Out of the Mountain (41 page)

“I am sorry if this is disturbing to you, but the Fae are very disconnected from the concept of right and wrong. I am telling you this because they can be very misleading. You must remember that none can be trusted, not completely. No matter how friendly they may seem, in the end they would bet your life on a single coin toss without batting an eye.” His eyes were pleading with me to understand. I couldn’t imagine anyone being so cruel, but the Fae weren’t like normal people. I would have to remember that.

“So Kieran is traveling into the realm of the Fae to retrieve something they hid there?”

“Yes, and it must be something of great importance. Time moves differently in the realm of the Fae. You must trade words with Ambrosine to enter, and if you are not careful, she could make a day there pass as ten years passed here.”

“Why would she want to do that?”

“For entertainment.”

“So basically Ambrosine is a bitch,” I growled, and he laughed.

“Yes, that is the gist of it anyway.” He grinned, and I could feel his spirit lifting.

“So is that all you wanted to tell me?” I asked, feeling his uncertainty.

“There is more, but it is of a more personal nature. It may help you to better understand me.”

“Spill it.” I smiled, happy to finally get some answers. He took a long and deep breath before his eyes met mine and held them in a steady gaze.

“Ambrosine took me as a child,” he mumbled, and my heart dropped into my stomach.

“What? How? When?” I blurted out in confusion.

“The night I found you wandering in the woods as a toddler . . . that was the night I escaped into the forest. I had been wandering for a while when I heard a noise and saw you. I thought I was hallucinating, but then I heard the shouting and assumed you had wandered off. When I met the search party, I knew you must have been important. I tried to leave, but they insisted I come along. You know what happened from there.”

“She took you from your family? How much time passed before you escaped?” I asked quietly, almost afraid of the answer.

“About a century,” he said it so simply, I would have thought he was joking if I wouldn’t have felt the dread filter from him.

“You spent a century as the queen of the Fae’s captive and still left as a child?” I couldn’t grasp the idea.

“She was very fond of me. She wanted to keep me with her always, so she suspended my ability to age. I was a child and not a child at all. My time passed the same as here, but I did not age during it.” He had spent so many years away from his family, forced to do who knows what, only to escape to find everything he knew was gone.

“Well, at least that explains why you are so freakishly talented at everything you do,” I joked, and I felt hope spread through him.

“You thought that was going to scare me off?” I snorted and he laughed.

“Some might not like the idea of being with someone more than a century older than they are.”

“What’s ten or a hundred years between lovers anyway?”

“Lovers?” He raised his eyebrows, and I blushed.

“You know what I meant.”

“Do you love me, Vinnie?” he asked, and I paled, panic spreading thorough me.

“You can’t just ask me something like that!”

“Why not?”

“Weren’t you the one who told me love was fickle and meaningless?” I growled, quickly standing and conjuring my clothes back into place. He stood, quickly doing the same. Confusion spread on his face.

“Is that what has upset you so?”

“No, I’m upset because you asked me if I loved you. If I wanted to say it, I would,” I lied, embarrassed. I knew that I loved him; I was just afraid that he didn’t feel the same way.

“I meant what I said to you on that day, but now I know better. The reason I loved none before was because I was incapable. The feelings I have for you transcend anything else I have ever known. My life in the Fae realm was torture. I began to grow as cold and emotionless as they were. It altered me in so many ways, Vinnie, but with you I can feel again. Every emotion you feel comes through raw and strong, restoring all that I had lost. It is as if my life has been started anew.”

“How do you know that what you are feeling for me isn’t actually just my own feelings for you pushing their way into your mind? You shouldn’t have to ask someone if they love you, Rowan.”

“I asked if you loved me so that I could gage your reaction and how you felt against what I was feeling. The overwhelming need to be near you, to know your thoughts and dreams. To listen to you talk about anything or nothing at all. To see you smile or blush and know I was the cause. There are so many things I could say, but most of them equate with the wanting of you, all of you . . . good and bad. I want to be there for you every moment that you will allow it.” He gasped out, desperately meeting my eyes. My heart burst. He was in love with me. I could feel it in my bones.

I pulled him quickly to me and our lips crashed into each other. He returned my kiss eagerly until the onslaught of his emotions hit me, and I froze, taking it all in. He was showing me how he felt. The raw emotion flooded me as tears sprang to my eyes.

“I love you, Vinnie,” he whispered, and my eyes closed with the pleasure the words brought. He wiped a tear as it fell, and I smiled at him.

“I love you so much.” I stumbled over the words and pulled him into a tight hug, basking in the glow of his joy. It was radiating from him, intoxicating and bright, mingling with my own.

“I think I’ve been in love with you since the moment our eyes met at the foot of that mountain.”

“Love at second sight?” I joked, and he laughed.

“I loved you at first sight, but in a very different way,” he seemed to admit to himself as much as me.

I kissed him slow and steady. Enjoying every moment until it was time to head back for dinner. I couldn’t hide my smile as he walked me to my seat, still holding my hand in his, and planted a quick kiss on my mouth before leaving me next to Farran. He rolled his eyes at us, but I saw the grin as he turned away.

“Well, that was quick. Good for you, dear,” Mauve said from next to me, and my smile dropped at her accusatory tone.

“Thanks?” I think.

“I assume he will be your date to the ball, then?”

“Yes, and I was wondering if I could ask you a favor . . .”

“Yes?” she replied, eyes narrowing.

“Well, you see, my friends all have the night of the ball off, and I was just wondering if there would be any way that I could get some invites for them. It would mean a lot to have them with me.”

“I don’t know if that will be possible . . .”

“Oh, please, Mauve, no one will even notice them.” Please, please, please.

“Oh, all right. Dahlia, take Vivienne to retrieve some invites after dinner.” She huffed, and Dahlia nodded. I hadn’t spoken to Dahlia in quite some time. I had assumed that she was still playing her part, but what if it was more than that? She made eye contact with me but didn’t share the small smile that was usual for her. Instead, she looked away as if she hadn’t even noticed me. I looked at Mauve, who was now having a hushed conversation with Quillion and focused back on Dahlia intently. I could see darkness surrounding her; a thick cord of it swept toward Mauve and connected to her. I followed another cord that linked her to Quillion and reached my hand out to touch it. It recoiled from me.

“What are you doing?” Dahlia asked sharply, and everyone’s eyes turned to me, pulling my focus away. The cords disappeared.

“My arm fell asleep,” I lied as I stretched it out and pulled it in over and over, feigning discomfort. I received a few uninterested looks before everyone turned back to their conversations. Farran met my eyes questioningly, and I quickly busied myself with eating dinner.

***

Dahlia led me into Council HQ and asked how many invites I needed. She didn’t even blink when I asked for fifteen. I figured that should cover everyone who wouldn’t have already been invited. She handed me the invites and began to walk away without a word. I considered maybe releasing her from Narissa’s hold again but was afraid of drawing suspicion. Dahlia would have to wait. I tucked the invites under my arm and offered my hand to Rowan as we left the room.

“That was easier than I had imagined.”

“Yeah, I thought I would have to beg a little more.”

“She probably hopes to turn them against you.”

“Well, isn’t that just a nice thought,” I grumbled, and he laughed.

“You are such a delight.”

“Seriously? A delight?” I mocked him, and he frowned.

“Not anymore.”

“Hey now, didn’t you say you loved the good and the bad in me?”

“I do recall saying something of that sort.”

“I knew you were just trying to get into my bed.”

“The night is young,” he joked, but my steps faltered.

“I can never tell if you are joking at first.”

“Good.” He chuckled and we made our way to Guard HQ.

***

“Here you go,” I said, slapping the invites down on the table after checking to see if Silas was in the building.

“Awesome!” Malachi said, grabbing his, and the others followed suit.

“Yeah, but what are we going to wear?” complained Peyton, and I saw panicked looks cross every female face. I hadn’t even thought of that part.

“Farran?” I pleaded, and he nodded, looking everyone over before disappearing.

“Well, there you go. He will take care of it. You’ll have dresses by tomorrow, I’m sure.”

“Thanks, Vivi, you’re a lifesaver.” Briony hugged me, and a few of the others did as well.

“Don’t thank me. Thank Farran!”

The girls began chatting excitedly about the ball. I noticed Malachi was finally by himself, so I made my way over to him and conjured the book from my room.

“I finished it!” I whispered as I waved it in front of him.

“Well, stop waving it around and tell me . . . who got the girl?” he asked excitedly, grabbing the book from my hands.

“I really think you should read it for yourself.”

“Are you kidding? I don’t have time to read a book! We aren’t all princesses who sit around with nothing better to do all day!” he joked, and I grabbed the book back from his hands.

“Reading is a commitment. You find the time to do it,” I said, and he laughed.

“Your relationship with these fictional characters is endearing.”

“Oh, shut up! You know you are dying to know what happened,” I growled. He grabbed the book from my hand and flipped to the back.

“What are you doing?” I gasped. He was committing the worst offense to a book lover right in front of my eyes.

“Reading,” he replied, and I smacked the book out of his hand.

“Oh no, you don’t! You don’t get to skip all the important parts and have the satisfaction of reading the conclusion!”

“Well, why not? Instant gratification is the best kind.”

“Yeah, well, the prince makes the girl an offer she can’t refuse, and they go on a journey across the sea to save her mother. The pirate follows, and when a storm at sea sinks their ship, he saves them all, gets the girl, and bargains for the mother’s life with a sea witch. He will never be able to sail the sea again. The prince sees the sacrifice the pirate is willing to make and in one last ditch effort to one-up him, he takes the bargain instead. He is left stranded on the other side of the ocean from his kingdom, and they sail away and leave him there alone,” I blurted out in a rush, spoiling it all for him in quite the satisfying revenge. His mouth fell open.

“You’re kidding!”

“How’s that instant gratification?” I asked, smug.

“I don’t believe you. Give me that book!” he cried, and I laughed. He would at least skim every part of that book to see if it was true now, I was certain.

Back in my room, Rowan was drawing me another bath. I couldn’t help but stare at the glorious view of his toned backside as he bent to adjust the water. I was more than disappointed when he left the room without speaking to me. I sighed, stripping off my clothes, and quickly sank into the bathtub to mope. The hot water immediately began to relax my sore muscles. I clipped my hair up so that I could keep the ends from getting wet and dumped so much of the milk bath Rowan had given me into the tub that it turned an opaque color.

The tub was full and I reached to turn the water off with my foot when I noticed that he had reappeared in the doorway. I slid instinctively lower into the water.

“Rowan,” I scolded him as I caught him looking me over. How long had he been standing there? He shrugged, unashamed, entering the room and pulling himself up to sit on the counter. A sketch pad appeared on his lap, and I raised my eyebrows.

“I would very much like to draw you.”

“Like this?” A blush crept up my throat, and he grinned.

“Well, with a few adjustments . . . would you mind very much sitting up out of the water, the way you were before you noticed me watching you?” He smiled unapologetically, and I complied, resting my head against the back of the tub. The top of my knees and breasts were exposed, everything else was hidden in the murky water.

“Like this?”

“Yes, like that. Now relax. Imagine that I am not even here.”

“Like that is even a possibility,” I whined.

“Just close your eyes and relax, Vinnie.”

It took me a few minutes, but I was finally able to slow my heartbeat enough to relax. I could hear the scraping of his pencil on paper, and the sound of it lulled me into an almost meditative state. I secretly loved the fact that he had wanted to be near me, even if he used the excuse of drawing me to justify it to himself. I felt my hair start to slip from the clip that was holding it, and I reached a hand up to fix it before it fell.

“Hold that.” His voice rumbled deep, sending shivers down my spine. I met his intense gaze before I sank deeper into the water, feeling embarrassed again. He frowned. I sat up in the water and wrapped my arms around my legs. I rested my head atop them and he flipped to a new page and began drawing. Less self-conscious in this position, I began to relax.

“What was it like, living in the Fae realm?”

“It is the most beautiful place I have ever seen—I will not lie. Hills of rolling green, rivers and lakes as clear as crystal. Fruit grows wild and abundant everywhere you look. There are stories that say never to eat or drink with the Fae, that the food is a trap . . . but that is only partially true. The food of the Fae realm on its own is magnificent, unlike any you have ever tasted. The problem lies within the poison fruit that grows directly alongside the completely edible. I once heard that for every harmless fruit there were three poison. It’s almost impossible to tell the difference without the help of the Fae, and even then they might trick you for the sport of it.”