Page 5 of Broken Hearted (Cursed Fae #3)

Adrien

I closed my eyes, letting the evening sun warm my face as the ocean breeze ran cool fingers over my exposed skin. Inhaling, salty air filled my lungs, making me feel alive and rejuvenated.

I was made for the sea. I always felt that was true. I loved the sound of the gulls calling overhead and the waves as the surf rolled in. I loved the feeling of wet sand beneath my bare feet and the smell of brine. There was nowhere else in all of Ethereum that I felt as at home, as myself, as the shores of my kingdom, or when I was at the bow of my ship, cutting through crystal clear surf.

A smile bloomed on my face as I felt a presence come up behind me.

She was here.

A delicate hand appeared on my shoulder, and a moment later, her fingers caressed the side of my throat. I tilted my head, giving her more access to the sensitive skin. When she placed a barely there kiss on the back of my neck, delicious awareness ran down my spine, and need formed in my gut.

Reaching up, I grabbed hold of my fiancée’s hand and turned, ready to take her in my arms, but when I looked into her eyes, they were ice blue instead of brown, and her hair was raven feather black instead of chestnut.

A bolt of pure adrenaline shot through my system, and I took a half step back.

Isolde?

I must have said her name out loud because the beauty in front of me nodded and smiled. Like the lure of a siren’s call, my eyes were drawn to her lush, berry-red lips. The urge to taste them was intense, overpowering my common sense, and so I stepped forward, tugging her to me at the same time.

As her body pressed against mine, a sense of rightness settled on me, wiping traces of any other woman from my thoughts.

Isolde was in my arms, right where she belonged. No one else existed but her. No one else mattered but her.

I let my gaze drift over her features, as if drinking them in for the first time. Her high cheekbones, her straight and small nose. Her delicately pointed ears. The dark eyebrows and inky lashes that framed her striking pale blue eyes.

She was beautiful beyond compare, and a possessiveness that I’d never felt before swelled in my chest as I gazed at her.

Reaching up, I traced a finger around the shell of her ear, and her slight shiver brought a lazy smile to my mouth. I dragged my finger from her ear to her cheek and down to her chin, and then gently tipped her head back, aligning that irresistible mouth with mine.

I’d held myself back long enough. I didn’t just want to feel her mouth pressed against my own— I needed it.

I leaned down, anticipation humming through my veins stronger and more palpable than even my magic. Deep inside I knew what would happen when our lips touched, what it would mean, and I welcomed the revelation.

Just as my mouth pressed against her own, putting an end to the sweet torture, I awoke with a start.

A fine layer of moisture coated my skin as I blinked against the morning sun, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

A dream. It was just a dream.

But it had felt so real. I hadn’t dreamed in forever. Since before I started taking Elisana’s tea.

I closed my eyes, trying to remember the details of the vision, but they’d already started to slip away from me like sand through an hourglass.

Isolde. The beach. An almost kiss.

I shook my head and reopened my eyes. The coastal breeze blowing through the windows did nothing to cool me, and I tossed the thin blanket off and got to my feet. I was grateful at that moment that Elisana was waiting to share a bed with me until we were married. I wasn’t sure I could look her in the eye right now. Lumbering to the bathroom, my mind was still half in a haze as I splashed cold water on my face.

When I looked up at myself in the mirror, my eyes had a feverish look in them, and my skin was flushed. Even as the dream was fading from memory I could somehow still feel the press of Isolde’s body against mine, the softness of her skin beneath my fingertip. Her scent, freshly fallen snow mixed with mulled spices, still tickled my nose.

“What are you doing, Adrien?” I asked my reflection.

Groaning, I pressed the heels of my hands against my eyes, trying to banish thoughts of the black-haired beauty from my mind and replace them with Elisana, my fiancée, my love. But that didn’t work, so I filled the clawfoot tub up with cold water and submerged myself in an icy bath, hoping to shock Isolde from my system. I forced myself to stay in the tub until thoughts of the Winter princess had faded to the recesses of my mind where they belonged.

I didn’t have any official duties to attend to today, so after I bathed, I threw on a casual linen shirt and breeches and then went down to the breakfast room where Elisana and I ate most mornings.

When I arrived, she was already there, seated at her usual place to the right of the head of the table, waiting for me. Spotting me, she got to her feet and rushed over, throwing herself at me. Bringing my arms up and around her, I held her tightly, doing my best not to think about how different she felt in them than Isolde had in my dream.

Perhaps I hadn’t stayed in the tub long enough after all?

Going up on her tiptoes, Elisana gave me a quick kiss, and I ignored the acid feeling that churned in my gut. It was probably just because my stomach was empty.

“What are your plans today, my love?” I asked as we both settled into our seats.

“Well,” she said with a smile. “I’m working on more wedding planning. I’m determined to make sure this wedding is the largest and most extravagant that Ethereum has ever seen. At least twice as large as Dawn and Zander’s.”

Something twisted in my gut. “Does it really matter how large or lavish the wedding is?” I asked, uncomfortable that it sounded like she was trying to one-up my brother and his wife. If it were up to me, we would just marry on the beach with only the officiant and the two of us. I had no need for such pomp and circumstance.

Elisana frowned, a sour look settling on her face. “Yes, it matters,” she snapped, and it startled me, but she immediately wiped the look away and smiled demurely as she reached forward and took my hand. “The size of the wedding, darling, should mirror the love and devotion we have toward one another. Are you saying that your love for me isn’t very big?”

“Of course that’s not what I’m saying,” I said, feeling a pinprick of annoyance rise up inside. But then I took a calming breath.

What did it matter if she wanted a large wedding or not? I was in the position to provide her with what she desired, and if it made her happy to invite half of Ethereum to witness our joining, then why stand in the way?

I lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “If you want a large wedding, then that’s what you shall have,” I said, and her smile grew.

Releasing her hand, I picked up my fork and speared a strawberry. “Has there been any news from my brother?”

Elisana’s brows bunched together in confusion. “Your brother?” she asked with a head tilt.

“Zane,” I clarified. “I just wanted to know how things are going with him.” And Isolde. “If he and Isolde have made any progress with the Shadow Heart. I very much want to see this curse ended before it reaches our shores.”

Elisana’s face pinched at the mention of the Winter princess. It didn’t escape my notice that Elisana was the jealous sort. A flash of guilt went through me when I recalled my dream, but I shook it off.

It was just a dream. Not something I had control over. I had never been unfaithful in a relationship and would never be. She had nothing to worry about.

“No. I don’t believe we’ve received any word from Zane,” she said. “Don’t you think he and Isolde will make the most perfect couple, though?”

The acid in my gut roiled more aggressively. Glancing up, I caught Elisana watching me carefully, so I forced a smile and nodded. “Yes. I’m happy for my brother. Out of all of us, he’s desired love the most. He deserves happiness.” But to be honest, I didn’t think he and Isolde would make the perfect couple. I always pictured Zane with someone soft-tempered, and I didn’t get the impression that was Isolde. Perhaps that wasn’t fair since I didn’t really know her, but in my gut, she just didn’t seem to be his match. I’d never tell my fiancée that though: she was short-tempered herself and might not take it well.

Elisana’s gaze turned shrewd, and she asked abruptly, “Did you drink your tea last night, darling?”

I shook my head. “No, but I had no trouble sleeping,” I said, willing my mind not to go back to my dream. It was only fragments now, but the emotions I felt still rushed to the surface, heating my blood. I cleared my throat. “I don’t think that I need that concoction anymore. Perhaps you’ve cured me, my love?”

Alarm flashed across Elisana’s features, but she quickly covered it with a smile and a light laugh. “Don’t be silly. Remember how troubled your nights were before you started taking the tonic? One night’s sleep does not erase the problem.” Pushing back from her seat, she rose. “I’ll go make you a cup since you missed your last dose. Then you can take a nice afternoon nap.” And she breezed out of the room before I had a chance to argue.

I glanced out the windows as I waited for Elisana to return, absently taking bites of my eggs and toast. I was restless, but I didn’t know why.

Perhaps it was the curse slowly working its way through our world that weighed heavily on my mind. It was certainly cause for concern. Both Zander and Stryker had sent reports of the curse’s destruction in their kingdoms. Zander and his people were even getting ready to take refuge in our kingdom.

Despite their best efforts, neither of my brothers had been able to find a way to cure the unseelie afflicted with the magic illness, and now the curse was spreading through their land as well. Blackening their harvests and turning the fresh water to sludge and their crops to ash. If it wasn’t stopped, it was only a matter of time before it descended on the Southern Kingdom as well.

But as disturbing as the curse was, it felt like there was something else causing me unease. Something sinister that was hidden from me, which nagged at my subconscious. If I were being honest with myself, it had been bothering me for a while. Deep inside, my instincts screamed at me to run, but I hadn’t been able to figure out why and from what.

Elisana returned with a smile and a cup cradled between her hands. “Here you go,” she said as she placed the cup in front of me before returning to her seat. “You’ll feel much better after you’ve finished this.” Her expectant gaze stayed fastened to my face as she waited for me to drink.

I frowned at it. Tea for sleep in the morning? Did that make sense? I usually had a cup in the late afternoon and another before bedtime, but never in the morning.

My mind felt a little foggy. Elisana reached out and stroked my cheek, and the fog cleared. I would drink this tea and all would be well.

Picking up the cup, I gave her my thanks and then took a sip of the warm liquid, trying not to wince. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, but it tasted awful. Bitter, no matter how much honey was added to sweeten it, and there were even times I wasn’t sure I could keep it down.

As the tea slid down my throat and into my stomach, a familiar hazy feeling overcame me. The next sip wasn’t so bad, and when I looked over at Elisana, a rush of love for her started to flow through me.

“Darling,” Elisana started, and I hung on her every word. “I was thinking. Perhaps we should move the wedding up. I don’t know if I can wait a whole three weeks to be with you.”

Her eyes were so beautiful in the morning light. Her hair, so soft and glossy. When she smiled, it was as if the sun itself shone on me.

I found myself nodding, not even remembering what her question was, but knowing that I needed to make her happy. When a grin lifted the corners of her mouth, I knew I’d done just that.