“Becks,” she says, taking in a shaky breath. She slides a hand behind my head and draws me closer, our foreheads almost touching. “You have to know by now that I?—”
The door slams open. “Dinner’s in . . . whoa,” Ensley says, taking us in. “I was joking about the love nest before, but looks like I was spot on.”
“Ens, get out of here,” I shout as Haven leans forward and buries her face in my neck.
I’m just glad she didn’t show up five minutes earlier or she would have gotten a much bigger show.
“Touchy. Can’t a girl just be happy her little bro is getting?—”
“Ensley,” I growl in warning.
She doesn’t look intimidated in the least, but just winks at me and then mouths, “I like her.”
I cast my gaze to the ceiling. It’s only been a day and I’m ready to send her back to the creature world already.
“Out,” I bark, and Ensley laughs.
“Okay-okay. I know when I’m not wanted. But dinner is ready in ten. Kade and Imogen just went out on patrol, so it’s just the four of us.”
The door clicks shut behind her and it’s clear the moment with Haven is lost when I feel her shaking in my arms.
“Hey, it’s okay. Don’t worry about what—” I start trying to console her only to realize she’s not crying.
When she pulls back, her face is red and she gets out between laughs, “Next time, we need to remember to lock the door.”
When we sit around the table for dinner, it seems it’s only awkward for me, and that puts me in a mood. Ensley and Haven chat like they’re old friends, and my meddlesome sister keeps making kissy faces at me when she thinks Haven isn’t looking. Titus just chuckles, dropping thinly veiled innuendos.
My sister and her fiancé really need to learn to mind their own business. And speaking of, it’s time to put them in the hotseat.
“About this marriage thing,” I say, giving Ensley a pointed look as I spear a piece of my king oyster mushroom. This is the last time I let the fae make dinner.
I’m a carnivore. I need meat.
Ensley grins, her eyes shining with happiness as she shares a look with Titus. Before her, Titus was a playboy, moving through girls like they were disposable, but I have to admit, he’s treated my sister well. He clearly makes her happy. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to give them a hard time about this.
“Oh, come on, little bro. You know I’ve always wanted to be a princess. Now I’ll finally be one!”
Princess? “Excuse me?”
Ensley winces. “Oh, right. That’s another thing you don’t know about. This is what happens when you up and disappear. You miss all the good stuff.”
I glance over at Titus and he grimaces.
“What’s going on?” I ask, setting down my fork.
Haven stays quiet and takes a bite of her vegetable medley, looking like she’s settling back with a bucket of popcorn to enjoy the show.
“Yes, well, you see, Titus is from Faelune.”
I raise my eyebrows at that. Interesting.
“What’s Faelune?” Haven asks.
“A fae kingdom in Endora,” Ensley answers. “Endora is the creature version of Europe. Faelune is the big island country in the north.”
Haven cocks her head. “The United Kingdom?”
“Yep, that’s the one. Well, it’s the only country in our world that is ruled by one species. And as it turns out, Titus here is their lost prince.”
