Page 25 of The Prince and the Highwayman
CHAPTER7
Dash smiled as the house came into view. He wanted to urge Balor to a gallop, but that would only attract attention. The houses in this part of the city weren’t crammed together like they were near the palace or the market, but the closest neighbors would still be peeking out their windows if he made too much noise. He kept his gaze on the top windows and the red candles blazing there. He thought he saw movement in the room beyond but couldn’t be sure. The ground floor seemed still and quiet, with only one small lantern hanging on the right side of the house. Dash led Balor to that side and found the small barn as well as the key, exactly where Christopher had told him it would be. The barn looked smaller than the house, but once he’d opened it up, Dash found a spacious stall waiting for Balor right next to Cocoa. He fed Balor and made sure he was settled in before giving Cocoa a pat and heading toward the house.
The door flew open before he could even knock, and Dash grinned as his mate yanked him inside. The door was shut and then locked before Dash was pushed up against it and kissed quite thoroughly. Dash returned the embrace and wrapped his arms around Christopher.
“Miss me?” Dash asked.
“Yes, but I worried about you more than anything.” Christopher settled against him, keeping him pinned to the door. “Imagined all the things that could go wrong. Over and over again.”
“Not one single thing went wrong. I did exactly what I set out to do. There was actually a sizable mailbox outside the constable’s station so I was able to discreetly leave my little package in a safe place. It’s out of my hands now.”
Christopher took his hand and led him into the kitchen. “I have a surprise for you.”
“Sounds wonderful,” Dash said, leaning forward to kiss Christopher’s neck.
His mate laughed and turned to kiss his cheek. “We’ll get to that soon enough.” He reached for a piece of paper and looked at it, then held it against his chest as he looked up at Dash. “I’ve done something. You don’t have to agree, but I feel as if it would be a good idea. I didn’t talk to Renn or Simon about it. It was all my idea, which could mean…”
Dash watched his mate closely. Christopher bit his lower lip and cast his gaze down, fiddling with the piece of paper. “Just tell me. With the exception of your decision to leave me a few months ago, I’ve always liked your ideas.”
Christopher looked down at the paper. “When I went to Mr. Drummond to deliver Renn’s letter, I consulted him about another matter as well.”
“Mr. Drummond? Which one is he?”
“The advocate. I asked him if there was a way to protect you. I don’t want to ask my father to pardon you for many reasons.”
“Pardon me? For being a highwayman?”
Christopher nodded. “You don’t deserve a pardon simply because we’re mates. Having my father pardon you would look like favoritism. You deserve a pardon because you’re willing to change, but no one would see anything but the king doing a favor for his son. I don’t like how that would look for us.” He paused. “And honestly, it would hurt if he said no or tried to have you arrested. I wanted something that would ensure your safety before my parents know about you.”
“I think I follow you. You’ve obviously been more worried about this than I have.”
“I won’t let anyone take you from me.”
Dash drew Christopher to him, so happy to hear him say that. “Let anyone try. They’ll have quite a fight on their hands.”
Christopher held up the piece of paper. “Mr. Drummond came up with an idea. This document is a confession and a contract. You’ll be on probation for a year and have to stay within the city walls, and you’ll assist in repairs and improvements being made around the city. You’re already surrendered all the stolen property, even if you didn’t do so in the conventional way. I imagine Mr. Drummond gave us some leigh way there because of his support of Renn. As long as you put in the hours required and aren’t arrested for anything, your record will be cleared after one year, and you can never be arrested for past crimes or taken to court over them.”
“You’ve certainly been busy.” Dash held his hand out, and Christopher gave him the paper. Dash read over it carefully, looking up at his nervous mate every now and then. Once he was done, he asked, “As long as I comply, no one from outside Silvar could arrest me?”
“Yes. You’d be under the care of the city. No claim could have enough power to break your contract or alter it.”
“But what if Renn’s petition doesn’t go well? What if you need to leave the city? I don’t plan on letting you out of my sight ever again.”
Christopher leaned over and pointed to a section at the bottom. “If we marry, you can leave Silvar with me for up to two weeks. And he said the mate vow would give us the same status.”
Dash set the paper on the table and closed the distance between him and Christopher. “Are you proposing, little mate?”
Christopher gave him a shaky smile. “I can’t marry without the consent of both of my parents until I’m thirty, but they can’t stop me from taking the mate vow. I don’t care where I am as long as I’m with you, but it gives us an option.”
Dash brushed their lips together, studying Christopher’s face. “I don’t want you to take the mate vow just so I can leave the city. I want you to do it because you love me.”
“I know,” Christopher said softly. He slid his hands around Dash’s neck. “You’ve mentioned the mate vow, but you’ve never asked me to take it with you. Are you waiting for a sign from me?”
“I want to be sure you’ll say yes when I ask you.”
“You do?”
Dash nodded. “Yes. Because if you say no, I’ll beg just like I did before when you said we wouldn’t work. When you said you couldn’t be with me as long as I was a highwayman.”
