This was not a bad way to spend an afternoon.
I tossed my turkey bone to the side and crossed one thigh over the other as I leaned forward to enjoy the show.
“Soldier!”
I jumped as Ronan’s voice barked from the corner of the courtyard. The high steward strode around the fighters, aiming for just beneath where I sat. His light brows were narrowed, and his lips drew a hard line.
Wonder what got his breeches in a bundle…
My eyes darted around, snagging on the handsome fighter who stood just under the overhang of my balustrade.
Damn, how did I miss Vander?
I slid my legs around, slipping behind the thick railing and crouching to hear better.
“Where the hell have you been? This is the second shift you’ve missed this week,” Ronan snapped. “I shouldn’t have to tell someone who grew up in Aedrialis that there should never be an empty watch post on the walls.”
“I’m so sorry, sir,” Vander replied, his voice bent with sincerity. “It won’t happen again. I swear.”
“Good,” Ronan muttered, his voice softening slightly. “Don’t forget, we need you outside the doors for the council meeting tomorrow evening.”
“Will Evony be there?” Vander asked.
My stomach just about dropped out from my ass. Butterflies chased its departure, and I craned my neck to hear better as silence slipped through the space.
“Why do you want to know if Evony will be there?” Ronan asked quietly.
“I just?—”
“You’ve been spending quite a bit of time with her,” Ronan cut in. “Need I remind you where your duties lie?”
“No, sir,” Vander said quickly. “I just enjoy her company.”
My heart jumped, and I smiled.
“Vander,” Ronan warned in a low voice, “Evony is only sixteen. She’s too young for a soldier your age.”
My stomach pitched.
What in the actual FUCK, Ronan?
Vander was what? A year older than Lyvia? So he’d be twenty-five or twenty-six?Honestly, who gives a shit?And I’d be seventeen in just a month. I was going to murder the high steward…
“Young…” Vander mused, his voice becoming lethally quiet. “Some may say she’s too young to be a high steward’s ward. Unless there are other reasons you’re keeping her so close.”
I blanched.
What the fuck?
My mind reeled. Ronan would definitely be too old for me at thirty. I shook my head. No, Ronan had never looked at me like that, had never flirted. In fact, I had to beg for him to let me stick around longer than he felt necessary in these meetings…
“What are you implying?” Ronan asked, a sharpness edging his words.
“I’m implying that some leaders in this kingdom might…question,” Vander said softly, letting the word dangle, “why a high steward they didnot choosekeeps a girl so young close at hand.”
My stomach tangled. Was Vander threatening Ronan? I shook my head at the abrupt shift in his demeanor. He’d been so kind to me since his arrival, and he now spoke to Ronan with such spite. My heart lurched at the whiplash.
I had to get the hell out of here… I shouldn’t be listening to this. A bead of sweat slid down my brow as I twisted and hurried into Mount Telum.
