“We need to set ground rules,” I snap. “No under the skirt action. Nothing needs cleaning up down there.”
“She collected another magical sidekick,” Hart says with a shake of his head.
“Dearest Désiré, you are the most magical, most fair, most lovely, in all the land,” the mirror man says from somewhere behind the Stirlings.
“Don’t panic, the broom isn’t replacing you,” I shout, reassuring him.
The genie poofs next to me and dips his head to examine the broom. “It’s not a threat to me,” he decides. “No wish granting ability.”
Glad we determined that. Theo offers me a hand, and the broom bats it away before offering me its handle. I take it and rise to my feet.
“No knight blocking either,” I tell the broom. It spins to look at the brothers, and I somehow understand its unspoken question. “Yes, all of them. Stop judging me. I have enough of that with my sword.” The broom shivers and scoots behind my back. Great, I scared my gift away with my impure intentions.
“Don’t tell the All Knowing,” I grumble. “He seems cranky.”
“Who is the All Knowing, and where in Blazes did you go?” Nash snaps.
Gwyneth struggles to her feet, coming to stand next to me. She scratches her head for a tempo as we wait for her to make sense of what happened, because we all know I can’t.
“I think,” she says carefully, “we became the owners of the living library.”
A stack of books hits the floor behind us. We spin to find the key librarian standing with his mouth open and the discardedtomes on the floor. He stomps his foot, turns on his heel, and disappears while flinging his hands in the air.
“We pissed off the librarian,” I mutter. “But good news—we have a new library.”
“Always finding the bright side,” Hart says.
Doesn’t he realize that without a bright side, we are only left with the dark? And no one wants to exist in darkness—not even my dark knight.
Chapter
Twenty-Four
In the interest of keeping the peace, we take a stack of books back to the knights’ chambers to give the librarian some time to digest the fact that Gwyneth and I claimed ownership of a super-secret entity that was only rumored to exist. No one in living memory has witnessed it until now.
Once the key librarian recovers from his existential crisis, we can see if the All Knowing has a position for him. It seems like he could use some company other than musty flying books. His people skills needed work. That’s what happens when you only have yourself to talk to.
Theo has indeed given up his room for Gwyneth, and they couldn’t have given me a more powerful gift if they tried. Protecting those I love is priceless.
Nash glowers at the book he’s reading while massaging my feet in his lap. I’m pretending to read a book on ancient legends and the origins of the realm, but really, I am trying not to groan as he presses his thumb into the arch of my foot. Hamish clucks contentedly on my lap, nudging Eugene, who pecks her in warning. My broom swats them on their tiny heads, which stops their squabbling.
Malachi snorts from above me. I glance up at him from my position on his lap, noticing he’s as interested in research as I am.
Nash hits a delicious part of my foot. My eyes flutter closed, and a groan leaves my lips.
“Daphne,” Malachi scolds around a laugh. “You cannot make these noises.”
“I have proven otherwise.”
The genie pokes his head through the back of the sofa to stare at me. Why is he hiding back there? “He means there will be consequences if you continue to make sounds like they are giving you an org?—”
Gwyneth slams her book closed. “For the love of Idols, do not finish that sentence.”
I scowl at her. “The Idols do not deserve your love.”
The mirror man shimmers in his original mirror, which the knights moved to their living area. “I have news, fair Desmond.”
“Is it me, or is he getting worse?” Gwyneth asks.
