“I’m glad I amuse you.”
“Gweneth is a confident young woman.If she hated your kisses, she’d tell you so,” Keira told him.“Has she refused?”
Ellard sighed.“She expects me to kiss her every day.”
Keira’s grin widened, her eyes sparkling in echo of the humor.“Then why do you have a problem?”
“Why would she want to kiss me?No one else does,” he added miserably.Talk about embarrassing.Difficult to admit the truth.“I seldom compare well with the other single feline males.”
“Not true,” Jarlath barked.“You are worth double those useless nits.”
“Jarlath, that isn’t what Ellard means.He’s worried about his appearance and the fact he has lost his arm.”
“He’s a hero,” Jarlath said bluntly.“If Gweneth and the other women don’t recognize that fact, then they are dense.”
Keira’s gaze took on a crow sharpness.“I doubt Gweneth is toying with you, Ellard.She is a beautiful woman.”
“My point,” he blurted.“Yet she made a bet with me, and now that she’s won, she expects me to kiss her every day.”
“Clever girl,” Keira said.“She’s managing you nicely.”
“I don’t want to be managed,” Ellard snapped.
“You need to think about what you do want.”Keira ignored his testy tone.“What about your feline?Does he want her?”
Ellard slumped.“Yes.”
“Did your feline want Marjo and Mareeka?”
“I thought he did, but…” He shrugged in helplessness.
Keira sighed.“None of that was your fault, Ellard.You have a big heart.You’re loyal and true to your friends.Would you like my advice?”
He nodded, each of his muscles tensing as he waited.
“Give Gweneth her kiss every day.Enjoy spending the cycles with her and being away from the prying eyes at the castle.Take each cycle one at a time instead of worrying about the future.Relax for once and think of yourself instead of duty to Jarlath and the other royals.Treat this assignment as a holiday away from your responsibilities.Do you understand what I’m suggesting?”
Give Gweneth her kiss every day.
He shuddered while his feline issued a purr.
“What if I want more than kisses?”
“Remember what I suggested about taking each cycle one at a time?”
“Yes,” Ellard said.
Jarlath smiled at him, and this time, his grin lacked any joke-at-your-expense humor.This smile held approval, something pleasant and reassuring, and Ellard felt the tension in his shoulders shifting.
“Keira is right.One cycle at a time,” Jarlath agreed.“Use this journey to get to know her, the things she likes and enjoys.Trust your feline to steer you in the right direction.What do you have to lose?At the very least, you’ll make another friend.”
Ellard nodded again.“Thank you.”
He thought about their advice during his cycle portions alone.One cycle at a time.He could do that.Break his fears into manageable slices.A workable plan.His only plan.He just hoped it didn’t come back to bite him in the arse.
Gweneth burst onto the bridge at a skip, her long black hair confined in a bouncy ponytail instead of one of her complicated twists that she piled on top of her head.It made her appear younger and mischievous.
Ellard swallowed, his stomach muscles quivering as his gaze shot to her pouty lips.
