Queen of Jastain (15 page)

He stepped in and stopped awkwardly at the end of her bed as his gaze raked her body. Noticing the dress, he frowned, picked it up, and laid it carefully across her dresser. He turned and sat in the chair next to her bed.

She snickered. Which looked more stiff, him or the chair? She slapped the bed. “I can’t talk to you way over there. Come sit by me.”

He eyed her cautiously but moved to the bed. “You've had quite a bit of drink this evening, I would say.”

“I wasn’t the only one, was I?” She giggled as she thought of Petra and how intoxicated he was.

Avant’s face clouded, and he looked away. He acted so strange sometimes.

“Ya know, I’m still kinda mad at you for leaving me passed out on the couch two days ago.” She poked him hard in the arm with her finger. “That wasn’t a very Prince Charming thing to do, now was it?”

Avant grinned at her endearment. “No. You're right. I must apologize, but I had many things to which I had to attend, and I knew you would be well looked after.”

“By who? The chickens?”

At this, Avant laughed out loud, and her heart floated in the happy sound. A desire to make him laugh like that every day filled her. He angled his body so he could look into her face, desire filling his. Her cheeks flushed and her eyes wouldn't focus. She fanned herself and brushed her hair back behind her ears to cool herself down.

Avant stared at her with an intensity that made her heart beat in double time. Reaching his hand to the side of her face—
What is he doing?—
he turned her cheek to the side and touched her ear. Shivers slid down her neck.

Seeing her reaction or more likely hearing it, he said, “Forgive me, Abigail. It is that…you have The Stone of Light in your ears.” He studied her earrings.

That figured.

“The Stone of Light is precious in Jastain. There are few who ever see one. It is said in the Ancient Ways, The Stone of Light can move life and hold sway over even death itself, and you hold them in your ears.” Avant said these last words with reverence, and Abby vaguely understood the noble regard in which he held the diamonds.

“They were a gift from my father.” Remembering her dad was a real buzz killer. She stared down at her comforter.

 
“That was a kingly gift, indeed. Even the royals of this land have not seen The Stone of Light for many years. I myself have seen only one other.” Avant gazed at her with an amazement she didn’t quite understand. She waited for him to say something, but his sapphire eyes became distant, and he didn't continue.

She knew the other diamond was the ring worn by his wife. But she was too drunk to bring the memory forward. Or maybe she was blocking it on purpose. The only ring she could picture was the one that sat on the boney finger of her ex-best friend.

She'd conveniently forgotten about the wife when she kissed him. God, had she been reduced to the
other woman
? Shaking the thought from her mind before he heard, she tried to break the silence. “So, tomorrow are we going to the falls?”

“Yes. We will pack a lunch and travel there. Can you ride a horse?”

“Uhh…no, unless I can from your memories.” She still wasn’t sure what his memories would allow her to do. She was certainly able to recall the dance steps tonight and the words to the songs but what other things translated she wasn't sure.

“Well, tomorrow you will try. Get some rest.” Avant pulled back her covers, and she snuggled under them.

* * * *

Avant sat on Abigail's bed studying her beautiful features. She had fallen asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

The Implanting had worked. She was as fluent in the language as anyone in Jastain.

My Light, she looked lovely in that dress.
He traced the outline of her mouth with his gaze. The memory of her kiss flooded his mind. Her tender lips and floral scent made his throat go dry. The only thing he could wonder when she pulled away from him was why had she stopped? He could have kissed her all night and begged for more. Avant covered his lips with a finger, as if that would stop the flow of desire overtaking his will.

He could no longer conceal his emotions from her. She read him too well. He was not certain if that disturbed him or not. And, she had hidden her thoughts from him. That kiss had to have been pre-meditated. All of these things forebode trouble. Yet, he could not bring his heart to heed the warning.

Tomorrow he would begin the first lesson in the exercise of her Gift, and the falls was the perfect setting for such a lesson. Perhaps he would even show her his secret discovery. He smiled and exhaled deeply.

He brushed a stray curl behind her ear and studied the stone in her earring.
Could one of these be the Stone of Light?
His dream had foretold the Chosen One would have the Light in her ears, and his own gift confirmed the truth.
It must be.
But she was unaware, and he could not tell which was the true Stone. The Light would reveal it to them in time.

He ran his thumb over her lips as his mind replayed the kiss for the hundredth time. His body bucked with desire. After so many years of lying dormant, his passion threatened to overrule his will. He had isolated himself from temptation and foolishly believed in his ability to control his will. With her damnable kiss, this beauty fractured his reserve and threatened to take his control.

Rising from her bed, he strode to his own room. With the discovery of what was surely the Stone of Light, he came one step closer to his destiny and his wife, but the thought of Sentieve brought him neither pleasure nor pain.

“Ugh.” Abby woke the next morning with a monster hangover and clouded memories of the night. The sun streamed in through the windows, and the song of morning larks filled the quiet room. Helean must’ve brought her the basin with water and her daily clothes but hadn’t awakened her. She wet her frizzy hair and pulled it back in a loose ponytail.

As she dressed, the dance with Avant and their kiss played in her mind. Her pulse quickened at the memory of him so close. What had she been thinking? The look in his surprised eyes tickled her, but the taste of his lips kissing her back for that brief moment was like oxygen causing her to expand with life.

Avant.
She sighed. What was their trip to the falls about? Had he missed her as much as she'd missed him? Other than the dance and the kiss, he'd practically ignored her. The kiss, however ill conceived, had been real. 

What was his plan? Maybe today was a date. She frowned. That seemed unlikely. With the Implanting, she understood Avant's attraction for her, but she also understood his sense of duty. He'd never succumb to his desire, or probably even admit it. His will was too set and too strong. Even if he loved her as she loved him, he was as immovable as one of those mountains in the distance. A tight smile stared back at her from the mirror. But his resistance wouldn't keep her from trying. She looked forward to seeing him today.

God, she hated that her heart wasn't her own, but she couldn't regret the love for him that coursed through her. She just hoped he would give her a chance.

Feeling queasy with the shakes, she hurried downstairs to get some water and a bite of food. Helean had already prepared a lunch and had her breakfast waiting on the table. Abby drew a cup of water from the bucket and gulped it down.

“Well, my dear, you caused quite a stir in the village last night. Everyone is talking about how delightful and charming you are.”

She smiled guiltily and chugged another cup of water. “Oh, I hope I wasn’t too forward.”

“I must say, you were a little bold for our humble gathering, but it was entertaining to watch. Lord Ventium is such a flirt with the ladies. They often talk about how he shamelessly makes them blush. It was exciting to see the shoe on the other foot.”

They both giggled.

“Well, someone needed to take him down a notch. With those eyes and that smile, it’s hard to imagine he doesn’t make most women blush.”

“Tis too true, and he knows it well, my dear,” Helean said with a wink. “Although, I have never seen him settle his sights on any lady in my many years here. This, of course, has given rise to vicious rumors and has made your arrival of even greater significance.”

“You mean, since you’ve been here he’s never had a girlfriend…
lover
?” She winced at his word.

“Never. As you already guessed, he could have had any number. It's strange to me that a man as kind as he is would not have the love of a woman in his home.”

Abby hadn’t realized it until that moment. No illicit relations of any kind tainted his memories, only the love for his wife. In fact, his thoughts were as chaste as a choirboy’s. Surely, he wasn’t gay. No, she knew he desired women, but he never allowed himself the freedom to fraternize or fantasize. My God! He must have an ironclad will or a severely disabled libido.

Avant strode into the kitchen and ensnared Abby with a smoldering gaze. An unexpected and unnerving vision shot through her, taking route between her legs and up her spine. Lodging itself in the back of her brain, it forced her to stifle a gasp. No. Definitely no disability there. She shivered.

“Greetings, my lady. I trust the conversation has been…
stimulating
this morning.”

Crap!
He’d heard her thoughts again. Abby swallowed hard. “Good morning, my Lord. Helean and I were just talking about the festival and what a wonderful time we both had.”

Avant turned his attention to the little woman who wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Helean, what are the villagers saying about our Abigail this morning? I imagine she made quite an impression.”

“Yes, my Lord. She endeared herself to them well. We are all happy with this match, if I may be so bold.” The little woman blushed and went about her work.

“What?” Abby choked and water came out her nose.

“Yes, I was certain that would be the talk this morning. Thank you, Helean.” He looked to Abby with a mocking smile.

“Aren’t you going to clear up this misunderstanding?”

“Why should I? They will think what they want no matter what I say, and you did not help your cause with last night’s bit of trickery.”

“Yes…but Helean…she thinks…”
Abby stared at him.

“Yes, she does.”
Out loud, he said, “Are you ready?”

Avant picked up the basket, headed to the door then turned in the threshold. “Helean, please check on Master Petra. He looked an interesting shade of green when I saw him earlier.”

Oh God. Petra. She'd forgotten all about their....

“Come along, Lady Abigail.”

Abby followed Avant out the door to the road where two horses waited. Naturally, Avant’s horse, a big silver stallion stamped impatiently. After all, what would a noble knight be without a white horse? The other horse nudged Abby playfully in the neck. The dark russet mare, with jet-black tail and mane, had a sweetness that she immediately gravitated toward.

“This is Imperial. She is as gentle as she is sure, and I trust her with you as you learn. My mount is Spiritus, and he will lead the way for us today.”

Avant easily lifted her onto the back of Imperial. She lightly held the reigns as he mounted his horse.

 “They’re beautiful. I just hope I don’t fall off.”

He started down the trail at a leisurely pace. She followed. The Implanting, apparently, worked with riding, too.

She broke the silence. “So, now the entire village thinks we’re a couple?”

“You mean they think we're lovers.”

Her cheeks heated, and she scowled. “Yes, that’s what I mean, but how does that help your cause?”

“Why does it bother you?” He gave her a cocky half-smile. What was with him? He was in rare form this morning.

“Because it isn’t true.” She rolled her eyes, but she was curious about something. “Helean said you never had a woman…in the house, is that true? I mean, I don’t have any memories of other women from you.” Her cheeks heated.  “Other than your wife.”

Abby hadn’t dwelt on
those
particular memories. Thinking of them seemed like too much of an intrusion of his privacy. It didn’t do her any favors either. Thoughts of him making love with his wife occasionally, like twenty or thirty times a day, tried to invade her mind. Just the visual memories of his naked body overheated her. Luckily, there weren't too many of those. It never occurred to her before how little one actually looks at one’s own naked body. However, it surprised her there had never been another woman. Ever. Not even in the twenty years since his presumed death.

Avant was quiet for a while. “No. There has never been anyone else. I will be able to tell her that I was never unfaithful to her.”

“But isn’t she remarried?”

“She does
not
know I'm alive.” His anger flared and, even from two lengths back, she could see his jaw tighten and clench.

Abby halted her horse and spoke softly into his mind.
“I know. Your faithfulness is a testament. Any woman could only hope to be loved so much.”
The words broke her heart to say. As long as he held out for his wife, Abby could never win his heart. Somehow she had to make him see he belonged with her and not a woman who’d forgotten him two decades ago. She was here now and she loved him. That had to count for something.

“I am sorry, Abigail. I have never spoken with anyone of these things, though I have thought them every day.”

She rode even with him, tilted her head to the side, and smiled. “Maybe me knowing all your secrets will be more of a blessing to you than a curse.”

His face relaxed, and he smiled at her. “Maybe it will.”

The horses trotted down the trail, and Abby made small talk to ease the tension. She told him the story about the chickens, making him laugh so hard he almost fell off the stallion. They discussed their dance—but not the kiss—the significance of the crown of grape leaves, and how drunk she and Petra were.

When she mentioned Petra, Avant’s jaw tightened and his voice hardened. “Petra did not attempt any unsolicited affection from you, did he? He is young and much infatuated.”