Odessa gently pulled Katrin forward. “This is Katrin. She’s…uh…visiting. For a while. To help me in the evenings.”
“That’s wonderful!” Dmitri smiled widely at Katrin, who turned a concerning shade of pink and looked as if she might fall over. “I’m glad you’re going to have someone help keep things running smoothly while I’m commandeering your time.” He paused, his eyes narrowing at the corners. “Katrin…isn’t that name the same as your?—”
“Yes!” Jax exclaimed. “Katrin is adeerfriend of Odessa’s.” He grinned triumphantly at Odessa and waggled his eyebrows. He gestured to Bean and Sonya. “The little girl is Sonya. Don’t let her adorable curls fool you; some might say she’s quiteboarish.”
How is he able to talk about it so openly? Is it just because the words are intended to have a different meaning? I suppose it would make sense that the loophole here would bepuns. Boris was never a fan of that kind of humor, and he wouldn’t think to protect against it.
Dmitri’s mouth turned down in reproach. “That’s rather unkind, don’t you think?”
Odessa’s heart sank as the hidden meaning behind Jax’s words flew like a bird right over his head. She changed the subject. “What did you need my help with, Dimi?”
His expression brightened. “I was hoping you could give some input on locations in the Menagerie that would work for a scavenger hunt. Do you mind if I show you what I’m thinking?” He glanced at Katrin. “Your friend is welcome to join us, of course. In fact, as someone rather new to the space, she might be the perfect one to gauge whether the clues will suffice.”
She bit back a sigh. She would much rather spend her time working out exactly what the change in Katrin and Sonya’s curse meant and how she was going to hide it from her father—providing, of course, he didn’t already know somehow. She wasn’t sure how closely linked he was to magic after it was cast. But she also couldn’t deny Katrin the opportunity to spend an hour or two with the prince she had pined after for years, and so she nodded, smiled warmly, and said, “We’d be happy to.”
“Wonderful!” Dmitri offered his arm to Katrin, who hesitantly placed her hand through it and looked up at him with wide, starstruck eyes as he led her back to the gate, speaking animatedly the whole time.
Jax whistled low beside her. “She’s got it bad.”
“I know,” Odessa groaned. A lump of regret soured her stomach. “And I’m supposed to help him choose a wife.”
He snapped his fingers. “He’s Kovskian!”
“Yes, and?”
He grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look up at him. She could see the thoughts spinning a million miles an hour in his eyes, and a brilliant smile was slowly taking over his mouth.
“Swangela. Think about it. He can break the curse.”
“He doesn’t even know who she is. If he did, it would be rather odd for him to willingly choose to marry a deer, don’t you think?”
“Just invite her to come along with you to the party. He’s more than willing to listen to your suggestions.”
“I told him she was here to help me in the Menagerie. It rather defeats the purpose if she’s tagging along with me, don’t you think?”
He squinted at her. “Who cares? If there’s a chance it will break the curse, don’t you want to at least take it?”
“Yes, but—”But it won’t exactly work the way you’re thinking, and I don’t want to get Katrin’s hopes up just to have them dashed forever when it doesn’t happen.
“Then it’s settled. Dmitri and Katrin will find each other. You’ll find a husband.” He swallowed thickly and his smile faltered for a moment before he nodded sharply. “At this rate, I should add ‘Matchmaker’ to my list of qualifications.”
Chapter Sixteen
JAX
“Guest from another realm or not, there better be a good reason you’re dragging me out here before dawn.” Dmitri grumbled around a wide-mouthed yawn as he followed Jax down the path from the palace gardens to the lake. “I could be sleeping right now.”
“And you can go right back to sleep as soon as we’re done,” Jax answered cheerfully. “I promise it won’t take long.”
“Is there a reason this particular outing couldn’t have waited until a reasonable hour of the day?”
Jax put his hand to his ear and craned his neck, as if straining to listen to something. “I hear no arguments. It sounds to me like the hour is being perfectly reasonable.”
Dmitri stared at him. “You’re a menace,” he stated blandly.
Jax looked up at the clear stars of the pre-dawn sky and quickened his step. There was just the faintest hint of light on the horizon, and he wanted to ensure that his efforts were not in vain. He had asked and prodded for the prince to join himat the lake for nearly a month now, and despite Dmitri’s final capitulation, he had no confidence that the prince would agree to a second outing if they happened to miss the transformational event he was hoping to see.
“No, I’m a Bird Catcher.”
