I snorted, surprised by her age. I’d have guessed Niamh was closer to late twenties than mid-thirties. “She’s only five years older than you,” I said. “Not that old.”
He elbowed me. “And five years younger than you. Look at that. Right in between us.”
I raised a brow. Cillian was not the marrying type. He loved to flirt and have one-night stands and break hearts wherever he went, but I didn’t pay much attention to all of that. I didn’t have time to pay attention to Cillian’s love life when I was busy keeping him alive.
I realized Cillian was still speaking. “Now she just needs to fall in love with my winning personality. Then we’ll marry and, boom, problem solved. No more attacks on our home, no more threats of losing it to the brotherhood.”
“Boom?” I echoed, gaze swiveling to each side of the road, assessing for any danger that might be lurking behind the big boulders and rocks dotting the hillsides. “And why haven’t you told her about the key?” I asked. “About the risks of this little plan of yours?”
“One thing at a time.” Cillian glanced behind him, but Niamh and Morton were now giggling as an enchanted flower reached out to tickle them. So much magic in this world, and the majority of it was absolutely useless. “She just lost her home,” Cillian continued. “And I don’t want to stress her any further right now. Let’s let her get comfortable, excited to arrive to Fairwitch Isle, and then we can slowly reveal information.”
“That feels like lying,” I said, not entirely sure why I cared whether Cillian told Niamh the truth. I didn’t care. He could do whatever he wanted as long as it didn’t affect his neck staying attached to his body.
“You know, she’s starting to think you’re mute,” Cillian said.
“What?” My gaze flicked to movement in the tall grass to our left, my hand automatically going to the hilt of my sword.
“That’s how little you’ve spoken over the last few days. She thinks you might not know how to speak.”
“Good.” Maybe then she wouldn’t attempt to talk to me. She was the type that would talk so much she’d distract me from my job. Cillian had already almost lost his life at that tower, and I wouldn’t let anything happen to him again.
“It wouldn’t hurt you,” Cillian said, “or our cause, to make a little friendly conversation.”
“No.” That wasn’t my job. My job was protecting the prince and keeping him safe, and anything outside of that was a distraction.
“Niamh,” Cillian called over his shoulder, “Wolfe has a great story for you about a magical candle whose flame wouldn’t go out.”
“What?” My head snapped in his direction. Cillian was once again not taking things seriously enough. I needed to guard him, to keep him safe, and I couldn’t do that if I was forced to talk to Niamh.
He dragged her forward despite my protests and shoved her right into me.
Morton yelped and leaped from her shoulder, and Cillian caught the little bookwyrm. He had wings, so I wasn’t sure why he didn’t use them. “I have a book I’d like you to eat if you don’t mind.”
Niamh stared up at me with wide green eyes, flecked with yellow and brown, her palms flattened against my chest. “You can let go now,” she said, breathless.
I looked down, realizing I’d grabbed hold of her waist on instinct, then cleared my throat and released her. She tugged at the skirt of her blue dress, then adjusted the laces that wove up her torso and to her heaving bosom.
“Do I have something?” She touched her creamy pale skin right at the top of her cleavage, and I quickly averted my gaze.
“No.” I looked straight ahead, to where Cillian was pulling a book out of his cloak for Morton to eat.
A gust of wind blew past us, lifting her red hair from her shoulders, and she grabbed the end of the tattered black cloak I’d given her and wrapped it tight around her body. “Cillian said you have a story about a candle? I love stories, though I am a little surprised because I was starting to think you didn’t know how to speak other than a few words.”
I swallowed, looking up to the sunny sky and cursing Cillian.
“I have a job,” I said quietly. “To be a protector. Everything else is a distraction.”
She gaped at me. “Surely you don’t believe that. You’re telling me because you’re a guard, you can’t talk?”
I rubbed my temples, realizing just how ridiculous it sounded when she put it like that, but she had no idea how important Cillian was to Fairwitch. Losing our high prince could weaken our magic,weaken the entire kingdom and make it more susceptible to attack. But it wasn’t just that. I thought of my other brother we’d lost, how maybe it hadn’t weakened Fairwitch’s magic or opened us up to attack, but it had destroyed my family. That alone was reason enough to stay vigilant.
She smirked and crossed her arms. “Whatever you say, sunshine.”
I quirked a brow, and she just smiled in return, green eyes sparking with mischief.
“Sunshine?” I asked.
She shrugged. “It suits you. Well, if you won’t tell me a story, then I’m going to tell you one.”
