CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“Are we there yet?”
An eye roll. “Not since the last time you asked.”
“Which was how long ago?”
“Only like ten minutes.”
I groan. “Ugh, it feels like it’s been longer than that.”
“Well, it hasn’t.”
“So how long until we get there?” My fingers tap out a frantic rhythm against the pommel of the saddle.
“A few hours.” A beat of silence. “What’s going on?”
I shake my head vigorously. “Nothing.”
I can almost hear the narrowing of his eyes. “Doesn’t seem like nothing to me.”
“I’m fine. Really.” Maybe if I say it with enough confidence, I’ll convince myself.
Bastain tugs on the reins, halting Puck. The second the horse comes to a stop he jumps from the saddle effortlessly. “Come on,” he says, extending a hand in my direction to help me off the horse.
“What?”
“Something is stressing you out and we’re going to talk about it before we get to the palace. So come on, get down.” He raises an eyebrow at me in challenge.
I roll my eyes but accept his assistance in dismounting. Especially as I nearly tumble once my feet meet the gravel path. He walks Puck over to a nearby tree, tying his reins to a low hanging branch.
Gripping my hand in his, he pulls me behind him as he walks us further towards the tree line and settles us both down on an overturned log. He keeps my hand secured in his as if afraid I’m going to bolt from this conversation.
“Staellara, talk to me. What’s going on?” A sudden nervousness finds its way into his expression. “Is it about last night? Because if so, I apologize. We can?—”
“No!” I all but shout in his face, startling him. “No, no. It’s not about last night. Last night was…” I can feel the heat of a blush climb my cheeks thinking about the events of last night. I mean, sure we didn’t do much else besides kiss, but the way he held me tight to him as we drifted off to sleep as if I might disappear? I don’t think I’ve ever slept so well in my life. “Last night was perfect,” I say with a soft smile.
He offers me a smile in return, wiping away any uncertainty he had. “Then what’s wrong?”
I hesitate to answer but know that he won’t let me get away without giving him something. “What if… what if they don’t like me?” I whisper.
“Your parents?” he asks with a tilt of his head.
My eyes drop to where my fingers fidget with the hem of my shirt. “Yeah…”
“Oh, princess.” He reaches out and brushes a strand of hair behind my ear. “They’re going to love you.”
“How can you even know that? I’m a Seelie princess, but I’ve never spent any moment of my life in Alinea. What does thatreally mean to them? I’m so humanized that they could hate me. And that’s not even to say anything about the rest of the Seelie once they learn of me. Do you think they’ll even tell the rest of the court? Will they keep me hidden away again?” I take a shaky breath. “You were right. They probably have all these expectations of me and I doubt I'll live up to any of them.” I jump up from the log and pace back and forth to burn off some of this anxious energy. “What if they hate me? What if they wish they had a different girl for a daughter. What if they don’t even let me in? What if?—”
A hand lands on my arm, halting me in my tracks and silencing my spiral. “They won’t hate you,” Bastian says softly as he gently leads me back to sit on the log. “Sure, they might have some form of expectations of you, but they’ll all be built off of what they’ve heard from Fleur. You said she spoke to them frequently, providing updates, yes?” I nod in response since his finger is still keeping me from speaking. “Then you will almost definitely live up to their expectations. But at the end of the day, they’ll be overjoyed to have their daughter returned and finally get to know you for the female you’ve become.”
The prick of tears build in my eyes. “You know, you’re not so scary when you act like this,” I sniffle.
He lets out a loud bark of a laugh. “I typically try not to be scary by default.”
“Yes, well that doesn’t always work for you. You’re baseline terrifying. It’s the whole tall, dark, and Unseelie thing you’ve got going on,” I say with a wave of my hand in front of him.
“And you couldn’t be more threatening if you tried,” he teases with a smirk.
