Asrai peeks out from Zaria’s hair and flies over to me. I hold both my hands out in front of me and she gracefully lands there.
‘That wasn’t very kind of them,’she signs.
“No, it wasn’t.”
“Wait, you can understand her?” Kian asks.
I nod and smile down at Asrai.
Her hands are moving again.‘You have lots of pretty gowns now.’
“Yes, I do.”
Asrai’s wings flutter and she lifts from my hands and tugs some of my hair and giggles.‘You can wear them for the prince.’
My cheeks heat and I sign back. ‘There is nothing happening there. Now or ever.’
Asrai’s eyes seem to grow larger as she stares at me. ‘You’re lying.’
“What are they saying?” I hear Kian ask Zaria.
“I know about as much as you,” she replies.
Asrai returns to Zaria’s head and settles in, her eyes like pools of blue and green, sparkling with mirth as she watches me.
Zaria places her hands on her hips as she stares at the rows of dresses. “Well, that’s all the gowns, twelve in total. Plus, I have another trunk of undergarments and nightwear downstairs. Tristan is currently fetching them.”
“Really, you shouldn’t have. I don’t need all this.”
"The prince insisted you have everything. Plus, I enjoyed shopping for you. It was all extremely satisfying.”
As I stand before Kian and Zaria, grateful for their kindness, I can’t help but feel a mix of emotions.
Tristan suddenly reappears at the doorway, carrying a large wooden trunk. “What in Aine have you got in here?” he grumbles, making his way over and dropping the trunk at the foot of the bed.
“Nothing that concerns either of you. Now shoo.” Zaria’s tail flicks up, swatting Kian in the chest.
With one eyebrow raised, Tristan crosses his arms over his chest, his tone laced with annoyance. “Are you done bossing us around?”
Zaria rolls her eyes, unfazed by Tristan’s grumpy demeanor. “Almost,” she replies nonchalantly. “But you know, Tristan, you could learn a thing or two from Kian about letting go of grudges.”
Tristan scowls at her, clearly not amused by her comment. “I don’t need lessons from him.”
I bite my lip, trying to hide my smile as Kian slaps Tristan on the shoulder and turns him toward the door. “Let the ladies be, old man.”
“I’m not old.”
“Your frown lines say otherwise.”
The door shuts behind them, and I turn to Zaria. “They are the perfect grumpy-sunshine combo.”
“The what?”
“Never mind,” I laugh to myself.
Chapter fourteen
Everly
