Oh, he had emotions. He had an entire glacier of them, locked away and hidden because they were likely too painful to experience out in the open.
“You said this morning that you’re not the person people think you are, right?”
He refilled his glass, avoiding eye contact.
“Maybe he’s not the person you think he is, either.”
Deep blue eyes rose to match her stare, and he released a great sigh. “Maybe you’re right.” He cupped her shoulder, squeezing once before he returned to their trainer.
CHAPTER 18
SEAN
“Should we be worried about that?” Sean asked Cathaire, nodding toward Anna and David leaving the training area together.
The Blademaster let out a soft chuckle. “You’ve met her. What do you think?”
Sean busied himself with removing the leather bracers while Isobel chatted with Autumn nearby. “If what they say about his magic is true, then I think he has the ability to make someone do anything he wants, and I don’t like the idea of her alone with him. She’s a nice person. She doesn’t deserve to be manipulated.”
Cathaire hummed. “Anna is a smart woman. I trust her judgment. And he’s being watched, you know. If he steps out of line, the Seelie Queen won’t stand for it.”
“So I’ve been told.” Sean looked up again, only to find that David had disappeared with Anna among the crowds. “Doesn’t it bother you? Him getting close to her?”
Cathaire was watching—or rather, scowling at—a couple of devas spar nearby, but his puzzled expression turned toward Sean.He made a Sign that Sean interpreted as confusion. “Why would it bother me?”
“Aren’t you two—” Sean made some weird motion with his hands that made Cathaire laugh.
“What? Lovers? Mates?”
Not the words Sean would’ve used, but okay. “Something like that.”
“We are not,” Cathaire said, still laughing. “She’s a member of my tribe, and she’s been my Apprentice for years. We’re…friends, I suppose you could say.” He made another Sign.
“Oh.” Sean was a little taken aback. They’d seemed so familiar with each other. “My mistake.”
“It’s the Pixie Effect,” Cathaire said, Signing again. “It’s what makes it seem as if we’re all closer than we are.”
Sean raised a brow, mimicking the Sign. “The Pixie Effect?”
The man cupped Sean’s neck, sparking a friendly vibe down his spine. “That. The network.”
Sean’s bewilderment translated straight to his face.
Cathaire only shook his head. “A lesson for another time. My true mate awaits.”
A pixie woman stepped into the clearing. She had long black curls and a blue dress that dragged the forest floor. Flowers made a crown in her hair. She bowed deeply. “Blessed be,Ashanta.”
Cathaire stood close but didn’t touch her as he made the introductions. “Caden Sidera, this is my Leyla. My Leyla, meet the heir of Sidera.”
She extended a hand, and he grasped her wrist in the pixie fashion, now unsurprised by the small shock as their skin made contact—the Pixie Effect. Her kiss on his temple was a mere graze. “’Tis an honor. I shall not keep you, but I thank you for being kind to my Cathaire.”
Was she expecting him to be cruel? Sean switched to his charming smile. “He makes it easy.”
With a twinkle in her eye, she bowed again. Isobel sidled up toSean’s side, kissing him quickly to ease away any bruises. A holler from the clearing’s edge drew their attention, and Sean startled at the mass of pixies congregating there.
“Blessed be the Savior!” one shouted to a chorus of cheers. Their smiling faces coaxed Sean to join, but still overwhelmed from the onslaught of the previous evening, he hesitated.
“Oi!” Cathaire yelled. “Leave him be, you bunch of vultures. He’s a man, not a statue to ogle!”
