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“By the stars, it’s amazing! I’m so glad that they did!”

Roar laughed. “Chocolate cake and stories entice you. I enjoy learning the small things.”

I grinned. I really did enjoy making fae friends for the first time, though Roar was not so fast to offer details about himself. I usually discovered what I found most interesting by accident.

“I should actually be careful with the cake. The dresses you bought for me are getting tight.” I’d been curvy for a blood slave, but with a more decadent diet, I learned I had been nowhere near as lush as I should have been. Just days in this court and my bust, hips, and belly had swollen.

“We will look for new dresses.” Roar replied, his eyebrows knitting together. “You’re beautiful, and I will not have any part of you disappearing.”

“I’m not used to that sort of talk,” I admitted. “Vampires prefer more slender females. They spoke of it openly.”

He frowned. “Vampires are fools if they look down on beauty like yours. You’ll find most at court will agree with me, I’m sure.”

I smiled and continued eating and enjoying the cake, as did Roar.

Once both of our plates were clean, Roar stood and offered his hand.

I rose and looked at him. He had something to say, I could tell.

“I lied by omission today,” he said, which was not at all what I’d been expecting.

“About what?” I arched an eyebrow.

“Where I went.”

“Oh?”

“As mentioned, I had a meeting with the Merchant’s Guild, but I also went to get this.” From his pocket, Roar pulled out a box.

My lips pursed. The green box was so small that it left me wondering what he could have gotten that would fit inside.

“As my fiancée, you should wear it.” Roar opened the box to reveal a ring of gold holding the largest ruby I’d ever seen. I sucked in a breath, realizing what he meant.

“You didn’t have to.” My fingers trembled slightly at the idea of wearing such a ring. Even though we weren’t really engaged, the ring had to have cost a fortune.

“I did, and when we’re done with all this,” a frown marred his face as he spoke the words, “you can keep it. As a gift.”

I shook my head at him as my eyes widened. “Roar, it’s too much.”

“It’s not. It’s what would be expected for my fiancée, and that’s without others knowing that you’re putting your life on the line to help me. Should King Magnus find out about our deal, he will be furious, and he is quite a dangerous fae. A ring is nothing to the risk you’re taking on.” He pulled the ring from the box, and the ruby glittered beautifully in the candlelight. “Try it on?”

Because I couldn’t help myself, I held out my right hand.

Roar noticed the trembling and smiled. “No need to fear a piece of jewelry, Neve.”

I gasped as he slipped the band on my ring finger, and surprisingly, it fit. “It’s so beautiful.”

“Just like its owner.”

Butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Sometimes Roar became so sweet that it was easy to forget that this was all an arrangement.

“How did you guess the size?” I asked. “Not even I would know what to say to a jeweler.”

“I didn’t.”

“Excuse me?” I was certain I’d know if someone had measured my finger. I was not that light a sleeper.

“The ring is dwarf made. They are masters of metal and can infuse magic into it. This band will adjust its size if your finger grows or shrinks.”