Page 8 of Chivalry in the Meadow (Hope Runs Deep #2)

“Milords and milady’s,” he said. “Behold Flamethrower Flinn, the man who tames fire.” Then he stepped back out of the circle and disappeared into the crowd as Finn moved forward.

Mia felt her stomach flutter as anticipation rippled through the crowd. She’d read about fire breathers in books, but seeing one in person breathing fire was another thing entirely and knowing him personally took it to a whole other level.

Finn raised his hands, and the chatter fell quiet. He grinned; a rogue’s smile that made him look far older than his twenty-nine years. “Ladies, lords, and little ones,” he announced, “Behold the oldest of magics. Fire, itself, bent to my will.”

A torch flared to life in his hand, and gasps rose around the circle.

He dipped a rod into the brass jug, then lifted it to his lips. The moment he blew, a plume of fire burst from his mouth. The flames curled into the twilight sky like a dragon’s breath.

Mia clutched Lilly’s arm. “Oh my gosh!” she whispered, half horrified, half enthralled.

The crowd cheered as Finn repeated the feat, spinning in a circle so that the flames seemed to lick outward in all directions. He danced with the fire, twirling torches that left streaks of gold in the air, before finally tipping his head back, and letting a rod slide slowly into his mouth.

Mia winced; certain he would burn himself, but when he drew the rod back out, the flame was extinguished, and his smile remained unscathed.

He winked at them.

“Is he insane?” Mia whispered to Lilly as the crowd cheered, “Huzzah!” and clapped.

Lilly only laughed, clapping loudly, as Finn took his bow.

But Mia wasn’t the only one watching. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Sir Cedric lingering, just beyond the rope, the torchlight glinting off his long blonde hair.

He was certainly a fine man to look at.

And she enjoyed looking at him.

Tonight, his arms were crossed, his expression amused, as though Finn’s performance was little more than a clever parlor trick. Yet when his gaze slid to hers, it lingered, warm and knowing, as if he’d caught her delight and meant to capture it for himself.

Her cheeks warmed instantly.

Then she noticed another figure in the shadows, just beyond the torchlight’s glow.

Sir Alaric.

Where Sir Cedric was golden and easy with his smile, Sir Alaric’s dark eyes fixed on the fire with a calculating intensity.

The flames reflected in his irises, giving him the look of a man who had stared into danger far deeper than Finn’s act.

He said nothing, but Mia could feel his attention heavy on her, a silent pull that made her pulse quicken.

After the crowd began to scatter, moving toward their next entertainment, and he’d finished answering questions and listening to comments, Finn motioned the women over.

“Well?” he said. “Did I impress you?”

“Impress? You nearly gave me a heart attack,” Mia said, but she couldn’t hide her smile.

“That’s the point.” He winked. “Come on, I’ll show you how it works.”

Behind the rope, he knelt by his equipment. “First rule. Never, ever try this, unless you’ve been trained. Second rule.” He held up the brass jug. “This isn’t oil from the kitchen, it’s a special fuel that burns cleaner and slower. Still dangerous, but safer than you’d think.”

“I will not be trying this,” Mia said with a shiver.

“Maybe I would and maybe I wouldn’t,” Lilly said. “But if I did, I’d never be doing this in public. The last thing a lady needs is for men to see her swallowing things in public.”

Finn laughed hard. “Indeed,” he said. “I’d be fighting the men off of you, if you did.”

Mia had turned pink at the turn the conversation and taken and was relieved when he prepared to demonstrate for them.

Finn demonstrated how he dipped the rods, how he kept the flame a certain distance from his lips, and even how he held his breath and angled the torch when swallowing the rod.

“It’s all sleight of hand and timing,” he explained.

“Make the crowd believe you’re in more danger than you are. That’s the trick.”

A smooth voice cut in. “Or you could simply fight with steel in your hand, and danger at your throat. Far less smoke and mirrors.”

Mia turned.

Sir Cedric had stepped closer, his tone teasing, his smile sharp enough to be a challenge.

Finn snorted. “As if what you do in the lists isn’t scripted. However, I’ll leave the swordplay to you, knight. Because fire,” he smiled. “Fire listens to me.”

A low voice joined them, edged with quiet warning. “Fire does not listen,” Sir Alaric said, stepping forward at last. “It devours. You’re a fool if you think otherwise.” His eyes flicked to Mia, and for a heartbeat, it felt as though his words were meant for her, as much as for Finn.

Sir Cedric’s grin widened. “Ever the poet, Sir Alaric. Do you brood over every flame, or only when a lady is watching?”

Sir Alaric’s dark gaze shifted to him, and the tension in the air thickened. “Some of us don’t need theatrics to impress,” he said quietly, the weight of his tone like steel drawn in the dark.

Sir Cedric’s smile sharpened. “And some of us know when a lady enjoys being dazzled.” He offered Mia a playful bow, his blue eyes never leaving hers.

Mia’s breath caught, torn between the warmth in Sir Cedric’s gaze, and the intense gravity in Sir Alaric’s.

The air between the three men crackled with a tension as potent as Finn’s torch.

Mia stood caught between them. One knight’s golden charm, the other’s shadowed intensity.

And Finn’s defiant pride. It left her feeling as if the sparks hadn’t quite faded with the show and at any moment might start a dangerous fire.

Finn, sensing the current between the two knights, gave a laugh. “Careful, gentlemen. You’re both standing too close to my torches. You might get burned.”

But it wasn’t the torches Mia feared. It was the heat gathering between the three men, as if a fight were brewing, and the way it seemed, somehow, to center on her.

Lilly said, “That was a great show, Finn. The crowd loved it.”

With her words, the building tension in the air eased, a little.

“Thanks, cousin,” he said.

“Come on, Mia, there’s a vendor booth I want to show you,” Lilly said.

“All right,” Mia said. “Finn, I enjoyed the show. Thanks for inviting us to the Faire.”

“You’re quite welcome, milady,” Finn said, and then bowed to her.

Lilly threaded her arm through Mia’s and nodded to the two knights. “Gentlemen.”

“Ladies,” the men spoke in unison, and each bowed.

Lanterns flickered along the paths between tents as the women walked away.

From their silence, the men were likely watching them go.

Mia and Lilly didn’t look back to see what they were doing.

“I’m hungry,” Lilly said. “Are you?”

“Not really,” Mia said. Her appetite had fled with the feeling of a gathering fight.

Lilly glanced over her shoulder, then said, “It was getting tense back there.”

“Yes,” Mia agreed and took a breath, to exhale tension and to relax again.

“Perhaps it’s how good the food smells, making me hungry,” Lilly said.

“Perhaps.” Mia smelled the food too, but it wasn’t having the same effect upon her.

She tried to put the knights out of her mind to focus on enjoying the faire sights.

As they walked, they came upon a shallow fountain made of stone and trickling water.

“Look, that’s where those women dressed as fairies acted out stories earlier,” Mia said.

They’d passed them earlier in the day but had no time to stay and watch.

Many activities went on at the same time during the faire. Something for everyone.

“This is a lovely spot,” Mia said. “I think I’ll just wait by this fountain for you.”

“Okay. It is a good spot.” Lilly said. “Enjoy.” She headed off to find food.

Mia walked closer to the fountain.

The sound comforted her, and she daydreamed.

A voice like honey spoke behind her. “Ah, the faire lady of flame by the magic fountain.”

Mia turned to look.

Sir Cedric leaned against a tree, arms crossed, looking far too at ease in full armor.

Had he followed us?

“Lady of flame?” she asked, one brow arching.

He stood to his full height and stepped closer.

Oh my. He seems even taller now.

“Your hair,” he said. “Like coals just before they spark. Or a sunset that refuses to end.”

She laughed. “That’s a bit much, isn’t it?”

He tilted his head, amused. “Perhaps. But isn’t this the place for too much?”

“You don’t talk like a man from this century,” she said.

“I’m not sure I belong to any century.” He shrugged and gave her a dimpled smile.

Mia studied him.

He was all charm and poise, but something flickered behind those blue eyes.

Hunger? Tiredness?

He stepped closer. Not too close. Just enough to make her heartbeat pick up.

“You felt it too, didn’t you? When our eyes met during the parade?” His eyes sparkled.

And yet Mia hesitated because she was unsure of her feelings. “I’m not sure what I felt.”

He smiled softly. “Good. The best things begin in mystery.”

And just like that, he walked away, leaving her staring after him.

I feel like I’ve just met Prince Charming. Sir Cedric is everything I’ve dreamed of.

He hadn’t asked her name, but he had flirted with her.

Though she knew his name, she knew nothing else about him. But she wanted to.

She stared at the fountain and waited for Lilly to return from the food venders.

Soon Lilly came walking down the path, carrying a paper bowl with food in it.

“What did you end up getting?” Mia asked.

“Fish and chips,” Lilly said. “The vender is getting rid of his fish tonight.”

“Why?” Mia asked.

“He cooked too much, and it won’t keep for tomorrow, so he sold it half price.”

“Oh good,” Mia said. “Is the food expensive?”

“Some seems so,” Lilly said. “But a giant turkey leg, who sells those? Can’t price that.”

“True,” Mia said. “I’ve never seen them anywhere else to compare.”

“The meat pies looked good, and I almost got one, but then I heard the fish sale.”

“Is the fish any good?” Mia asked.

“It is,” Lilly held her bowl out. “Want some?”