Page 17 of Journey to the Elderoak (Daughter of the Earth #2)

C asimir waited for Ava in the living room, having bathed and changed into a forest green tunic and brown pants.

He assumed she had a nightmare last night; could tell by the way she looked this morning and how she was more lost in her head today than usual. He’d been there before, having had nightmares about his own past, and knew what the trauma of war could do. And the war hadn’t even begun in earnest.

He yearned to take care of her again. Like he had in Saxumdale.

To hold and reassure her he would never let anyone harm her.

But since they’d returned, they both fell back into their roles of trainer and trainee.

And he’d pulled back because he could tell she was struggling and didn’t want to cross a boundary.

Ava’s door opened and he turned as she walked in. She looked stunning in a white asymmetrical dress with blue embroidery on the hem. Her long strawberry blonde waves were left unbound, and his heart skipped a beat when he looked into her bright green eyes .

She was so fucking beautiful.

“Ready?” Casimir asked, voice hoarse.

She nodded and he led them out of the suite. They made their way outside and headed to town before Ava broke the silence.

“Where are we going?”

“First, we’re going to grab something to eat,” he answered. “Then we’re going to The Leaping Frog.”

“What’s that?”

He glanced down. “You’ll see.”

“I’ll miss Jorrar’s lessons if we’re gone too long.”

“I already let him know. We’ve got all afternoon.”

Casimir’s boots echoed on the cobblestone streets as they weaved their way through town, passing by a bookstore and potions shop built among the towering trees.

Lanterns hung in the boughs where the sunlight didn’t penetrate, and birds sang from their nests.

Citizens passed them by, waving their greetings as they went about their daily errands.

After a while, they stopped before a small restaurant with a sign labeled Honeysuckle Teahouse .

A bell rang as he opened the intricately carved wooden door, and they stepped inside. Ava inhaled a sharp breath as she took in the space, and he smiled to himself at her reaction.

“This is beautiful,” she said.

“It’s my favorite place,” he replied, leading her to a table in the back.

Open windows along most of the walls allowed sunlight to illuminate the cozy eatery.

Vines and flowers hung from the ceiling among hundreds of bundles of dried herbs, a comforting aroma of lavender and mint hovering in the air.

Outside, a small stream wound its way through the shrubs and a group of russet-colored squirrels chased each other through the water .

They sat down as a woman with blue skin, long black hair and small horns approached to take their order.

“Hello, general,” she said in an accented voice.

“Good afternoon, Sapphira.” He gestured across the table. “This is Ava.”

“Oh! Your Highness,” she said, curtsying. “It’s so lovely to meet you.”

Ava gave her a smile. “Thank you. It’s nice to meet you too.”

“Would you like the usual, general?” Sapphira asked.

“Yes. Enough for both of us.”

She walked away and Casimir turned to Ava.

“You brought me to a tea house?” she asked. “This is amazing.”

He met her bright green eyes. “I know how much you love tea, so I thought it would be a nice distraction.”

“How did you know I love tea?”

“I pay attention.”

What he didn’t say was he paid attention to everything she did; the contented sigh she always released at her first sip of tea at breakfast, or the way her nose crinkled when she was frowning at him.

How she bit her lip when she was deep in thought or the way she twirled her hair around her finger when she was nervous.

She laughed. “Back home, I drank a lot of coffee. But you don’t have that here, so I’ve been drinking tea. I do love it.”

“What’s coffee?”

“Well…it’s a hot drink made from some type of dried bean from a tree. It’s hard to explain. But it’s brewed kind of like tea. You often mix it with milk or cream. I drank it every morning.”

“What does it taste like?”

“Hmm…bitter, but smooth and nutty.”

Sapphira returned and set down several teapots and a cup and saucer in front of each of them. “Your food should be ready shortly,” she said before bustling off .

“What kinds of tea are these?” Ava asked, excitement in her voice.

“That one is cinnabark, apple and honey; this is blue blossom and seaspice; and this one is sun mint, silver flower and borage,” he explained as he pointed to each one.

“Cas.” Ava looked at him. “This is…this is really nice of you.”

He smirked. “That’s the first time you’ve called me that.”

“What?”

“Cas.”

“Oh.” She tilted her head. “Is it?”

“Usually, you call me Casimir or general, or brute, or other colorful words…” Only his close friends called him Cas, but hearing it on Ava’s lips did something to him. He longed for her to do it again.

She laughed. “Well don’t get used to it, general.”

He shook his head and smiled as he poured her a cup of tea and one for himself.

Sapphira arrived with the food and set it down before disappearing again, Casimir thanking her. The plates in front of them were covered in tomato and cucumber sandwiches, cheeses, fruits and pastries. The perfect compliments to the flavors of their teas.

“Eat.” He took her plate and piled it with sandwiches.

“Bossy,” she replied before she took a sip. “This is so good.”

He set her plate in front of her and sipped his own tea, looking over his floral teacup at her. “You didn’t eat breakfast.”

“I—oh.” She paused. “I guess I didn’t. I was…distracted this morning.”

He served himself some food. “Because of your nightmare?”

Her eyes snapped to his. “I never told you I had a nightmare.”

“I used to have them too. I recognized that look on your face this morning. ”

Ava took a bite of a sandwich, remaining silent.

“Do you want to tell me what it was about?” he asked.

“Nope.”

“Fine,” he said, and changed the subject. “Do you like living in Mosshaven?”

“I’ve been here for I don’t even know how long, and you’re just now asking me this?”

“Two months and twenty days,” he said.

“What?”

“That’s how long it’s been since you arrived in Mosshaven and met with your brother for the first time.”

She narrowed her eyes and looked at him. “Okay…it’s weird you remember that.”

He lifted a shoulder. “I remember a lot. So, tell me how you like it here.”

Her suspicion turned into a smile, genuine joy on her face. “I love it.”

That smile had disarmed him the first time he saw it and he remembered the exact moment.

It had been a couple of days after they found her in the woods.

They were sitting around the fire and Raine had told Ava about taking her on a tour of the city.

The relief and joy on her face had transformed her and though she was dirty and bruised, he’d been enchanted.

It was the exact smile she was giving him now.

One, he realized, he didn’t often see on her face anymore.

“What?” she asked as she caught him watching her.

“Nothing. You were saying you love Mosshaven…”

She looked at him suspiciously but continued in between bites of food. “Yes. It feels like home, like I belong here.”

“Of course you belong here,” he said. “It’s where your family’s from. Even though you’re still technically human, your fae nature recognizes the earth kingdom and your heritage.”

“I’ve never really had that before. It’s…well, it’s wonderful.”

They continued back and forth, talking about Mosshaven, its people and the things Ava loved about it.

When she was excited about something, this look of wonder came over her.

Her eyes brightened and she gestured with her hands while explaining her passions.

He found himself captivated as she gushed about the beauty of their kingdom and couldn’t tear his eyes away for the entire meal.