“We’ll figure it out. Together. You’re an immortal, or have you forgotten?” Jaide smirked. “You doubt your own power.”
“While you flatter me, let us not forget that yes, I am an immortal, but alas, here I remain powerless. Wasted potential, I believe is what my father described it as.” Tethys gazed out the window, watching the gardeners below clip freshly sprouted daffodils and tulips. Sometimes she wished, more than anything, to live out the simple life of a city green thumb. She wondered if, in another life, she’d have a cottage somewhere on the outskirts of the city. Maybe she’d marry someone who loved her endlessly. Maybe there’d be a couple of children, one with golden hair, muddying the freshly cleaned kitchen tiles.
It didn’t matter, though. That life was a daydream, farther than the edge of their world. But still, she watched those gardeners as they rolled twine around the harvested blooms and carried on about their day. A subtle cough from her closest friend brought her plummeting back to the frigid reality she was prisoner to.
“Let us discuss lighter things,” Jaide suggested, offering a refilled chalice to her. Tethys took the crystalline glass and drained it before finding a seat on the settee.
“And whatlighter thingsshall we speak of?” Tethys asked, grinning as the wine numbed the dagger-like thoughts assaulting her mind.
“Well, for starters, you can enlighten me on what exactly is occurring between you and Lieutenant Lusty Eyes.” Jaide, beneath loose locks of midnight curls, threw her a pointed look. A slight curl at the corner of her thin lips made Tethys snort, and she reached for the wine decanter once more.
“I’m not certain I know what you’re talking about,” the goddess said, her cheeks heating at the memories of Araes’s lips against hers.
“The blush on your skin suggests otherwise,” Jaide snorted. Her eyes wrinkled with concern, but the lady-in-waiting blinked it away. That would be a conversation for another day.
“Jaide, don’t fret. It was just a one-time occurrence,” Tethys said reassuringly.
“Right...” Jaide curled her lip. Tethys took a sip from her glass, laughing off her friend’s apparent disapproval.
“Can you help with my dress?” Tethys asked, pivoting the conversation before it danced dangerously close to things she wasn’t yet sure she was ready to unleash into the world. Feelings she hadn’t yet explored or reflected upon.
“Absolutely. It’s in the wardrobe, right?” Jaide set her glass down with a clink and popped to her feet. Grinning, she unfurled the smooth, shimmering material from its hanger and helped Tethys into it.
The gown, Tethys decided, needed to make a biggerstatement than the ball itself, and so she sent Arissa on a mission to seek out a dressmaker with a certain type of reputation. The rarest of golden silk, woven and dyed in a southern, cliffside village, caressed the delicacies of her silhouette like a lover’s touch. Golden clasps, adorned with citrine and pink quartz, rested on each shoulder like armor, securing the flowing material in place. The neckline of delicate drapery plunged to just below her navel, leaving little to the imagination.
“My lady…” Jaide sucked in a breath as she took in the sheer feminine beauty of the dress.
“I know. Isn’t it perfect?” Tethys grinned.
“Well if you weren’t turning heads already, you absolutely will be now,” she said, clasping her hands together.
“If my siblings attend, I assure you, Jaide, they won’t be turned in my direction,” Tethys said, smoothing her skirts in place. “I’ll help you get dressed, then we should summon Lieutenant Lusty Eyes. I’m sure the time he’s left me unguarded has already driven him near insane,” Tethys said, a devilish grin spreading across her lips.
“I’m surprised he hasn’t splintered through the door already. But let’s enjoy a final drink first. Alone time with my dearest friend is a rarity these days,” Jaide replied, giggling and pouring them both a final round.
Chapter 39
Araes waited in the foyer for Tethys and her lady-in-waiting. He’d made an exception this time when she requested a moment alone with Jaide to discuss the events of this morning and get ready for Ostara in the privacy of her own chambers. With preparations well underway for the evening’s festivities, the council had requested increased presence of city guards and the Venian military for the night.
Araes secured the scabbard at his side. His dress uniform, black trousers and matching overcoat adorned with gold buttons, was immaculate. Only because he realized that the last time he’d worn it, he stood beside his mother and sister as they watched Enyo being laid to rest.
The collar scratched at his neck, drawing blood from the hairline slice along his jaw from shaving earlier.Fuck, this was uncomfortable. Not just the heavy fabric, far too thick for the moderate climate, or the stiff shining boots a quarter size too small, but the memories now laying siegeto his mind.
He sighed, watching the hands of the grandfather clock overlooking the foyer tick by.
“Lieutenant Araes, I hoped you’d still be here,” a voice, all too familiar, boomed from behind him. Araes jerked forward at a firm hand patting him across the back. Captain Theos steadied him before he lost his footing.
“Captain, my apologies. I wasn’t expecting you’d be home from the front lines for this.” Araes cringed at the squealing leather boots as he straightened himself.
“The 15th relieved us earlier this week, and I lost a bet over a game of cards with a trainee, so here I am while he drowns himself in ale with the other soldiers,” Theos said, the crease of his scarred brow wrinkling with casual conversation. The captain loosed a whistle as he took in the foyer. “You know, I always imagined the manor would be grand, but this is incredible.”
“I know, sir. It took me a while to get used to the down mattress after being acclimated to the soldier’s racks,” Araes replied, watching his commanding officer gape like a trout.
“Oh, poor you, Lieutenant. Losing sleep over a bed too soft and sheets too silky?” Theos joked. His casual demeanor was a stark contradiction to the normally commanding tone.
Araes chuckled, but suspicion now crawled up his spine like a spider. Theos wasn’t the type to put his rank aside for anyone, especially a trainee. He thought of the page he’d risked a glance at so many months ago and chose his words carefully.
“I know…I know…our fathers probably roll in their graves watching us sip wine and speak like politicians,” Araes humored, retrieving two glasses of wine from the cabinette. He handed the second to Theos, who snorted and took a long swig.
