Page 77 of The Ruthless Fae King
“You stink, sugar plum.” Lucien looked down at my dress.
“I’ll go change for the journey.” I chuckled.
NINETEEN
For the first time in my life, I was wearing… pants. Arwen had convinced Kailani and I that it would be easier to ride in and move through Fallenmoore on foot if needed. To be honest, I was mortified to be seen in such things, but they were also really roomy and comfortable. And they had pockets!
“I can make my way to you in a half a day,” Drae said to his wife as Kailani and Raife were a few feet over, having their own goodbye. We had water, food, maps and the tin box.
Lucien pulled me aside and looked down at me with a gaze that told me his heart was breaking just as much as mine.
Wejustgot married. I’d slept in his arms one night. It wasn’t enough. I wanted more.
His eyes were wide and full of trepidation. “I only just got you. I’m not ready to let you go.”
“I will bring back King Axil and his men and we will win this war. I promise.” I threaded my fingers into his and then leaned forward to place a kiss on his lips. He was hesitant at first, but then he opened his mouth and deepened the kiss.
When I pulled away, he smiled as he ran his fingers through my hair. “I don’t know what’s worse, not knowing what you taste like, or knowing and then not being able to kiss you.”
I grinned. “Definitely the latter.”
He swallowed hard. “If anything happens to you, I’ll freeze this entire realm. I won’t be able to control it.”
Fear spiked in my heart because I knew he was telling the truth. “I’ll be fine. Please keep my family safe.”
He nodded. “Of course.”
“Alright, lovebirds! We gotta fly,” Kailani called out from behind Lucien. Arwen had shifted into a beautiful blue dragon and the elf queen was loading supplies into her basket.
There was nothing more to say. We’d said all of our goodbyes, had our kisses. The only thing to do was to leave the ones we loved and go flying into unknown danger for the good of our people. Such was the way of a queen.
Lucien helped lift me into the basket on Arwen’s back and I settled into the seat with Kailani. “Do you plan on needing those?” I asked her as I took in the small open box of alcohol bottles. The tops were open and there were strips of soaked cloth hanging out the top.
Kailani grinned. “Backup plan in case anyone messes with us on the way.”
I liked her, really liked her. She was unlike any lady I’d ever met. Piper and my mom and Libby came running out to wave us off then, and I tried not to look at the tears on my sister’s cheeks.
As Arwen kicked off the ground, I swallowed my emotions down and put on a smile, waving to everyone.
Once we were up in the air, Kailani grabbed the tin box and shook it lightly, rattling the contents. “Are we going to peek?” she asked me with a devilish grin.
I laughed and took the box from her, setting it by our feet. “No, let’s give it to King Axil as promised.”
Kailani pouted but settled into the seat for the flight. It started to snow then, a fine dusting covering us as we left Winter Court.
“Awww,” Kailani said. “He made it snow for you.”
I turned and looked down at the ground. Everyone else had gone inside but Lucien. He was staring up at us as snow fell from the sky.
It reminded me of the day he came to negotiate my dowry, how he’d given in to everything I wanted and heaped compliments on me and respected our household staff.
Lucien Thorne had been nothing like I imagined. He was so much better, and I prayed to the Maker that we’d win this war and get to live the rest of our lives together.
* * *
The flightover Archmere and into Fallenmoore was breathtaking. I’d been to Archmere once but never from this vantage point. It wassogreen. It looked like Spring and parts of Fall, but all over. Then when we got to the border of Fallenmoore I was grateful for my fur cloak. It reminded me of Winter Court and Lucien. Snowcapped mountains spanned the horizon for as far as the eye could see.
I’d never considered myself sheltered. I was a princess and had traveled all throughout Archmere and Embergate, but it wasn’t until this moment, when I saw the pack of wolves down below, that I realized how little of the realm I had experienced.
