The Reluctant King (The Star-Crossed Series) (39 page)

              I thought carefully about Sylvia’s words and wondered if there really was room to hope. “I guess, never.” I answered her question, knowing without a doubt that I never had walked away from a fight in my life. And what better thing to fight for than Amelia?

              “So why on earth would you walk away from someone you love?” Sylvia leveled her gaze with mine and I gulped. She was right.

              In fact, in this moment I couldn’t remember why I ever let Amelia walk away from me to begin with.

              “Thanks, Syl,” I met her gaze, confidently this time. She blushed and then waved me away, signaling the waiter for our check.

              Amelia fell in love with me once for fighting for our people. My only hope was that she would have the same reaction while I fought for her heart.

Chapter Thirty-Five

              A gasp, aggressive hands and a hard yank greeted me when I got back to Sylvia’s house. Eden dragged me into the kitchen and shoved me against the kitchen counter. What the hell?

              “Let me see it!” she squeaked in a not so hushed tone.

              “You little eaves-dropper!” I accused but I couldn’t hold back my smile.

              “Shut up and let me see it!” she danced around in front of me, hopping back and forth on her feet and wiggling her greedy little fingers.

              I sighed a long-suffering sigh but pulled the velvet box from my pocket. I held it out to her as if it was the most boring possession ever, but had to chuckle at the way her black eyes lit up like sparkling jewels at the sight of it.

              She took it carefully out of my hands and opened it excruciatingly slow. I suffered through her theatrics and when she gasped another sharp inhale of breath it was worth it. Immediately she turned into a hysterical mess, tears streaming down her face, her nose running uncontrollably.

              “Oh good grief, E, it’s not like I’m proposing to
you
,” I whispered, pulling her against my chest.

              “But it’s so beautiful,” she whispered in a reverent tone. “And it’s perfect for her.” A sob hitched in her chest and she sniffled against me.

              I sighed again, but this one was infinitely more patient. “We don’t even know if she’s going to say yes,” I mumbled.

              “She’ll say yes,” Kiran answered from the doorway. I turned around to face my brother in law who was looking at his wife with amused affection.

              “Everybody is really confident of her saying yes, but she has pretty much already told me no,” I reminded them. I let Eden go and she walked the ring over to show Kiran.

              “She didn’t say no to you, Avalon,” Kiran explained. “She said no to her fears, to her own insecurity.”

              I thought about that for a moment. I thought about how I barely remembered her before she showed up at the castle for Eden and Kiran’s return, how I had ignored her and mistreated her all those years before, how I had convinced her to see where our relationship would go without making her feel like there was a strong attachment and how I told her I loved her right after her very first near death experience in Peru. She was overwhelmed and overly emotional and I had dropped a bomb on her.

              Maybe Kiran was right.              

              We had only been together for a very little time; of course she would be insecure about our feelings.

              “I suppose you would know all about what to do when a woman says no,” I laughed at the sight of Eden in Kiran’s arms, her back to his chest while he looked at the ring over her shoulder.

              “I would,” he agreed seriously. Eden stiffened in his arms and shot me a nasty look. But then she went right back to admiring the ring. “I would also know a little something about fighting for the woman I love.”

              He had me there.

              “Advice?” I asked, determining in that moment that I would fight just as hard, if not harder than Kiran ever did to convince Amelia she belonged with me.

              “Get her to listen and when she’s listening, tell her everything. Get it all out there. And then, after you’ve said everything you have to say, make sure she believes you,” Kiran instructed.

              Eden looked up at him and placed a kiss on his jawline. I averted my eyes before I was subjected to anymore of their grotesque public displays of affection. And when I looked back, Kiran had moved his hands to her stomach, holding it possessively.

              My chest groaned in jealousy. No, not jealousy…. something stronger. Something like longing.

             
Make her believe you.

             
“Sounds like you know what you’re talking about,” I admitted.

              “He does,” Eden answered simply.

              I walked back over to the happy couple and collected the ring from Eden. “Thank you,” I said sincerely to both of them.

              “I’m just happy you found her,” Eden whispered.

              “Me too,” Kiran agreed and this time when he smiled at me it was like we shared something now…. like we were a part of the same fraternity or something. The “Why are our women so difficult?” fraternity.

              I shoved the ring into my pocket, left the kitchen and bounded up the stairs to my old room. Amelia was sitting on the bed, talking on the phone to her mom. I stood in the doorway and made a show of knocking on the door gently.

              She did a double take when she saw me and I watched her breathing accelerate with nerves. My magic immediately left me for hers and when ours tangled together in the confines of my old room I bit back a smug grin.

              She started to tell her mom goodbye, while she avoided looking at me at all costs. That was fine with me. I stood in the door watching her. She was so beautiful. Her golden brown hair fell brushing her shoulders, making the urge to run my fingers through it impossible to ignore. Her smooth, exposed skin tempted me from across the room in her thin-strapped dress, revealing her shoulders, and delicate lines of her neck. Her fingers played idly with the hem of her patterned dress and without her knowing it she pulled it up her thigh driving me crazy.

              There was something about having her in my space, about her sitting on my old bed that ignited feelings of possessiveness and pride deep in my stomach. I pressed against the ring box in my pocket, desperately needing her to wear it, to let me claim her as mine.

              “Alright, have a safe flight,” Amelia told her mom. “I’ll see you in a few hours. Love you too mum, buh-bye.”

              She pushed end on her cellphone and then took a stabilizing breath before looking over to me. I waited patiently. Her magic was already deeply embedded in mine; I prayed this would be an easy battle.

              But more than Lucan…. more than Terletov, this was the most important fight of my life.

              “Avalon,” she acknowledged in a surprised whisper.

              Her gaze penetrated the very depths of my being; her eyes deep pools of emotion. And they were afraid.

              I changed my approach. “I uh, I need to go pick up some things from Kingsley before the party tomorrow night. I need some help and everyone else is… uh…. busy.” I didn’t give her the choice to say no.

              “Oh, um, sure, I can help you,” she relaxed a little, a tiny bit of confidence returning to her expression.

              “Alright, good. Are you ready now? I’d like to leave as soon as possible.” I didn’t even have to pretend I was impatient; I was absolutely in a hurry to get this girl alone and make her mine.

              “Sure, let me just grab my sweater. I can meet you downstairs,” she gave me a pleading look so I left her alone so she could get ready to leave.

              Ten minutes later we piled into Eden’s Land Rover and on our way to Kingsley. It was a Saturday so the school grounds were supposed to be empty. I had borrowed the key from Victoria Woodsen, the drama teacher, in order to pick up some things from her classroom.

              “What do you need at Kingsley?” Amelia asked in a small voice.

              “Eden suggested the party be Moroccan themed. One of the teachers at Kingsley spent some time there and has a generous collection of throws and oversized pillows. Eden says they will be perfect….” I trailed off. I didn’t really have an opinion on the decorating, so at this point I was just following orders and trying to get Amelia alone.

              “I’ve never been to Kingsley,” Amelia commented in a voice just above a whisper.

              “Really?” That was hard to believe. I thought everybody had been to Kingsley at one time or another. We had other schools around the world so that students could study close to wherever home was for them. But Kingsley was the coveted academy. Not to mention it had become somewhat of a tourist destination after Amory died and Eden and Kiran got married.

              “Nope, never. Bastian and Kiran promised me they would let me join them once I was old enough, but by then everyone was confined to the castle and well… you know how that story ends. I ended up finishing school at Briar Rose because it was close to home,” her tone was almost sad. I glanced over at her, silently asking for more of the story and she blushed a deep red. “Before he died, I always had to stay with Uncle Lucan,” she finally whispered. “It was like he didn’t even trust my own parents to keep me safe. He was never cruel to me…. never…. inappropriate or anything. But it was like he needed to…. possess me or control me. I was just another thing in his bag of tricks.”

              I was silent for a minute, thinking that over. In all honesty, I didn’t know what to think. Maybe she cared about her uncle? Blamed me for his death? “I’m sorry Lucan had to die,” I finally offered. And it was the truth. I hated the whole scenario and I would never rejoice in the necessity of an Immortal’s death, not even Lucan’s.

              Well…. maybe I would rejoice a tiny bit if I could ever get my hands on Terletov.

              “You don’t have to do that,” Amelia’s head popped up and her eyes grew large with sincerity. “I didn’t mean to make it sound like…. I’m glad he’s dead; I mean I’m glad you’re King. You are what our people need. You are the best thing for us. I mean… for them.”

              She looked away quickly, her eyes trained on Omaha flashing by as we drove toward Kingsley. I tried to keep the smile from tipping up my lips, but I was not successful. At least she was looking out the window.

              “Thank you,” I somehow managed to reply seriously without too much pride lacing my tone. I also had to force myself from fishing for compliments. Not that I didn’t already know I was great, but there was something about hearing Amelia tell me how incredible I was that sent me buzzing with exaggerated confidence.

              We were silent a few more beats and I eventually turned the Land Rover into the circular drive of Kingsley. I smiled as Amelia took in the red brick buildings with an expression of awe. The bell tower stood in the center of the cluster of buildings chiming the hour and the trees that lined and landscaped the property had turned to deep fall tones that blended nicely with the color of brick. Kingsley looked prestigious and well-kept. I was weirdly proud to get to be the one to show Amelia around.

              “Well this is it,” I gestured toward the Administration Building. My voice sounded loud in the quiet, confined space of the car.

              “It’s beautiful,” Amelia whispered in admiration.

              I pressed my hand against the ring box in my pocket and smiled to myself. This was as good of a place as any. I had to have courage. I had to lay it all out for her.

              I looked back up and started when I realized Amelia was staring at me now instead of the school. I convinced myself not to gulp but I was pretty sure she caught on to my mental pep talk. Luckily, the ring was in the farthest pocket from her and I was very confident she couldn’t see it with my palm pressed against it.

              “Ready? The English and Arts Building is that one right over there,” I pointed it out and hoped she followed my finger.

              “Avalon, maybe we should talk first,” she interrupted me, but her tone sounded regretful and careful. This was not the girl that was going to say yes to me, this was the girl that was going to try to explain away her feelings and convince me I did not want to be with her.

              “Sure,” I gave her a casual smile. “But later, I want to get in and out before anyone sees me.”

              “It doesn’t look like anyone’s here,” she objected. “And what would you care if you’re seen?’

              “I uh, don’t want to deal with fans,” I bullshitted my way right through that one. Better to sound like an arrogant ass than have the “it’s not you, it’s me talk” again.

              She snorted and I relaxed a little. That was the Amelia I loved, the one that didn’t let me get away with any of that stuff. “You’re worried about fans?”

              “Always,” I fed her some more half-truths. “I don’t know if you’ve paid attention lately, but I’m a pretty good catch. The ladies are always trying to corner me…. you know, get me alone….” I trailed off and left her to her imagination.

              Her eyes narrowed, flaring with heat. I didn’t know if she was jealous or irritated with me, but either way I could safely say I got out of her talk. I opened the door and jumped down from the SUV before hurrying to her door so I could open it for her. She sat in the passenger’s seat kind of stunned by my behavior and I couldn’t help but take her hand and help her down from the cab.

              “How about I give you a tour?” I suggested when she pulled her hand from mine.

              “I thought we were worried about rabid, horny females?” she asked sarcastically.

              “We’ll just keep moving,” I explained as gravely as I could manage. “They shouldn’t be able to keep up with us if we don’t stay in the same spot for too long.”