He slowly turned, but his gaze stayed trained above my head. “What?”
“Your sword isn’t on your back. I wondered if you ever took it off.”
“I just told you it would be wise if you went home, and your reply was to comment on my sword?”
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him that hiscomment could be misconstrued in so many ways, especially after his impressive erection last night, but somehow, I managed to restrain myself. “Sorry, I did hear you, but I have to go where the Stone is, which means I’m going north.”
“How do you know the Stone is north?”
An ancient book and my seekerill told me.I shrugged. “I don’t know for certain, but that’s where I believe it is.”
A heavy frown descended over his face, and unable to help myself, I lifted a finger. “You’re doing it again.”
His frown turned into a scowl. “Doing what?”
“Showing emotion.”
He sighed, and his glower disappeared. “You seem to have that effect on me.”
A flush worked up my neck, and his gaze dipped, just for the merest second, to my attire again. While my pajamas weren’t excessively revealing, they also didn’t leave much to the imagination.
A sudden flare of magic came from his wrist, the same flare I’d detected before, and I couldn’t help but wonder what aspect of his magic it was.
Jaw tightening, he looked away. “You should go.”
“Oh. Right. Sorry. Thank you again for the coffee.” Embarrassment flamed through me at his sharp dismissal, and I fled back to my chambers.
Once on my side, I turned to close my door, thinking the warrior would be where I left him, but Kole had moved.
And he was in a position that awarded him a clear view of me retreating.
Our eyes locked for the briefest moment, and I could have sworn that a glow filled his.
I quickly closed my door, and alone again, I sagged against the hard frame and shook my head. The strange pull he had on me and my illicit responses to him needed to stop.
Uncle Timith.
Uncle Timith.
That’s why you’re here.
I checked the adjoining door again, just to ensure it was truly locked, then I began to hastily pack my things.
The Wishing Stone was waiting to be found, and with any luck, I would find it today.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I wasn’t finding the Wishing Stone today. Not even close.
I rummaged through the outdoor compartment outside of the inn where I’d stored my enchanted carpet last night. Snow drifted around my feet in the morning breeze. Several inches coated the main street, but the blast of northern air was the least of my concerns.
Because my carpet was nowhere to be found. It wasn’there.
“No, no, no. Where are you?” I searched through the outdoor storage shed again, and then again, hunting for my only means of transportation. I’d placed it in the shed’s left corner last night. I was certain of that.
But other than a large trunk someone had set near that corner, an old, raggedy enchanted carpet that looked as if it would barely carry one fairy, multiple boxes that were toosmall to hold a carpet, and a few empty flower pots that I guessed the inn used during warmer months, there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. Someone had either stolen my carpet or it’d flown off on its own, the second not being possible.
Heart hammering, I left the shed and raced around the inn, searching the entire perimeter for my carpet. When that didn’t yield anything, I went back inside and asked the front desk staff if they’d perhaps moved it. But they denied doing so.
