The water steams and little bubbles rise to the surface. He stands and jerks his head with a self-satisfied smirk plastered on his face. I crouch and skim the now wonderfully heated water. “Wow, that’s a handy trick.”
“There’s soap and stuff for your hair on the side,” he says, pointing at a ledge with some glass bottles. He leaves me alone to strip and sink into the heated water which comes up to my chin. This is another level of luxury. The town’s pond has nothing on this. There are no lily pads bumping against you, or frogspawn between your toes, or toads looking to put their tongue down your throat. This is perfection.
I sniff the contents of the jars, selecting a lavender and sandalwood scent that doesn’t make me want to eat it. I might wash my hair three times because I can.
“Have you drowned?” Hart asks a little too hopefully as he stalks into the room.
“Clearly not. Why have they sent the grump of the group to retrieve me?”
“Because I can be trusted with your naked body. Get out and get dressed. We head out in ten tempos on your crusade to alter the rules of the realm.”
I rise from the water, taking the stony steps until I’m facing him. In his hand is a white, fluffy towel. I snatch it and wrap my hair up. His gaze rakes down my wet body.
“That was for your body,” he grits out.
“What is the point of drying my body if my hair continues to soak me?”
He drags in a breath, spins on his heel, and stalks through the gap back into the living quarters. “I give up. You guys deal with her.”
I chuckle just as Malachi pokes his head around the corner with another towel, which he thrusts at me. “You just made his head spin, Daph.” He gives me a thumbs up, making me shake my head at his games.
“You are trouble.”
He winks at me as I wrap the new towel around myself. “Stick with me. You’ve not seen anything yet.”
Malachi leaves me alone to dry and dress in the breeches and blouse. I give my hair a good rub in the towel before appearing back in the main living quarters. They are empty, but I can hear the rumble of deep masculine voices from the main cave. Maybe they are playing guess the number of coins while they wait for me? I hunt around on the shelf above the bed, finding a wide wooden hair comb. I drag it through my mass of dark hair until the knots are gone. It won’t stay this way, but I always like to start the diurnal with tangle free hair. What happens between then and bed time is anyone’s guess.
Striding into the glittering cave, I find the brothers in a silent stare off. “What’s wrong?”
Theo jerks his head at Nash. “Mr. Control wants you to ride with him.”
“I am the most capable,” Nash says, like it’s obvious.
“It’s settled,” I declare, knowing my track record with horses isn’t stellar.
“Someone grab a bag of coins for the lodgings and meals,” Theo grumbles.
Okay, that I can do. How much trouble can one find oneself in a cave of treasures surrounded by knights? The answer is a lot. “Don’t tempt fate” should be my new motto.
I bend and pick up a few coins, my fingers running over something curved. I wrap my hand around it and stand. It doesn’t fit the shiny, glittering aesthetic Theo has got happening in here. This object is full of dust, like it hasn’t been touched for an annus or more.
“What’s this?” I wonder, dragging the sleeve of my blouse over my thumb and using it to rub away some of the grime.
“No,” four loud voices holler at once. I blink and a purple mist-like being spins into the air, complete with a topknot of dark hair and huge biceps.
He folds his arms and declares, “I am the genie of the lamp. A trio of wishes is now yours to command. I bring you riches beyond your wildest dreams.” He darts a look around the cave full of gold. “Beauty, power, fame, it is all mine to give you, mistress.”
I glance around the cave, looking for another female. Nope, just four unamused Stirlings. I scratch the back of my neck and glare at what is now obviously a lamp. Nobody told me rubbing a damn lamp would conjure ancient wish giving beings. “Um, I think.”
“Daphne, do not make a wish,” Nash snaps. “For the Idols will take from someone that which you seek. If you want an everlasting life, you will never have children, as you borrow from your future generations that which is not yours.”
“Is that true?” I ask the genie.
The genie tilts his head from side to side like he’s considering Nash’s accusation. “There may be unexpected consequences to your wishes.”
“So if, and I mean this metaphorically—ifI were to say, wish for my sister to be free of Charming?”
Theo edges closer to me. “She would meet a mysterious end,” he says.
