Page 84 of The Nymph Prince

“Let us stop here and rest a while,” Reif stated, scowling in the direction of the castle before moving his dark eyes to us. “We need to be prepared for whatever awaits us beyond those walls.”

Malik agreed, and the two men began discussing the plan. The last thing we wanted to do was approach with our weapons drawn or to appear confrontational in any way. Our mission was for peace, not violence, and thus we needed to convey that message from the very start.

Our spot in the field was covered by a handful of trees. A stream ran through it, adding a nice sound to the otherwise quiet day. If it wasn’t for the building sense of dread in my gut, it would’ve almost been peaceful.

“The assassins will be guarding us on all sides,” Reif commented, as they considered our options. “If King James refuses to see reason and orders an attack, we’ll have the advantage. But not for long, so we must act quickly.”

“How do you know where they are?” I asked before searching our surroundings. Throughout our whole journey, I hadn’t seen a single sign of the assassins.

“My eye is trained to see,” he answered, his voice gruff. “Though time has taken me from their ranks, they are my brothers of shadow. Forever.”

“Did you leave ‘em when you fell in love with the elf?” I asked. “Or did they strip you of your command because of it?”

Reif’s composure slipped, and albeit briefly, pain flashed in his brown eyes. “Hold your tongue, boy, and do not speak of things you know nothing of.”

He stormed over to a tree, braced his arm on the trunk, and glared at the kingdom. Any kind of emotion from Reif was rare.

Lorcan gave me a disbelieving look. “Why do you antagonize him?”

“To see if the story he told last night was true,” I responded. “His reaction says yes.”

The nymph’s green eyes dimmed in color. “I wondered the same. Hard to believe that a duty-driven male as himself ever allowed love to interfere with his orders.”

“Aye. You know as well as I how love can overtake the senses. It’s not a thing that can be controlled.”

I’d fought hard to deny my feelings for Lorcan. Although a part of me still continued to battle the emotion, I knew I could never leave him. I’d do anything to keep him safe. In the end, I was at his mercy.

“You’re my destined mate. Yet, you still deny me,” he whispered, and his eyes glistened. “Do you resent me, mage? Our bond isn’t complete as of yet…perhaps you can be free of me after all.”

In order to complete the bond, we’d have to make love while he was in his merform. Until then, we’d continue to feel a strong pull to each other, as we’d felt for the past year every time he’d surfaced around theCrimson Night.

I couldn’t fathom the thought of not being by his side.

“I don’t want to be free of you, nymph.” I held his cheek in my palm, and the way he pressed his face closer against my hand made my chest ache. “I’m alive because of you.”

He smiled. “Death has tried to part us many times. How fortunate we are to be so stubborn.”

Eva plopped down between us, looped her arms through ours, and sighed. Her blonde hair fell freely around her face, no longer being constrained by braids. She embraced some of the customs of Avalontis, but she also embraced her individuality. Just like Lorcan did.

“Things will go according to plan,” Eva said.

Her touch on my arm helped dissolve some of my tension, and it was then I knew why she had hold of us. Her calming touch was meant to soothe our worries, so that we might begin our mission with a clear, focused mind.

“How do you know?” Lorcan asked. “Do you have a sudden gift of prophecy?”

“No. But I have hope.”

We’d need a lot more than hope if we wanted to get out of this with our heads still attached. But I kept that to myself.

Troy appeared and sat crisscross in front of us. Flowers were braided into his hair and he held more in his hand. Gold was on his eyelids, and his lips were a light pink. His purple shirt was open in the front, showing his softly muscled chest, and the bottoms of his trousers were tucked into his tall black boots.

He was both masculine and feminine. I’d never met anyone else who was more comfortable in their skin.

His violet eyes settled on me. “Are you ready for your disguise?”

Lorcan snickered. “Oh, please, Troy. Put flowers in my sweetheart’s hair.”

I snarled my upper lip, but I issued no protest as Troy scooted closer, a sly grin on his pretty face. It was doubtful that any man in the kingdom would know my identity, but if there was someone there who’d been on the ship that’d attacked theCrimson, they might be able to recognize me.