Summer of Frost (4 page)

My heart plummeted to the floor, and I
clenched my fists in annoyance. I jerked my head over to look at
Oren, but he was just as clueless as I was. He shrugged his
shoulders, continuing to stare daggers at Alston. “What do you mean
you’re part of my protection? I don’t remember telling anyone I
wanted you to be a part of it. In fact, I specifically said I
didn’t want you a part of it,” I snapped.

His slow growing smile looked triumphant.
“Yes, I know, but since Sarette is my cousin and I look out for
her, I put in a request to be able to protect her when she’s with
you. She was with me when I asked for it, and completely agrees
with me.” Gritting my teeth, I stiffened at the thought of my
friend betraying me. I was going to kill Sarette for it, too … or
at least kick her ass, whichever one came first. Alston continued,
“You have a target on your head, as I’m sure you know, and I’m not
going to let my cousin get caught in the crossfire without my
protection. Wherever she goes with you, I go.” Alston reached up to
touch my face, but I smacked it away as hard as I could, making my
hand sting with the contact.

He laughed. “I look forward to spending more
time with you.”

Oren advanced quickly, but Alston backed up
and held his hands up in surrender. “No harm, just a love tap. She
knows I like them,” he taunted, winking at my guardian before
smiling at me. Oren’s anger was palpable through our bond, but I
know he knew very well that I could take care of myself when it
came to an old lover.

“The next one won’t be just a tap, Alston.
I’m sure you remember how you weren’t smiling after the last time,”
I snapped back at him. His smile disappeared, and thankfully, he
squelched his next comment and left the training room before things
escalated further.

A couple of months ago, he tried one of his
many attempts at getting me back. However, all it did was infuriate
me, and I ended up giving him two black eyes and a broken nose.
Granted, he healed quickly after that, but at least I was able to
show him he couldn’t dominate me. I know what made it worse was
that we were in front of other warriors when I did it; they never
let him live it down.

“Is he going to be a problem,
ai
dulin
?” Oren asked.

Aggravated, I sighed. “When is he not a
problem?”

I began walking hastily to the door,
determination in each step as I made my way out of the palace. I
had someone to talk to and it wasn’t going to be pretty. My best
friend was going to pay for what she did to me.

“I don’t like where your thoughts are at. I
sense anger, and when you get angry, people get hurt. Where are we
going?” Oren demanded, keeping his pace alongside me.

“I have someone I need to talk to, and that
someone is going to give me answers, right now!” I exclaimed.

Oren’s chuckle could be heard loudly inside
my head.
“Let me guess … Sarette.”

Glaring at Oren, I knew my eyes were ablaze
with fire.
“You’re damn right.”

Sarette had a lot of explaining to do, and
she had better come up with a good reason for doing what she had
done. Instead of taking horses, Oren asked if I wouldn’t mind
walking, thinking it would cool off my nerves the longer it took.
Reluctantly, I agreed, knowing very well I tended to do things
irrationally when I was pissed.

It didn’t take long to arrive at Sarette’s
dwelling once we headed out of the palace and into the village. She
still lived with her family most days, but usually she was with me
in the palace. Her parents didn’t mind, and neither did mine. They
all figured we were safer there anyway, instead of gallivanting out
without the protection of the palace walls.

When I tried to knock on the door, Oren
stopped my hand from making contact for fear I would knock it down.
“Are you serious?” I hissed at him. “I’m not going to beat the door
down.”

Oren shrugged. “Better safe than sorry,
ai dulin.
”

Rolling my eyes, I stood back while Oren
knocked twice on the door and then came to wait by my side. Almost
immediately, Sarette answered the door with a genuine smile on her
face, but when she saw Oren’s expression her gaze quickly landed on
me.

“Sorcha, what’s wrong?” she asked,
concerned. Sarette pushed through the door and grabbed me by the
shoulders, searching my eyes for an answer.

Not wanting to waste time, I cut right to
it. “Why did you request Alston to be one of your protectors? You
do realize we have thousands of other warriors that would kill to
watch over you,” I replied heatedly. “How could you do this to me
knowing I try to avoid him as much as possible?”

Her shoulders sagged in defeat. “I know you
do, Sorcha, but he told me he’s trying to change. He came by here
earlier and went on and on about you, and I felt bad for him. He
really wants you back.”

“Bullshit! He may want me back, but I didn’t
see anywhere in his demeanor earlier that would tell me he’s
wanting to change. He still seems like the same Alston from before;
he’s arrogant, demanding, cruel, and manipulative. Do I need to go
on?”

Sarette flinched at my words, but I was
furious. Her voice was apologetic when she spoke. “I have to
believe in him, Sorcha. He’s my family, and the closest thing to a
brother I have. You of all people should know how important family
is. When he tells me he wants to change, I have to believe him.
That’s what family does.”

We stood there staring at each other,
waiting for the other to give in. Groaning, I pulled her to me and
wrapped my arms around her. I did understand the importance of
family, and I couldn’t help the fact that one of her closest
relatives was a dick. Sarette had never really liked my brother,
Brayden, so I guess I could see where she was coming from.

Sighing, I said, “I understand, Sarette, but
if he so much as tries to get under my skin I’m going to kick his
ass. He knows I can do it, too.”

She snickered and squeezed me tighter. “I
won’t let him bother you. I don’t think he’s gotten over the
embarrassment of you beating the shit out of him in front of
everyone.”

“No, I don’t believe he has, and neither has
anyone else who saw me take the mighty Alston down,” I cackled,
releasing Sarette from my arms. I may not care for Alston anymore,
but he was her family, and that was something that would never
change. Unfortunately, I was going to have to grin and bear it.

“Are we okay?” Sarette asked sheepishly. “I
don’t want you to be mad at me.”

I nodded. “Yes, of course we’re okay. Now
that I’ve got my anger out I’ll leave you be. Will you be by later?
I could teach you how to throw a spear, or maybe even get Aric to
show you some moves.” I waggled my eyebrows when I mentioned Aric’s
name. Sarette has had a crush on him for ages, and I’d been trying
to get them together.

Her eyes went wide and she licked her lips.
He happened to be one of the best warriors we had, and the one with
the most flattering reputation as well. He was never short on
women, but that didn’t seem to bother Sarette in the least. I’d be
lying if I said I hadn’t partaken in a little fun with the warrior
myself. He was the one who taught me how to kiss, and even to this
day Aric and I still joke about it.

“
Can you please keep those thoughts to
yourself? I see enough of you and Drake in your mind as it is.”
Oren had his arms crossed over his chest with a look of disgust on
his face.

Laughing, I turned to him.
“I’m sorry.
I’ll work on it.”

Sarette saw the exchange and narrowed her
eyes. “You better not be talking about me you two.”

Oren smiled and sarcastically said, “No, I
just got some images in my head of the infamous Aric. Personally, I
don’t see why you would waste your time with him, but by all means
go for it. I just thought you might not want to be known as one of
Aric’s conquests.”

I smacked his arm and gave him one of my
‘shut the hell up’ looks. Sarette didn’t seem to mind, and waved
Oren off dismissively. “I would be more than happy to get some
moves by Aric. I’ll be by later, so tell him to wait for me?”

“Of course!” I grinned, pinning Oren with a
steely glare.

Before Sarette was about to close the door,
her mouth fell open and she gasped. She lifted her hand and pointed
to something off in the distance. “What the hell?” she whispered in
awe.

Oren and I both turned around quickly, him
grabbing his sword while I grasped my spear thinking there was
danger coming, but what we saw in the direction of Sarette’s gaze
was definitely dangerous, although not to us. Frozen in place, I
stared at the majestic sight off in the distance, flying straight
toward our court.

“Is that what I think it is?” Oren
asked.

My smile grew wider and I nodded. “I do
believe so.”

I watched in awe as Drake flew over my court
in dragon form. It was amazing, yet terrifying. He was huge, and I
found it fascinating how someone my size could change their body to
be something of twice the magnitude of an elephant. There were no
other creatures in our land with those massive proportions. His
reddish and gold dragon skin contrasted greatly with the stark
white background of the Winter Court, making him stand out like the
magnificent creature he was. It was interesting because his skin
was the same color as his hair when he was in his normal form, all
red with tints of gold like the setting sun in the Summer Court.
Maybe one day I’d be able to see that setting sun.

Drake had told me numerous times in our
dreams how he flies with Ariella, and how each time he secretly
wished she would choose to fly over the Winter Court. It looked
like he finally got his wish. I knew he saw me, because even from
high up in the sky I could tell his slit-like pupils were
transfixed on me, just like mine were transfixed on him. He circled
above a few times before guiding his wings in the direction back to
his court. Ariella waved at us from above, and I waved back,
secretly jealous that it wasn’t me riding up there. I must admit,
it had to be fun to be able to fly.

After the spectacle was over, Oren and I
headed back to the palace where we separated ways so I could relax
for the evening. Night couldn’t come soon enough. When it did, I
nestled deep within the confines of my bed, falling into a much
needed and anticipated sleep, bringing Drake along with me.