“I don’t understand. You just said you didn’t want my money?” I told him. “Now suddenly you’re what, a mercenary?”
“Love, money is not the only currency,” he said.
I looked around, but then, abruptly, I was very aware of the poetry of what he meant, based upon his intrusive eyes alone. I felt unseated. Soon, his gaze twisted into a mix of confusion and worry, and I breathed quicker.
He wanted something else,I thought.
“W-What are you asking for?” I dared. “I, um, for–” Me was the word I couldn’t say. “O-On second thought,” I said. “I, um, I don’t need to know anything, and I think weshouldgo. Right away. We should go right away, sir.”
My face felt red. Mr. Evergreen lost the smirk on his.
He obeyed the request with a polite, “Of course. The hour is late.” Then, he moved to secure the saddlebags on each horse.
“It’s—” I paused. “It’s just getting dark, is all.”
“Aye. It is,” he said.
“Did you…” I couldn’t ask. Iwouldn’task what it was he wanted. If he had meantwordsor akissor more…I cleared my throat, searching for something else to say in the question’s place. “Did you mean to ride so long?”
He shrugged. “I lost track of time.”
“I see.”
“Listen.” There was a lingering sort of wait between his thought. “I’ll be unavailable for the next few days.”
“Unavailable?” I asked.
“Aye. If you wish to continue our brawls, send for me mid-week. If I don’t hear from you…I understand,” he said. “I was incredibly forward, and I apologize. To save you the trouble, I’ll make up an excuse for Sam.”
“You’ll be unavailable?” I asked.
“That’s what I said, yes.”
“What? Why?” I asked.
“I didn’t say,” he said.
“Is this because I–”
Cyrus shook his head. “No, of course not,” he hurried. “Your Highness, I misread our connection, and I’m sorry for it. Please do not believe your behavior has shaped my plans in any way. I simply have somewhere I need to be.”
“And that is where?” I asked.
He didn’t answer. He gestured to my blouse, where mud had appeared across its design. He said, “You know, you wear a shocking level of pastels for such a messy woman. If you committed to a proper color already, Miss Josie might thank you for it.”
“What?” I asked.
“Your clothes. They’re as pale as you are,” he said. “Makes it hard for–”
“Fashion advice?”I asked. The jeer baffled me more than ‘cost’ had. “From the man who dresses so loudly an orchestra could not outplay him?”
That brought a genuine smile to his face. He presented himself with the full length of his wingspan and a decorativespin. “Not all pretty sheaths are impractical, Princess. They still guard the blade.”
“What?”
“Colors, Your Highness. Colors are easier to clean,” he said. “Just leave it for your seamstress if Josie has trouble. You’ll damage the lace if you pick at it too much.”
The spark between us was back. I both hated and loved how he brandished his knowledge over me, but if Mr. Evergreen felt the same effect of the temptation in his words that I did, he did nothing to let it bother him. I tried not to explore the shape of his torso before his arms came down to shield it from my gaze.
