tell. There were other things more important than her love life.

“You’re right. What’s the plan for getting back my throne?”

Garrett’s face brightened in the change of topic and turned to look at the royals before him. A wicked grin formed on his lips as he sized up the prince. He just knew his highness was not going to like his plan one bit.

“We are going to need to borrow some clothes.”

Rebekah and Zoe giggled at the growls coming from their prop cart. Asher had been in there for half an hour now trying to get into the clothes they had borrowed from Randolph. From all the noise coming from inside, he was not having much luck.

Zoe pretended to cough when Asher cracked open the door to peek his head out. She tried to force back the grin that threatened to make its way onto her face when she saw the panicked look in his eyes, but had no luck. He was just too adorable.

“Would you stop laughing and help me?”

With a quick wink to Rebekah, Zoe entered the cramped cart and closed the door behind her. She could not believe he was having this much trouble putting on a simple costume. The princess tried to keep a straight face as she turned to look at her prince’s dilemma.

“What’s the hold…up?”

Zoe’s mouth went dry at the view before her. The clothing they had acquired from Randolph were the most flamboyant ones he owned. It started with purple tights covered by billowing pants and a sheer sleeveless top adorned with a coin-covered vest. It was then topped off with a poufy feather-adorned hat and a pair of deep blue pointed shoes. At the current moment, Asher was only clothed in the tights and sheer top, which were easily two sizes too small and caused every part of him to stand out proudly.

Asher smirked at Zoe’s sudden loss for words. He started to like this outfit more and more. He gestured to his outfit and her eyes snapped up to his.

“Well?”

She gulped as she noticed the way the tights clung to the bulge between his legs. Zoe cleared her throat and pulled her lingering gaze away from his exposed form. She picked up the pants to the outfit and handed them to him.

“Well what? You have to put on the rest of the clothes for it to look right.”

“How do you expect me to do that?”

He placed his hand on hers to take the pants from her and he slid his fingers along her skin suggestively. The friction of his skin as it danced across hers caused her to gasp. Asher gripped her hands in his and pulled her toward him.

“These are so tight I could burst at any moment.” He leaned his mouth down to her ear. “Maybe you could help me?”

Unable to draw her eyes away from him, Zoe let herself being dragged into his arms. She let her hands land on the muscles in his chest and marveled at the strength of it. She whispered, partly to herself, her voice coming out raspy.

“I suppose I can….” She pushed back against him coming to her senses. “…um…help that is.” She grabbed the pants from his hands and held them out for him to step into. “If you would just –”

Startled by his sudden growl, she dropped the pants and looked up just in time for him to jerk her back against his body. He wrapped his hand with her braid and leaned her head back to look at him. Her mouth went dry when she saw the heat that poured out of his eyes.

“It’s been a week since you have let me touch you. I can’t take your teasing anymore.”

Zoe’s eyes filled with amusement. “Teasing? When have I ever teased you?”

One hand still holding her hair, his other roamed over her sides. “You’ve been driving me mad with all your stretching this way and that. It doesn’t help that your pants are almost as tight as mine.”

The princess giggled, “I apologize. Any teasing was done unknowingly on my part I assure you. But…” She moved her hands around his back to get closer to him. “…I have been keeping my distance for the sake of our company. We don’t exactly have the luxury of privacy.”

Asher begrudgingly agreed; their privacy had been scarce of late. It was hard to find time alone with Garrett and Rebekah in tow. Their plan had been for Garret to sneak them into the Aurelian border under the guise that they were traveling gypsies coming to entertain the new king. Since Zoe and Rebekah were already gypsies in their own right, they only had to convince the guard that he was one of them too. Unfortunately, that meant that he had to put on some ridiculous outfit so the guard would not recognize him as the Crown Prince of Aldabel.

The prince was jerked out of his thoughts as Zoe pressed her lips to his. Asher tried to deepen it but she just pulled away from him and smiled. He arched a brow at her mischievous grin on her face.

“What was that for?”

His gaze was drawn to her mouth as she licked her lips and gave him a heated look, “We are alone now, aren’t we?”

At her words, Asher wasted no time shifting them into a more desirable position. He knelt down in the cart and pulled Zoe down to straddle his lap. For once he was thankful for the thin tights he wore and pressed up to rub himself against her. Zoe groaned at the movement and used her body as leverage to rock against him. The friction caused him to groan against her.

When they found a pleasurable rhythm they moved together as one, hands and mouths moved in pace with their lower halves. Zoe drew her mouth away from his and gasped for air as they both started grasping for their release. A loud bang at the door knocked them out of their race, each falling just short of reaching it.

“Are you done in there? We got to get moving.”

Zoe groaned at the sound of her former bodyguard’s voice. He had the worst timing. When it seemed like Garrett had left, she began moving again, hoping to diminish the throbbing ache inside of her. She groaned as Asher gripped the back of her hips and shoved her more forcefully against him. He too seemed eager to finish what they started.

Another bang on the door and the door knob jiggled. The royals released a growl in protest. Zoe pulled away from Asher’s lap. She grumbled under her breath before she picked up the discarded pants.

Asher adjusted himself, his body still throbbing for release. He barely had time to get his bearing when he was assaulted by the offending piece of clothing thrown at him by his betrothed. Asher grabbed her from behind and trapped her arms to her sides.

“That was hardly necessary.”

Still pouting from being interrupted, Zoe wiggled to get loose of him. “Garrett’s right, we don’t have time for this. We have to get moving. The guards will be changing shifts soon and we have to be there when one of ours is manning the gate.”

He wrapped one hand securely around her arms and let the other one travel down between her legs, and stroked her. Zoe moaned at his teasing touch and leaned back into his embrace. His words breathed out against her ear.

“I don’t think you really want to stop.”

She leaned her head back to put her lips to his ears. Her own voice came out breathy. “That’s beside the point.” She clenched her legs closed and trapped his hand there.

“We’ll have plenty of time for this later. We can’t afford to be acting like cats in heat when there is a kingdom at stake.”

He sighed and released her to take a step back. “I don’t think I will ever understand you. You start this whole thing and then push me away like I’m the villain.”

Asher jerked the atrocious pants up his legs and tied them fiercely. He glared at Zoe as he slipped his arms into the jangly vest. He shoved the final piece of his costume, the poufy hat, onto his head and sighed.

“Is it ever going to be easy between us?”

Zoe grabbed a piece of charcoal from a box in the cart and motioned for him to kneel down. “I highly doubt it but if it makes you feel better I could pretend you are right from time to time.” She smirked down at him as she applied the dark coloring to his eyes. “Done.”             

Asher opened his eyes to see her smiling face inches from his. “You really are something else. How could it have taken me this long to figure it out?”

“Just slow I guess.”

She tossed the charcoal back into the box and looked at her masterpiece. She would never get this sight of him out of her head. She shook her head and headed for the door. Zoe placed a hand on the knob before she looked back at the prince with a grin.

“Don’t worry, your vivacity in the bedroom more than makes up for what you are lacking elsewhere.”

Asher growled at her mocking tone and chased her laughing form out of the cart. They both halted when they came face to face with their companions, each with a different expression. Asher smirked at the scowl that marred Garrett’s face, happy to have upset the reason for their previous interruption.

Zoe on the other hand felt bad for her younger companion. Based on the bright blush that covered her face, she had no doubt he had heard their activities. She tried not to giggle as the girl attempted to keep her eyes on the ground. Her blush only intensified when Zoe finally caught her eye.

“If you two are quite finished wasting our time, we have gotten word that the guard has changed and we need to get a move on before they switch back.” Garrett swung his leg up over his horse and looked down on the group. “I’m going to scout ahead. Attach the cart to the horse and follow after. I’ll signal you when it’s time.”

Zoe watched her friend gallop toward the entrance, worry etched on her brow. She did not like splitting up, but she knew that Garrett was their one chance at sneaking into Aurelius undetected. Zoe turned toward the cart and watched as Rebekah and Asher settled into their seats before the reigns, their expressions almost identical to hers.

Longing filled her chest as she climbed up next to her prince. She was finally going home. The dull ache in her heart flared to life at the thought of going home without Alice or her father. Being home would not be the same without them but she knew her father would want her to do what was right for the kingdom and for her. She was going to make her uncle pay and Auriel help anyone who stood in her way.

***

The ride to the gates of Aurelius had been a silent one, each of them tense for the upcoming events. Their cart was brought to a halt before the guards waiting at the gates. Garrett signaled to them to stay put as he chatted with one of the guards. After a few minutes, they watched as the guard looked to their cart then nodded at Garrett, who then waved them forward.

Asher kept his head down as they came up beside the guards. He could feel their curious eyes on their unusual clothing. The charcoal Zoe had placed around his eyes did little to draw attention from his face. He looked quite out of place next to the two females beside him, who played the part of a gypsy so well. He did not think for a second that they would be fooled by his disguise, no matter how outrageous it was.

The prince and his companions climbed down from the cart at the guard’s beckoning and stood off to the side. The guards surrounded their cart and started to poke at it, searching for Aurelius only knows what. Asher took a place against one of the gate’s stone walls and watched the men through half-closed eyes. It was important that he tried to keep out of sight.

Asher noticed that Zoe on the other hand had no problem acting the part she had been playing the last few months. He narrowed his eyes as she sauntered up to one of the guards who could not keep his eyes off of her. Her hand stroked his metal-clad arm. What was she playing at?

“Well, look what I’ve found. If I had known the men in Aurelius were so handsome, I would have come earlier.”

The husky heat of her voice caused the brunette guard to blush. Asher grit his teeth when her eyes flicked over to him as she leaned into the guard. She slid her hand along the sheath of the guard’s sword in a most provocative way.

“I love a man who knows how to handle a sword.”

“Josephine, that’s enough.” Asher snapped, his anger barely contained. He growled low in his chest when Zoe just waved him off and placed a hand on the now cautious guard’s chest. She was not making it easy for him to stay unnoticed.

“Don’t mind my brother. He’s just jealous that I have such pleasurable company to entertain me.” She smirked when the guard got over his initial shyness and slid an arm around her waist. The princess could literally feel the daggers of Asher’s gaze penetrating her back and could not help but torture him a little further. She placed her lips against the guard’s ear and whispered too low for Asher to hear.

“Thanks, Max, for playing along. I promise I won’t let him kill you for this.” She glanced at Asher through lowered lashes and her smirk turned into a grin at the outrage on his face. She was so going to pay for this later.

“Now pretend to be embarrassed by what I said and hurry away quickly.”

“That won’t be hard.” The guard grunted.

He concerned glance toward the prince once more before he hurried toward the entrance to the gate. He almost pitied the prince for having to marry their princess. She was adored by all the men of Aurelius, and if she had not already been betrothed to the prince, she would have had a line of suitors the length of Caeles. Though, at this moment, the guard did not want to be anywhere near the furious prince’s line of fire.

Zoe let her mouth form into a pout and shrugged her shoulders at Garrett. Her friend shook his head and grinned at her display. She walked back toward where the guards were finishing up their search and winked at Asher as she passed by. Oh, was he mad.

“Are we almost done here?”

Zoe placed a hand on her hip and leaned her weight back on it. The men looked toward her as each of them stopped what they were doing to admire her exposed figure. She smirked as the men blushed at her heated gaze and started to sputter out different answers in attempts to please her.