She got out of bed and stood up before I could reach her again. “It’s dangerous here, too. We are soldiers, we can fight. We can’t let whoever this is win.”
“Is being trapped in here with me, really losing?”
She placed her hands on her hips, and I knew there would be no convincing her to stay inside. She had reached her limits. Her frustration was bouncing around my head through our bond. “If we watch another dating reality show, I will lose my mind. Watching heavily glamoured people on an island fall in fake love is nauseating.”
I shrugged, throwing the covers off me to get up. It seemed like morning sex was not going to happen now. “Hear me out, we should go on the show, pretend we don’t know each other, then fall in love on the show, and win the prize and hearts of the viewers. Because that overly-muscled financial planner andarrogant content creator in the lead cannot be the winners. And their jobs sound fake.”
She narrowed her eyes at me, and I could feel her exasperation. I remained unbothered.
“We did not come to this realm to enter a reality show. I cannot keep having this conversation with you, Ivan. You’ve been warned.” She then spun on her heels to head to the bathroom.
Well, that didn’t sound good. “What does that mean? I’ve been warned. What are you going to do?”
She turned partially to me and had the audacity to growl before continuing to the bathroom.
“What the fuck was that?” I shouted as she slammed the door.
Perhaps it was good that I had insomnia. She would probably try to kill me in my sleep.
***
Several hours later, Daria stood at our entrance with the largest green orc I had ever seen. She was dressed in attire that seemed out of style from what I’d seen on the many shows I currently watched. She had on a corseted green sundress with a white off-the-shoulder ruffled blouse underneath. On her feet, she wore knee-length brown lace up boots. The orc, who I assumed was the fiancé she’d mentioned, appeared more normal in jeans and a fitted gray shirt that partially covered his many tattoos on his massive arms. His long-twisted locks were pulled back in a high ponytail, exposing shaven sides. While she seemed bubbly and happy, he looked bored and unimpressed with the world.
She did a little two step, raising her hands slightly in front of her. “Are you ready?”
I cocked a brow. I was in fact not ready because I had no idea what she was talking about.
Behind me, the bathroom door opened, and Jalisa appeared in a blue cropped ruffled blouse and matching ankle-length skirt that she’d brought with her from the realm. Her thick curls framed her face, and a flowery head piece sat on top of her hair. She looked amazing. Like she might dress at home. And what was going on?
She waved at Daria. “We’re ready!”
I looked down at myself. I was wearing a loose T-shirt and something Kai called sweatpants that I was convinced had to be replicated in the fae realm because they were magnificent. However, I did not seem to match wherever the ladies were headed.
Jalisa pointed to the bed where I noticed deep green leather pants and a black button-down shirt rested on top of the sheets. “Put those on, honey.”
I folded my arms. “What’s going on?”
The orc snorted. “She didn’t tell you? These women have been scheming for days now.”
I reached out my hand to greet him. “I’m Ivan. Tell me what?”
He shook my hand, squeezing so tightly I was afraid my fingers would break. “Marcus. They’re dragging us to the Renaissance festival.”
I scrunched my face. “Sounds stupid.”
Daria exhaled in an exaggerated shock. “You don’t even know what it is.”
She pushed her orc inside, and I opened the door wider to let them in. I wasn’t exactly excited about company. We weren’t keeping the place as nice as when we first arrived. It was a bit of a mess with food wrappers and dishes piled in the sink. All my doing. It was safe to say that I was depressed. Not that I would admit it.
Daria clasped her hands. “The Renaissance Festival is an event made to portray a village set hundreds of years ago with food,drinks, crafts, and fun entertainment. It was the time of knights and jousting and kings and queens and castles and just all things fantasy and fun. It’s what I imagine your world looks like.” She waved her hands as she spoke, and I could see the growing excitement in her eyes. Whatever this was, she enjoyed it.
I raised a skeptical brow. “Doubt it.”
She looked slightly deflated, and I felt mildly guilty for stealing some of her joy. “It’s a fun escape and a reason to put on a costume.”
I looked over to Marcus. “He’s not dressed.”
He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Not going to happen.”
