“Yes, mistress?”
“Make sure to get my blue shirt and the black pants,” I specified.
Avela nodded and ran off.
I dried myself quickly, thankful I’d recently chopped back my hair. It dried much faster — and it wouldn’t get in my way in afight — even if itwasa spikey mess that never settled the way I wished.
I stood there, naked, waiting for Avela to return and wondering what in the blazes of the Five Hells the prince was doing here… and with Kel no less.
I heard Avela’s running sandals on the stone path before the door to the bathing area was yanked open and slammed shut.
“The prince and Master Kelric are waiting in the cottage, here are the clothes you requested.” She held out the bundle, neatly folded and pristine. She was out of breath, sweaty and frazzled, but she’d come through for me. I was eternally grateful.
I dressed quickly.
“How do I look?” I asked Avela.
She smiled. “Far better than I do, I’m sure.”
I tried not to grimace at that. As much as I was composed and she was a bit winded, Avela was a beautiful girl — no,woman— with all of the curves men loved. She possessed a full, high bust, slender waist and arms, round hips and thighs, bouncing blond curls, and stunning sunrise-golden eyes.
I — on the other hand — had none of that.
I was tall for a woman and built like a man: strong and sturdy, with square shoulders, thick strong arms and legs, straight hips, a narrow waist and a bust with which I had a complicated relationship.
I certainly wasn’t full-bosomed like Avela, which might have been nice, if I’d ever wanted to look womanly. Yet I also wasn’t completely flat, which would have been great when wearing armor. I was large enough that my breasts always ached and chafed after being in armor too long, but not large enough to fill out most dresses. Not that I wore a lot of dresses. Under a shirt, I looked like I had the chest of a very muscular man, if a bit more rounded. Not womanly at all. It was a good thing I rarely wore dresses or wanted to be womanly.
But that didn’t mean I didn’t want a man in my life. However, if my build didn’t scare off men, my scars did. I was a warrior and scars came with the job.
Luckily, this blue shirt — my best shirt — was loose and billowy, hiding a lot of my masculine features. The black pants were just a bit tight and showed off my muscular legs. That was unintentional. They were meant to be loose and straight, but I’d bulked up a bit since I’d first bought them.
I was ready.
“Thank you, Avela,” I said, leaving her as I headed to the door, but I stopped with my hand on the latch. “Thank you… for everything. I couldn’t run this place without you and Shorine.”
It was true. I wasn’t one for gardening nor tending to lands. My father had hired Shorine to do those jobs and I’d kept her on. The woman was growing old though and had recently ‘adopted’ Avela to be her successor. Avela had taken to the job eagerly, mostly helping Shorine but sometimes being a lady’s maid for me… on the rare occasion I felt like being a lady.
I left the bath and walked to the cottage, trying to keep calm as my mind and emotions raged within me.
I stopped at the door to the cottage and took a long, deep breath before entering, a pleasant smile on my face… for the prince only.
Kel could choke on a cherry pit and die for all I cared.
I entered and the two men rose from the small sitting area at one end of the open main room. I knelt and bowed my head. “Your Highness,” I said with due reverence.
“Please rise,” Victor said, his tone full and commanding. Though it wasn’t as deep and resonant as Kel’s.
I did so.
“How may I serve you,” I asked, incredibly curious.
I kept my gaze focused on the prince. I daren’t even glance at Kel. Looking at that man for too long would get me flustered andfurious at the same time. Gods, but he was a handsome man, and a lying, betraying bastard. I didn’t want to think about our torrid nights during the siege of Vestrea, nor how he’d abandoned me after the war.
The prince, on the other hand, was quite pleasant to look at. The man was tall and had a regal bearing, with square shoulders on a lean, strong frame. He possessed a slightly protruding chin, aqua-blue eyes, and flaxen-blond hair. The entire royal family, and most of the nobility of Pearlia, possessed similar features — jewel-toned eyes and blond hair — some wearing them better than others. The prince wore his very well indeed.
“Kelric tells me you are a hardened warrior, yes?” I didn’t have time to answer before he went on: “Fought in the Ero-Pearlian War, and distinguished yourself? And that you can be trusted to be discreet?”
I waited to see if he’d say more. When he didn’t, I nodded. “Yes, your highness.”
