He shrugs. “I found them on my bed where you had been lying, so I gave them the sheet which smelled of you, and now they have used it as a foundation for a nest in the corner of my room.”
My capons got to work fast. I’ve hardly been gone a few diurnals. But then again, what is the lifespan of a capon? Two annuses? Three? If that’s the case, then one diurnal is more likea big annus for them. My heart squeezes. They are going to have forgotten who I am.
“Nobody is forgetting you, Calamity,” Hart grumbles. “You are, for better or worse, unforgettable.”
“Aww, Hart, that’s practically a declaration of love.”
He scowls, but understanding my superior insight, he doesn’t argue.
Nash snorts and grabs my hand, tugging me to my feet and out of Theo’s warm lap. “Let’s get you back to our chambers and warmed up,” he growls low.
My skin flushes, partly from being so close to Theo, my personal heated blanket, but mostly from the gleam in Nash’s gaze that dares me to push him a little. Or maybe a lot.
Nash leads the way as I try to negotiate the entirely flat and unobstructed floor with maximum effort and minimal gain. With the Idol’s giant fork in one hand and the sword in the other, I struggle to center my balance. Also, heels do not mix well with clumsy maidens, calamitous ladies, or mistaken damsels. Idols, I’ve lived a full life already.
We start down one of the many identical stone-lined corridors, and wide-eyed folks give us a generous berth. Men stare at my unusual attire, some even craning their necks to get a better look, while others leer at me.
Theo scowls at one of the smirking Charmings. “Avert your eyes before I gouge them from their sockets.” He whimpers and scurries off. Is there a prerequisite for all Charmings to be mellow poopfloofs? How sad for maidens of the realm.
After the fourth trip from me and the third growl from Theo, Nash halts and whips off his white shirt, gifting me with an amazing view of those hard-earned muscles. My gaze trails down, then down some more. Oh, holy Idol balls. Can one get pregnant from staring at such manly perfection?
“No, Daphne,” Nash murmurs in my ear as he wraps me up in his shirt. “One cannot. But I will give you a biology demonstration to clear it up. I believe you are more of a hands on kind of learner.”
I grin at him. “You are correct.”
He scoops me into his arms and cradles me against his chest as he moves faster through the palace, following the little dragon symbol up the stairs. I glance over his shoulder at an amused Theo, an eyebrow-arching Malachi, and a scowling Hart.
“If the west wind changes, your face will be stuck like that,” I advise.
“But I’ll still be pretty,” he shoots back.
Be still my heart. My grumpy knight has a sense of humor. “True, but doesn’t it get tiresome holding such an expression when smiling is easier? You need to put out into the universe what you want to get back.”
“Is that why you get calamities?” he muses.
“I put interest and intrigue out, and that’s what I get back. The universe works in mysterious ways. You may not get exactly what you ask for, but it always provides what you need.”
“You are talking in riddles. The ocean has washed away any remaining common sense you had.”
“I had none to wash away, so your point is moot.”
A door swings open just as Hart shakes his head, but he can’t hide that twitch of his lips. I made the great Hart Stirling smile, even if it was at my expense. I have achieved the impossible.
Nash drops my feet to the floor in the middle of the living area, which connects their bedrooms. Theo closes the door and flips the lock. I lay the sword and trident down on the sofa. Probably best I don’t tempt the Idols into murdering me this diurnal. The four knights surround me, each crossing their arms and leveling their gazes at me. Blazes, am I ready for this? Each of them may harbor a soft spot for me, but I’m not stupid. Peopledon’t turn their gazes away from these men without good reason. I’d be wise to remember that they have a reputation, and they earned it.
I tuck a lock of hair behind my ear and laugh nervously. “So, which room can I get cleaned up in? The salt water is dulling my hair, and I don’t need to tell you about the dangers of getting sand in my floof.”
None of them speak, but Nash’s gaze drops to the wicked heeled boots on my feet before it slides up my legs, his eyes flaring with heat as he tracks the way I look in his shirt.
I sling my thumb over my shoulder toward Hart’s room. “I best check on Hamish and Eugene to determine if we are going to need to grovel to them for the rest of the annus.”
“Don’t move,” Nash growls. I freeze and swallow the anxious knot in my throat.Get it together, Daphne. If you want to dance with darkness, you can’t run the tempo they show you it.
“Tell us what you did to get out of the ocean,” Hart says. His voice is low, deceptively lulling, which is a lie because he not only bites, he devours.
“I already told you,” I whisper. “I made a deal with a crocodile, who helped me to steal the trident and gave me the words to get back here.”
A stirring of the hair on my nape sends a shiver down my spine as wood smoke and danger engulf my senses. Theo’s hands slide underneath the shirt, and he releases the laces of the corset. His hot fingers cause goosebumps to erupt down my arms. “Did anyone touch you, pretty mouse?”
