“I love Daegan like a brother, but he’s never had a girlfriend in his life. He has fuck buddies. Not at the top of his priorities.”
Her eyes narrow in on him more, and I almost feel bad as I watch her tough exterior break and show the smallest flash of hurt. “Is that what he says?”
“No. He would never. But you know it’s the truth. Ditch his ass if you don’t like it.”
“I do like it. Maybe we use each other, have you ever thought about that?”
I observe the very personal interaction, and it seems they’ve forgotten I’m here for a moment. Her gaze flies to mine before she stands and storms off into the deep abyss of bookshelves.
I raise my eyebrows at him in silence, but he simply shakes his head then rolls his neck.
I sigh and then redirect the conversation back to the point I was trying to make before we veered far off the path. “I’m assuming he sent you to check up on me. Make sure I’m not plotting some grand scheme he created in his delusional head.”
He folds his arms and nods his head, grinning again. “Yep.” Both of his cheeks dimple. He’s handsome, with his rich golden bronze skin and short tight curls. He also has a strange facial piercing. A small, delicate black hoop through his nostril. I don’t hate it.
But then I imagine Adrian with one and it makes me laugh on the inside. It would look ridiculous on him.
“And what could possibly keep him so busy here that he had to send his minions to look after him?” I say it in a light, teasing tone, because I don’t want to make an enemy of Raef. I think I might even like him.
“Your father. And his father. They had a meeting.”
“Oh.” I had no idea.
“Nothing important, I’m sure. Just diplomacy, and all that stuff,” he says with a sigh as he leans back in his chair.
“Right…” I glance up from the book that I keep pretending I’m trying to read, but my present company keeps proving to be far more interesting. “And who are you to them? A hand? A guard?”
He rubs his chin, averting his gaze. “That’s complicated. A friend, at first. Now, I suppose the most accurate thing you could call me is his personal guard.”
“And you want more,” I could be off, but I say it as a statement, not a question.
He looks at me, his lips turning up at the side. “We used to be a much more… organized people. Before the war, as you may know…” His eyes flick to my book in front of me, then back to me. “We were our own kingdom. Daegan’s great-great-grandfather was king. Had that continued, he’d be prince now.We do still look at them as our unofficial leaders, but, of course, the elves no longer allow us to be our own kingdom. The elf king has been the only king in all these lands since. Everyone bows to him.”
“But you don’t agree with it?”
He quirks a brow at me. “We live very, very far away. In a land most of you have never even seen. Your father has never even visited. Yet he governs us all? Why?”
“You’re speaking very freely to the daughter of the king,” I say softly, unthreatening.
He shrugs. “I’m pretty good at reading people. I think I can speak openly with you. Besides… what have I really got to lose?”
We sit in silence for a moment as I search his fiery eyes, and I debate opening up further, to see if I can potentially have an ally in him, but a voice interrupts us, causing me to jump at the sound of it.
“Knew I’d find you here.” It’s Meela.
“You were looking for me? Why?” I ask. I glance at Raef. “She never comes in here,” I explain to him with a lower voice.
“I heard that.”
“Well, am I wrong?”
“No.” she takes the seat that a very angry Yara vacated, plopping her heels up on the table.
I shoot her a glare. “Get your dirty boots off the table.”
She scowls at me, but removes her feet, then runs a hand through her always shiny, straight, sleek black hair. Meela doesn’t like to sweat. She adores the finer things like soaps and fragrances, and she loves her nightly baths. It’s one of the perks of living in the castle as the daughter of the king’s hand. Running water, and countless water elementals who can warm the water supply with a wave of the hand. It’s one of the few things I find myself useful for as far as my water magic goes. Truthfully, I really don’t use it for much else on a day-to-day basis.
I know that the armies train using their elemental magic, but there hasn’t been a real threat to us in centuries. We’ve grown comfortable, complacent, and dare I say—arrogant.
