“Fine,” Isla murmured. “You two go get fancy. Drystan, let’s see if we can find the master of spells.”
The servants reached us, and the notion of having dinner with Antares and Bayne…and Kellan…suddenly sank into my gut and tied my intestines in a knot.
“I don’t want to get fancy,” Kellan growled beneath his breath. His dark brows narrowed as the servants waited for us to follow.
I suppressed the urge to laugh, my eyes scanning his rugged face and cutting to the faded stain on the front lapel of his bright blue coat. I’d left that for him after I’d fallen from Tempest last year.
His eyes followed mine as I straightened his jacket. His lips kicked up into a smirk as if recalling the incident.
“I’ll see you soon,” I murmured, reaching up onto my toes and planting a soft kiss on his lips.
Black.Always black.
I pinched the slippery fabric through my fingers. The subtle wings of pixies were woven into the beaded designs of flowers that sparkled in the evening light, floating through the open window.
Queen Antares knew how to send a message. The unlucky creatures were hated in Lotrennia.Death follows their flight, she told me last year. And always black for me. For the darkness and death that lived within me.
The truth was, though it wasn’t my favorite color, I loved black. I looked damn good in it, I realized, as I scanned my reflection in the long mirror built into the wide trunk of a silver tree. The sparkly material wrapped snuggly around my breasts, leaving my shoulders bare, and hugged my hips before splaying into a soft pool at my feet.
I twisted, letting a little appreciation slip through my nerves as I spied my ass in the mirror, rounding just beneath the sheer cape-like train that stretched several feet behind me.
The elves had twisted my hair into a knot of waves, several long whisps hanging just above my bare back. A dark line of charcoal highlighted my eyes, and a few swipes of rosy red painted my lips.
My hands went to my hips as I tapped my foot.Black.
A strand of Transcindiel notes flitted up from my chasm of powers, curious as I examined the color. I formed a question in my mind, and the golden power inched forward before slipping from my fingers and circling the fabric hugging my body.
Sea blue, perhaps?My mind wandered to my date.
Energy sputtered from my body as golden Transcindiel sparks flitted from my palms and wrapped around my form. They bounced off the fabric, dissipating into the air surrounding me as I tried to transform the color of the dress. No, I shook my head. Too different. The change must be anudge…
Golden light exploded in my vision, and I blinked my eyes open. Satisfaction bloomed as I scanned the light gray dress, now highlighted with the black, beaded design. I scanned the pixie wings, now feeling a solidarity with the creatures the queen hated. I didn’t mind those.
Violet and indigotwilight filtered into the round room as I reached the top of the spiraling stairs. The beauty of the room would have stolen my breath if the pirate lord standing in the center hadn’t first.
Kellan’s dark eyes were wide as they landed on me, his nostrils flaring as his chest expanded with a deep inhale. The elves had draped him in raven, snug formal pants, the expensive fabric hugging his long, muscular thighs. His hands rested casually in the pockets. A matching formal jacket wrapped around his broad shoulders. A striking line of silver embroidery bordered its edges, disappearing into the subtle designs stretched throughout, only visible when they caught the light. The top three buttons of the light gray shirt beneath remained undone, and the snaking lines of his neck tattoos ran down to the top of his tanned chest.
Well, fuck me. I love black.
My throat bobbed as I paused at the top of the steps. Kellan’s lips parted as his eyes drew a long, slow line from where my dress pooled at my feet to my chest, lingering on the length of my neck before meeting my gaze.
“Bonscaíh,” he breathed, extending a hand to me.
“Lyvia,” Queen Antares’s sing-song voice crooned from the opposite end of the room.
I froze, my arm outstretched as my hair stood on end. Emotions swarmed as events from last year surged forward: her manipulation of our air oath, ensnaring Bayne in her delicate, cunning web, my training sessions, her savage treatment of Tiberius, her disgusting greed. The monster lurked in a stunning body of power, hiding a tangle of thorns and festering rot.
My gaze remained frozen on Kellan’s. His jaw clenched for a moment, but he kept his eyes on me as he ignored the queen of Lotrennia and took four long strides across the twinkling room.
Kellan’s fingers slipped beneath my palm as he reached me, his head dipping as he brought the top of my hand to his lips. Dark eyes gazed up from beneath narrowed brows as he kissed my hand, and an intoxicating wave of cedar and leather surrounded me. The pirate lord’s easy warmth wrapped itself around me, laying a calming hand on my frantic heart as he straightened and pulled me toward him.
“You’re exquisite,” he said, his clear voice carrying across the open room. Heat crept to my cheeks, and Kellan’s face softened as he ran a thumb over my hand before twining our fingers.
Bodies shuffled in behind the queen, and I finally lifted my gaze across the room. Bayne’s stare darted to our joined hands, his lips pursing for a glimpsing moment. The air pulsed with power as he took a step forward, and my throat bobbed. A golden crown twined with living vines and tiny white flowers adorned his dark hair, which had been slicked back. The king was draped in a forest green formal suit, the shadow of dark ferns snaking up the sides of his jacket.
Ravindra green eyes slid from Kellan’s clasped hand in mine, up the darkness displayed on my bare arms and neck, and finally to my face, where he coolly masked the lurking suspicion that had narrowed his brows.
“Please,” Queen Antares crooned. “Sit.” Her ivory, manicured hands gestured to the small glass table in the center of the room, where four servants pulled out white, wooden chairs.
