He nods. I knew that would be the most difficult part of my request. I see the way he misses his old friend and I want that fence mended, for his sake. But it’s not really up to me.
“I dispatched a messenger to Thorn Mountain last night. He would have arrived by daybreak if he rode straight through.” His forest gaze meets mine. “The one time I attempted to visit, I was told off, in no uncertain terms. I daresay I deserved it. I was angry and arrogant. I wouldn’t blame them if Killian and Briar sent my messenger home in pieces.” A wry smile quirks up one corner of his mouth. The sadness I find there wrenches my bruised heart. “I doubt they would have answered had I tried to go in person.”
“I appreciate that you’re trying.” I do. I’m not sure whether I’ll decide to give him a pass or not if they don’t respond. Part of me is desperately curious to meet the lost princess and her dark knight. Their love gave me hope when I desperately needed some.
Now that I know how much their elopement hurt Alistair, I’m less enthralled by the folk tales about their forbidden romance. But if this marriage is going to succeed, I can’t let him think he can get away with placating me in a halfhearted attempt at reconciliation.
Besides, it will be good for him. I’m not demanding this out of cruelty or vindictiveness. I’m holding his feet to the fire out of love.
I’ll wait for as long as I have to for him to mend fences with this Killian. Waiting won’t hurt Alistair. He’s merely accustomed to getting what he wants, when he wants it.
That is as much a reason as any to stand my ground. A king needs to learn patience. If he can’t learn that from me, then the marriage isn’t worth the paper it’s written upon.
“We will hold your sisters’ weddings in the private chapel,” says Alistair, bringing me back to the present.
“And ours?”
“If it happens.” He holds my gaze with his like a forest on a misty morning. I take his hand and squeeze.
“It will happen. Eventually. You’ll find a way to contact Briar and Killian.”
Alistair hugs me around the waist and buries his face in my bosom. For once, it’s not sexual. He needs comfort. A soft smile touches my lips as I stroke his hair.
“What if they won’t see me?”
“They will.”
“I was an ass, Ellie. Such an ass.”
“You regret it now.”
He holds me tighter and sighs. “There is nothing I wouldn’t do to claim you, Sunshine. You are all the sweetness and sunlight I’ve been missing all my life. All the good things that I am not, and never will be.”
“That’s not true.” Buried deep inside the notorious prince is a good man. As “Alex,” he was able to shed the ingrained habits and escape the deep wounds inflicted by his own father for a single night. I had a chance to see beneath the façade. I needed rescuing; saving me made him feel like a hero. I needed love; he’s given me all the affection he’d never shown any other person.
“Keep believing that,” he says fondly, pressing a kiss to my forehead. Something is bothering him. Is it Killian? My heart aches that he’s in pain. He’s been isolated for so long, despite being constantly surrounded by people. Just like I have been. We are similar in many ways.
But I need to be sure the changes in him are permanent before I can commit to this for the rest of my life. I can’t spend my life with a liar.
“Tell me more about my sisters’ suitors,” I prompt him.
“Not suitors. I just came from the introductions. Both women have agreed to wed the men I presented to them.”
“You’re not serious.” My astonishment and skepticism must be written on my face.
“I am entirely serious,” he says. “Both of your sisters are to be wed alongside us. Our wedding can commence this afternoon as planned.”
“Who are they?”
“A very brave knight volunteered to marry Anastacia.”
“I have difficulty believing that.”
“Othmar likes her.” Alistair makes a crude gesture indicating breasts. “He met her at the ball while he was acting as my stand-in.”
“She accepted?” I ask in disbelief.
“She did. Enthusiastically, once he told her there would be an estate. Your estate. I hope you don’t mind. Legally, Scinder House reverts to the crown.”
