Confused, I asked, “What’s to come?”
He smiled and looked down at his feet with his hands in the pockets of his formal attire. “All will be explained at dinner; come I will escort you; it’s nearly time.”
Antonias walked me up the stairs into the lavish estate where two doorkeepers opened the heavy doors adorned in decorative iron swirls, revealing an opulent foyer and formal dining room.
A different group of attendants swung open the glass French doors leading into the dining room, where the Viscount and Viscountess were already in their seats. Antonias bowed and I tried my best, but failed miserably, at a wobbly curtsy. The Fire Fae couple stood from their seats and eagerly greeted us.
His mother scurried to him; he met her halfway and they collided into a loving embrace. He hugged his mother so tightly her toes hovered abovethe ground.
“Antonias, my beautiful son, so wonderful to see you!” She exclaimed in a shaky voice.
“Your mother has cursed me every day that you have been gone for getting you a seat on the council.” A gruff male voice taunted.
“Oh, mother go easy on the old male, or he will be completely bald before soon.” Antonias replied teasingly.
“Yes, we all know dear Antonias is the favorite.” A shrewd female voice said from behind.
In walked a beautiful young blonde Fire Fae in her late teens, or early twenties, dressed in a lavish full gown of sparkling blues.
“Good to see you too Alina.” He replied to the young female.
She smiled lovingly and replied, “I’m glad you’re home big brother, since you left mother and father have been paying much closer attention to my social life and I don’t quite like the intrusion.”
The family shared a laugh while Alina hugged her brother. Antonias went to shake his father’s hand, to which he took and then pulled him into his chest for a big bear hug.
I stood in the background and watched as this loving family reunited, and a rush of emotions rolled through me—jealousy, happiness, sadness, and hope. This seemingly ordinary moment in so many people’s lives was something I never had: a family.
Absorbed in the happiness of reuniting with his family, Antonias suddenly recalled my presence and formally introduced me: "This is Lady Delilah from the human realm and chosen mate of Lord Titus."
Three sets of amber eyes looked to me in wide-eyed curiosity.
“So, it is true, you are a mortal…” The Viscountess said with a look of bewilderment across her face.
“Come have a seat Lady Delilah, you are our honored guest.” His father said.
I scooped the bulk of my periwinkle skirts to sit into the upholstered dining chair.
Fire sprites had laid out a spread of seafood and pasta that looked and smelled amazing. I waited for them to do the prayer I had seen Titus do so many times with his fist over his heart, but they didn’t. They didn’t pray here—not like in Embris. Instead, they immediately took to their silverware and began eating.
I cleared my throat to break the ice. “Your city is lovely, when I woke up on Amarilies, I wasn’t sure I was in the Kingdom of Flame anymore.”
The family exchanged glances and chuckled in their throats. “Thank you,—Yes the seaside region is different from the rest of the kingdom in more ways than one.” His father said ambiguously.
“The way the sea fills the streets…almost reminds me of…” I stopped and held my tongue, not knowing if comparing their city to that of their enemy’s capital would be an insult.
“Coralis Falls?! Have you been? My niece is an archivist there, absolutely gorgeous city—Stunning really!” His mother cut me off.
Her niece? She couldn’t mean Saraswati. She was a Water Fae, and to what Titus had told me, the Fae in Nevaehun only mated with their own elemental kind.
“Your niece? Saraswati?” I asked delicately.
All three sets of amber eyes lit up in my direction. “Why yes! You know of her?”
“Yes, we met, she’s...um…an acquaintance of Titus’s—, we were seeking information on the human realm, and he thought she could help.” I explained, providing just enough information.
“What a small realm!!” His mother said with delight in her voice.
Forks and knives clanked and the quiet lull fell once again. I cleared my throat and asked, “what kind of dragon is that out front, the sculpture in the fountain, I’ve never seen one like that before?”
