“Hummingbird princess.” He looked up with a raised eyebrow. “Heard things about you. Sit.”
She couldn’t have been more baffled if he’d carried a falcon perched on his head for ornamentation.
“Lord Silas,” she said hesitantly. “It’s a ... pleasure.”
After eyeing her for a moment, he clucked his tongue. “I guess Gilly never mentioned me, though he had plenty to say about you.”
Gilly. Aria frowned. “Who?”
“Guillaume Reeves.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re his friend! The one studying abroad.”
An echo of a smile appeared then vanished. He set his book aside and reached for a tray of apple tarts. When had he sent for those?
“You’ve made yourself at home, I see.” She smiled, but the backof her mind screamed that she was going to get Baron’s friend banished.
“It will be my home,” he said matter-of-factly. “That’s the challenge, isn’t it? Solve the puzzle, win the princess.” He brushed his fingers together, dusting crumbs back onto the serving tray.
“You intend to pass the challenge?” she managed at last.
“I’m undecided.”
As if he could resolve the matter so easily after two men had failed. He was baffling.
“What has Baron said about me?”
He smirked. “Wouldn’t you like to know?” He settled back into the window seat, propped both heels on a footstool, and wiggled himself into a comfortable nest. With clear purpose, he returned to his book.
“My lord.”
He gave no response.
“Silas,” Aria tried.
He turned a page.
Aria wished she would have asked Baronfarmore details about his strange friend. But she sensed that from the moment she’d entered the room, he’d been testing her, prodding to see her responses.
Whatever the test was, Aria resolved to pass it.
Straightening her spine, she turned away to peruse the bookshelves. After considering a few volumes, she choseThe Epic of Einarand joined Silas in the window seat, claiming her own apple tart along the way.
From the corner of her eye, she saw him tilt his head to check the title of her book.
Then he snorted.
“Not in support of mythology, my lord?”
“Not in support of pretenders. That’s Gilly’s favorite book. You won’t fool me with such an obvious show.”
Obviousness. Mark.
Aria felt heat in her ears. Nevertheless, she spoke calmly. “Baron’s favorite story is the conquering of the chimera. Mine is the Illusion Isles.”
“No one enjoys the Illusion Isles,” he challenged. “It’s the most foolish part of the entire epic.”
“Correction. It’s where the most foolishness transpires, but had Einar not made his mistakes in the isles, he couldn’t have learned the strengths that carried him through the three heavenly realms.”
