Page 14 of Sent To A Fantasy World and Now All the Men Want Me: Volume 4

Are All Knights So Stubborn?

Lake slept soundlessly beside me, face smooth and almost too pretty to be real. After making cookies the night before, I’d gone upstairs with him and slept in Rowan’s room. Briar, in his adorably drunken state, had been snoring too loud for either of us to sleep.

As I trailed my fingertips over Lake’s mouth, he emitted a soft sound and leaned into my touch. His androgynous features thrilled me to no end. And he was just as beautiful on the inside. Maybe even more so. I brushed a kiss to his brow before carefully getting out of bed.

Might as well start breakfast. My boys deserved a nice meal before they left for the castle.

After throwing on one of Lake’s tunics, I tiptoed from the room and softly closed the door. I stopped to check on Maddox and Briar. The two cuddled in their sleep, though Briar was sprawled out, one leg hanging off the bed. Poor guy would need caffeine, carbs, and greasy bacon to sop up all that wine.

Smiling, I shut the door and continued toward the staircase.

A loud snore made me jump.

Quincy slept in the open loft, nestled on the cushioned window bench. He’d knocked his pillow into the floor, and his blanket barely covered his lap. Trying not to laugh, I tiptoed over and brought the blanket back up over his chest before continuing my journey downstairs.

Duke and Baden snored in the reading parlor; Baden on the couch and Duke in the armchair, legs propped up on the footrest.

Where was Callum?

Once in the kitchen, I turned on the overhead light—one activated by a light rune.

“Morning, Ev.”

“Jesus!” I slapped a hand to my chest, my soul leaving my body. Callum sat at the table near the window. “Why are you sitting in the dark? I nearly pissed myself.”

He softly laughed. “Apologies. Didn’t mean to scare you.” He dropped his gaze to the table. “I couldn’t sleep.”

“Neither could I.” Pretty sure the same thing had kept us awake. The weirdness between us. “Want some coffee?”

“Only if it’s no trouble.” Callum wore no shirt, exposing his washboard abs that came from long hours of drills and wielding a sword in full armor. His pants rode low on his toned waist, and V-lines disappeared into the band of those pants.

Definitely easy on the eyes. And distracting.

“No trouble at all.” I tore my gaze from him and walked over to the coffee station to brew a pot. Being near him stirred up the confusion from last night all over again. He wanted to know if he was more than just my ‘silly cinnamon roll.’

What had he meant? What else did he want to be?

I felt his eyes on me as I prepared banana muffins. I couldn’t send my captain away without a bundle of his favorite treat to keep him company during patrols or whatever else he’d be doing that day. I also made a batch of blueberry; the favorite flavor of another glutton who’d wormed his way into my heart.

Even if nothing ever came from those feelings.

As the muffins baked, I made enough food to feed a small army. Bacon sizzled in a skillet, along with scrambled eggs. Stacks of pancakes covered the kitchen island. The smell eventually lured the others into the kitchen. Lake first, then Duke and Baden.

When Quincy joined us, he rested a hand on his back. “Think I slept wrong. I ache.”

“Probably because you sleep sprawled out like a drunk tortoise,” Duke told him.

“Tortoise or not, I’m still more attractive than you.”

“Morning,” I said with a light laugh. “Breakfast is almost ready.”

“It smells wonderful.” Lake hugged me. He wore a kimono style robe that fell open in the front, revealing a light dusting of silver hair across his toned chest.

“Not as wonderful as you do,” I said, damn near having to wipe the drool from my mouth. How I’d gotten lucky enough to have so many smoking hot men, I’d never know. “Maybe even better than coffee.”

Lake’s nose crinkled at the compliment. “I’ll make some tea.”

“Thank you.” I pecked him on the lips before removing the eggs from the heat. He, Briar, and Quincy preferred tea with their breakfast. The others were coffee sluts like me.

“Never thought a brute like you would hold his teacup so dainty,” Baden told Quincy. “Like a prim and proper lady at a luncheon. Fancy a bit of cream, milady? How about a crumpet?”

Quincy, in his haste to shove Baden’s shoulder, spilled said tea. “Look what you’ve done.”

“What I’ve done. That’s no fault of mine.” Baden huffed. “You may sip your tea like a lady, yet you’re still the chaotic and messy bloke we all know and love.”

“Love?” Quincy fluttered his eyelashes. “Is this where you say you wanna marry me?”

“Piss off.”

Duke laughed. “The day Baden falls in love and settles down with one person is the day I shave my luscious locks.”

“Says the one always itching to wet his prick with any hole that’ll have him,” Baden countered.

“Enough of that,” a deep voice came from the archway. Maddox then stepped through, already dressed. His black hair had been swept back, and his armor was fastened in place, all apart from his cloak and the belt that held his sword. He always added them before leaving the cottage.

“Morning, Captain.” Duke nodded. The others followed his lead, rising from their chairs to greet him.

“At ease,” he said. “Such formality isn’t necessary.”

“Yes, sir.” Duke returned to his seat, but not before snatching a pancake from the top of the stack.

Baden swatted at him with the back of his hand. “Learn some manners, you redheaded bastard.”

“Make me.” Duke took a bite.

Maddox sighed in their direction before joining me at the stove. “Morning, sweetheart. When did you wake?”

“About an hour ago.” As his arms came around me, I inwardly melted. My big guy gave the best hugs.

“You should’ve woken me.”

“I wanted to let you sleep.” I laid my head on his chest, hearing his heartbeat. A steady thud. It was how I read his emotions. He hid so much behind that brooding face of his, but his heartbeat always gave him away. “The knights have a lot on their plate right now. You need as much rest as you can get.”

“I always have time for you.” Maddox nuzzled my hair. “Sleep be damned.”

“I’ll remember that for next time.”

He took hold of my chin. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Maddox brushed our lips together before grabbing the platter of pancakes and carrying it into the dining room. Baden grabbed the eggs and did the same. Duke, Quincy, and Lake set the table.

“Good morning,” Briar said, freshly washed and dressed in a crisp white shirt that fell open in the front. The peek of his collar bone was hot as hell.

“Morning, handsome.” I hugged him. “How do you feel?”

“Like a fool.” He sighed. “Remind me to never drink again. My head is pounding.”

“Bacon and pancakes will help with that.” I grabbed his hand. “We should get in there before Quincy eats it all.”

Hand in hand, we walked into the dining room just as the knights sat with their overflowing plates. Breakfast passed quickly. As conversation flowed, plates were scraped clean of second and third helpings. Mugs were drained and refilled.

“Wash up and prepare to leave,” Maddox then told his men. “We are relieving a unit from the Third Order near the king’s forest. They’ve been keeping watch overnight.”

The knights carried their plates to the kitchen before dispersing.

Maddox fastened his cloak, then added his belt. Pressure built in my chest as I watched him. He hid it well, but tension rolled off him in waves.

Or maybe the tension came from me. Ever since I’d learned about the red spider lily, my anxiety had been through the roof.

“Be careful today.” I smoothed my hand over his cloak. “Make sure you remember to eat. I’m packing muffins and turkey sandwiches into your saddlebag. Apples too. They’re from Lake’s orchard and are really yummy. Think it will be enough? I can—”

“Sweetheart?” Maddox caught my hand and lifted it to his lips. “You’re making it sound like I’m marching off to war. I’m merely going to work.”

“Don’t make fun of me. Oreo is nice, but other demons aren’t. Then there’s all the tension in town. People fighting and attacking each other. Everything’s just so… scary.” I pushed my face against the front of his armor. “I don’t want anything bad to happen.”

Maddox cupped the back of my head. “Nothing bad will happen. And if it does, you and the physician are protecting me, remember?”

“Your ring,” I croaked. “The emerald of love.”

His body shook with a quiet laugh. “Whether I’m gone for two hours or five days, I’ll be counting the seconds until I have you back in my arms.”

“You better not be gone for five days,” I mumbled. “I’ll hunt you down.”

“Is this before or after you become one with nature and build your grass hut in the forest?”

I laughed. “Asshole.”

“I placed extra protection charms in your satchel.” Briar pushed his glasses up his nose. “Just in case you need them during patrols. You can never be too careful.”

Maddox cracked a smile and reached for Briar with his other hand, pulling him toward us. He nuzzled Briar’s hair before doing the same to mine. “I’ll pass them on to my men. My ring more than keeps me safe. It keeps me sane as well, reminding me of the two men who own my heart.”

“I… well, I’m glad to hear it.” Briar cleared his throat.

“Is that a blush, physician?”

“No.” Briar scoffed and motioned to the stone hearth in the corner of the dining room. “I’m merely standing too close to the fire. My skin is warm.”

“Mhm.” Humor lit our captain’s eyes.

As he finished getting ready, I returned to the kitchen to sort the bundles of muffins and sandwiches for my boys to take with them. A scraping sound from outside drew my attention.

Callum sat on the back porch, sharpening his sword with a whetstone.

The center of my chest prickled at the sight of him. He hadn’t said a word to me over breakfast, but I’d caught him looking at me several times. Hating the weirdness between us, I grabbed my cloak and stepped outside. Woodsmoke lingered in the morning air, as did the smell of damp earth and pine trees.

“Looks sharp,” I said, sitting beside him on the steps.

“Very.” Callum put the stone away and rested his sword against the railing. “You aren’t allowed anywhere near it.”

I made a face, and a ghost of a smile touched his mouth. Not fully formed, as though something kept it at bay. A breeze swept through the surrounding trees. I caught his scent on that breeze. One I’d started getting used to.

And one I’d miss the moment he left.

“The sun’s coming up.” I stared at a lighter section of sky.

“Aye. And with it, the world will wake.” He released the softest of breaths. “Mornings are nice, but sunset is my favorite time of day.”

“Why?”

“I find it beautiful,” he said. “How the setting sun casts the world in a dark golden hue. With its final breath, it still tries to shine on everything around it.”

His words struck something inside me. Dug in deep. I thought of all the smiles and lightheartedness he’d shown over the months, both to me and to the other knights. Even when times were hard. He’d been that way ever since I’d met him; this bright ray of sun that gave others something to hold onto when life threatened to sweep them away.

“Is that how you feel?” I asked. “A sun that’s setting but still trying to give light to everyone around it?”

The saddest gleam touched his brown eyes. “I should ready my horse. We’ll be leaving soon.”

Neither of us moved. A second passed, then another. Weird how everything continued around us, but we sat frozen in a single moment. That moment held so many unspoken things. Things I wanted to tell him but couldn’t find the words.

“Are you worried at all?” I asked. “About… well, everything, I guess. Demons and the uncertainty with Haran.”

“It does cause me some concern.” Callum stared at the wall of trees ahead of us. “I can’t shake the feeling that something big is on the horizon.”

“Like ‘war with Haran’ big?” I wrung my hands together in my lap.

“Perhaps. Or a clash with Lord Onyx.” He grabbed my hand and kissed the top of it. “But never you fear, milord. I will protect you from whatever may come. Always.”

“How noble of you, dear knight. Your bravery is honorable.”

Releasing my hand, he softly smiled. “I don’t always feel brave. Every time we confront a demon horde or face a foe, there’s a tangle of nerves in my gut.”

“I heard that true bravery comes from being afraid but marching forward anyway,” I said. “Men without fear aren’t brave. They’re fools.”

“I like that.” He tipped his face to the sky. “But I suppose that makes Quincy a fool. He charges in without a thought.”

“Cookies give him courage.”

“Cookies and sweet buns,” he said with a laugh. One that trickled off as another breeze swept down from the trees. “You give the captain courage. He kisses his ring every time we march out. Making it home to you is his driving force.”

I lightly rubbed at the sudden ache in my chest. “Well, you need to come home with him tonight. I have the engagement ball coming up soon, so Miles and I will be practicing recipes and flavor combinations. Which means I’ll need taste testers. You two are my biggest fans.”

“A rival for muffins.” He softly smiled. The approaching dawn lit his features, revealing soft brown eyes that crinkled at the edges. “If only I…”

“If you what?”

“Had realized sooner.” His gaze lowered to my mouth. “I would’ve done everything differently, Ev. Then maybe I’d be the one who…”

His words trailed off as he leaned in. Breath feathered across my lips, and I froze. Surely, I was imagining it. Right? His face wasn’t getting closer, and I definitely did not feel the lightest pressure of his mouth on mine. A pressure that elicited a tingling spark that shot straight to my heart.

A familiar spark. One I’d felt four other times.

Callum then jerked away, taking that spark with him. He stood from the step and grabbed his sword, sheathing it at his hip.

“Cal?”

“I need to leave.” He stepped off the porch, turning his back to me.

Fire ignited in my core. I pushed from the step and followed after him in the grass. “Stop walking and tell me what the hell’s going on.”

He took bigger strides, putting more distance between us.

“Hey!” I broke out into a jog to catch up. “Damn you and your long legs. Hold on a second. You can’t just leave. Callum!” I lunged forward and grabbed his wrist. “Hah. Got you. Now, will you tell me—”

Callum spun around and pushed me against the nearest tree, one arm coming around my lower back and the other slapping against the trunk above my head.

The world came to a sudden stop, much like my heart.

“Gods, Evan.” His voice quaked. “Why couldn’t you just let me walk away? Why did you have to come after me?”

I stared up at him, too shocked to speak. An impressive feat seeing as to how I could rarely keep my mouth shut for long. But he’d taken me by surprise. It fried the wires in my brain, overheating my system.

“My head’s a mess.” Callum lowered his hand from the trunk and grabbed my jaw, keeping his other secured around me. “Put a sword in my hand, and I’ll take down any foe you throw at me. But this? With you? I’m at a loss.”

Tingles of heat spread along my skin. “I… I don’t understand.”

“When I learned you were with Rowan? There was this pain in my heart so deep I feared it’d shatter.” His hand trembled as he rested it on the side of my neck. “He’s yet another man who’s allowed to touch you and make you happy. To wake up to you each morning.”

“W-What are you saying?”

He exhaled a sad laugh. “You truly are so oblivious.”

“I’ve heard that once or twice.” The spark reignited in my belly as he grazed his fingers along the base of my throat. “I saw you with a girl.”

“A girl?” he asked.

Those stirrings of jealousy returned. “A pretty brunette. You were with her at the Guild Hall. She kissed your cheek.”

Understanding flickered across his face, bringing a touch of humor to his brown eyes. “Evan? That was my sister.”

My brain stopped working. “Your… sister?”

“Her name is Penny.” A trace of the cinnamon roll I knew and loved appeared, present in the dimple in his cheek. “She and her party just returned from a quest and I went to check on her.”

“Oh.” Damn if the twisting in my gut didn’t instantly dissipate with the relief. “That makes sense.”

Talk about one massive misunderstanding. One that could’ve been avoided if I’d just asked about it sooner. I used to scream at romance book characters for doing that same shit, and I’d been just as silly.

“Did it bother you?” Callum slowly pulled me closer, bringing our bodies flush. “When you thought I was meeting a lover?”

“Um.” Electricity buzzed in my veins. “Well, you’re my best friend. If you’d met someone special, I thought you’d tell me.”

“That’s the only reason you’d be upset? Because I didn’t tell you?” As his gaze lowered to my mouth, his long dark lashes created shadows on his cheek bones. “Or because you hated the thought of me touching someone else?”

Our lips were millimeters apart. “Cal, I…”

“Don’t you see it, Ev?” Callum’s nose brushed mine. “There’s only one person I see. Only one I want to touch.” His voice cracked. “He’s beautiful and clumsy and so damn perfect.”

Throat tight, I couldn’t speak. Didn’t know what to say even if I could.

“Dammit, Evan.” A tear slipped from the corner of his eye. “I think I’m in love with you. And I don’t know what to do.”

The haze in my mind lifted. Everything became so damn clear. Relief came with that clarity. Excitement and a touch of anxiety did too, the type of giddy nervousness that came from loving someone and learning they felt the same.

I’d been right. Callum was one of my fated men.

As for the delayed realization? Why it hadn’t been instant? Lupin said my choices had unlocked new love routes. It sounded like the trip to Exalos had triggered mine with Callum. More so, him seeing me with Rowan. It had led us to this moment, heartfelt confessions beneath a fir tree in the early morning light.

“Please say something,” he rasped. “Tell me you hate me. Tell me you feel the same. Just tell me something. Anything. Because this silence is deafening.”

But I couldn’t. I didn’t have the words. So, I did the only thing I could do.

I rose up and kissed him.

He froze against my lips, breath hitching. I placed another kiss to his mouth, then another.

“Ev…” He fisted the back of my hair, gripping the strands. He still didn’t return the kiss, but his body tensed like he was fighting hard not to. “What are you…”

“Kiss me.”

A heartbreaking sound tore through his throat. “I can’t.”

“Why?” Cracks opened in my chest.

“Because the captain doesn’t know about any of this.” His voice reminded me of thin glass, so close to shattering. “I swore to myself I wouldn’t do this. Telling you was a mistake. I… I should leave.”

“Don’t go.” The center of my chest constricted, like the thing living inside it desperate to break free curled in on itself.

“I… we can’t…” A quake went through his body, and he drew back from me with pained brown eyes. “Loving you means betraying the one person I respect above all others. A man who’s fought by my side and bled for me. I… I’m sorry.”

He took a step back.

“Wait.” I needed to explain that I’d already talked to Maddox and the others about it. And that they’d given their blessing. “You’re not betraying hi—”

“Eh, Lieutenant?” Quincy called from the back porch. “We’re about to head out.”

“I have to go.” Callum’s expression morphed into something agonizing before he turned and headed toward the small stable.

Heart sinking like a ship with a canon sized hole in its hull, I slumped against the tree and tried not to cry. Freaking stubborn cinnamon roll.

“Want me to skin him?”

I flipped around to see Rowan propped against the nearest tree, picking at his nails with his dagger. He was still masked and hooded, just having come home from work. And definitely doing what he did best: eavesdropping on people.

“Be nice,” I said.

“Tell that to the rabbit. He’s the one who made you cry.”

“I’m not crying.” I wiped at my eyes. “I’m just frustrated. Knights are so stubborn.”

“He thinks he’ll be betraying Maddox, so he denies himself what he truly wants.” Rowan shook his head. “It’s why villains are much better lovers. I’d let this entire kingdom turn to ash if it meant spending just one more day with you.”

I joined him beneath the tree. “You’re not a villain.”

“I’m certainly no hero.” He pulled me in close and lowered his mask. “I’m a dagger-wielding bad boy with a soft heart, remember?”

I smiled. “The threat to confiscate your daggers still stands.”

“I’d like to see you try.” Smirking, Rowan grabbed my hand and led me toward the back porch. The door opened just as we reached the steps.

Lake stepped outside and nodded to Rowan. “Welcome home. I… I saved you a plate of pancakes. With extra butter. You can eat before bed.”

The unexpected gesture made my chin wobble.

“Look what you’ve done, pup.” Rowan motioned to me. “Turned him into a sad toad.”

Lake smiled. “Yet, he’s our sad toad.”

“I reckon you’re right.” Rowan returned the smile, though his came with a peek of my favorite fang-like tooth. “And we wouldn’t want him any other way.”

***

The sun slowly inched toward the horizon. I sat on the front porch and watched it set. The café had kept my mind distracted, but with the work day over and the cottage cleaned, I had too much time to think.

“I find it beautiful. How the setting sun casts the world in a dark golden hue. With its final breath, it still tries to shine on everything around it.”

Freaking Callum. He loved me but refused to act on it because of his respect for Maddox. A total misunderstanding that could be cleared up as soon as I saw him again.

The air stirred at my back before Lake’s arms came around me. He dropped his face to my nape and softly inhaled. “I feel the ache in your heart.”

“I’m okay.” I swallowed hard. “A certain cinnamon roll just needs to hurry back so we can talk.”

“I understand how Callum feels,” Lake said. “When I first realized my feelings for you, I was in equal parts confused and terrified. You already had two lovers, one of whom drew his sword each time we met.”

“Oh, Maddox. He’s such an overprotective butt.”

Lake gruffly laughed. “Be patient with Callum. He’ll eventually come around.”

“Cinnamon roll dough needs time to rise before it can go in the oven.” I angled my head back against his. “Guess Cal needs to prove for a while.”

“And in time, he’ll be baked, golden, and delicious.”

“Cannibal.”

Another deep laugh.

A distant clomp of hooves came from the path leading to the cottage. Movement showed through the trees before Maddox and the black stallion appeared. He was alone.

“Briar’s not with him?” Lake asked, ears perked up.

Unease settled in the pit of my stomach, but then I forced it away. Jumping to conclusions wouldn’t do anything but give me anxiety. “The clinic’s been busy lately. Maybe he’s catching up on work before coming home.”

“His sugar mother might’ve sent more documents from the academy for him to read.”

Sugar mother. I nearly fell off the porch from laughing so hard.

Lake and I stood and walked down the steps, meeting Maddox in the yard. My earlier laughter died away when seeing his shadowy expression. He slid from the saddle and tugged me against his chest without a word.

“Hey, big guy.” The scent of warm spice and leather infiltrated my senses. “Is Briar working late?”

“Yes.” Maddox petted my hair with a shaking hand. “I plan to return to the castle and join him soon but needed to see you.”

That’s when I noticed a dark stain on the front of his armor. Panic set in. “Are you hurt?”

“No. The blood isn’t mine.” His gravelly voice shook just like his hand. “It belongs to Callum. He… something happened, sweetheart.”

A wave of fear rattled my insides, sweeping through the space between my ribs.

“Breathe.” Maddox took my face in his hands. I hadn’t realized I’d started hyperventilating. “Inhale. Exhale. There you go. Nice, deep breaths.”

“What happened to him?” I dreaded the answer but needed it even more.

“Around midday, a unit from the Third Order sighted demons in the outer fields and gave chase. A squire informed us of the attack, and we rushed to their aid. The matter was contained at first. But then everything changed.”

“Changed how?” Lake asked.

Maddox’s brow furrowed. “The demons showed more aggression than normal and seemed to be in a sort of frenzy. Like how a rabid animal behaves. A young Third Order knight fell from his horse and was swarmed. Callum dove in front of him, and his protection charm shattered as a Fenrir went for his throat. Another one then lunged and tackled him. I… I slayed the beast but not before…”

“How bad is it?” My vision tunneled. Distorted around the edges.

“If not for the protection charms, it would’ve been much worse.”

“Tell me how bad, Maddox,” I snapped, feeling like I was about to shatter like one of those stones. “Please.”

Pain glinted in his eyes. “I wish I could ease your mind and say all is well, sweetheart, but in truth, I’m unsure of the severity of his wounds. Before he lost consciousness, he…” Maddox placed a trembling hand to the blood stains on his armor. “He said your name.”

My knees finally buckled. Maddox caught me and held me as I cried so hard I couldn’t catch my breath.

“Don’t you see it, Ev? There’s only one person I see. Only one I want to touch. He’s beautiful and clumsy and so damn perfect.”

I had intended to talk to Callum when they returned and tell him everything. Tell him that he was beautiful and perfect and stubborn just like his captain. That my men approved of us being together. That I loved him too.

And now, I might not get that chance.