But instead of a friendly Hagrid to help me, I’d had assholes and jerks. Well, Myel hadn’t been a jerk. Though now that I was a bit more level-headed, I did wonder why I’d felt all trippy and doped up around him. Being close to him had felt like the best thing in the world. That wasn’t normal.
Like any of the rest of this was “normal.”
And the wonder of being in this mystical world wore off the longer I sat there. I tried to catch the eye of a few of the workers but had little luck.
Then a woman with lovely lavender skin and dark purple hair walked by.
“Excuse me,” I said. “Any idea when someone can see me?”
She blinked.
“Sorry? Who are you?”
“Izzy Brown.”
She cocked her head. “And what did you need?”
I got the feeling Pointy-ears hadn’t told anyone I was waiting here.
“To—”
“You there, I require assistance!” came a melodic, if demanding voice.
Lavender Lady and I both looked to see a small group approaching, led by a young woman. She was tall, like me, if less curvy, more of a model’s figure. Everything about her was perfect. Tall ears — rising nearly to the top of her head, even taller than Pointy-ears — pierced up through pristine waves of golden hair, which framed a heart shaped face of smooth ivory skin. Eyes like blue diamonds passed over melike I was nothing, cold and aloof. She strode up to the Lavender Lady and began babbling away about some minor grievance.
What a princess.
Behind her were an entourage of ladies: three others just as refined in their look, with two more who huddled, submissive. Two large men accompanied her as well.
Fuck this. I was at the end of my rope, fed up with being ignored and pushed around. And this little princess was the last straw.
So… I snapped.
“Sorry, but I was here first,” I said sternly as I rose. Ouch, moved too fast. I kept forgetting I was in pain. “I—” My words were cut off when a massive wall of a man stepped between me and the young woman.
At my height, most men didn’t tower over me, the taller ones were usually only an inch or two above me, especially when I was in heels. I wasn’t in heels, and this guy was a full head and shoulders taller. My eyes were level with the top of his chest. And what a chest it was, straining against the fabric of his shirt. As did his shoulders and arms. Wow. This guy had to be close to seven feet tall, and was build like a bull. I looked up. Long silvery hair fell around a rigid mask of a face, hard, chiseled from stone, all sharp lines with a heavy brow and square jaw. Brilliant golden eyes glared down at me as a rumble of anger rolled in his chest.
“Back off,” he growled. That deep, powerful voice sent a thrill through me, partly in fear, mostly in arousal. This was the sort of guy you didn’t want to meet in a dark alley… unless he was pinning you against a wall with eyes full of heat, not hatred.
He may have been huge and scary — and sexy AF — but he’d caught me at the wrong time on the wrong day.
“Like hell,” I hissed. “I’ve been waiting here for ages! And I’d finally found someone to help me when your prissy little princess walked up. Not today, bub.”
From the shock in his gold eyes, I got the feeling most people didn’t talk to him like that.
“What did she call me?”
The Golden Princess pushed the big man aside like he was nothing and stared daggers at me.
I stared back.
“Who are you?” she said with irritable distaste. She looked me up and down. “Whatare you? A nymph? Doesn’t matter, you’re nothing.” Wow, rude! “Don’t you know who I am?”
“Nope, and I don’t care.” I hated stuck-up, entitled people who thought they were all that. In fact, anyone who bullied or belittled others or talked down to people or abused their authority got me all rankled and made my sass come out in full force. It wasn’t an admirable trait, and it had gotten me into trouble more times than I could count.
It made me say things I regretted later, like: “I’ve had a shitty day and you’re just another turd making it worse, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to talk to this nice lady here.”
The look of horror on Princess’s face made me smile.
