Amalyss tilted her head toward me. “What do they do in Willowfell?”
“Nothing elaborate.” I rubbed my temple trying in vain to chase away the growing ache. Rorik’s eyes narrowed as he targeted the action. “We don’t have courtship travels, but I guess that’s a product of necessity for Evers.”
“No gifts? Outings of any kind?” Tasia looked downright abashed on my behalf that I was forced to live such a drab existence. I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Not for me. I didn’t want any additional attention. Fewer opportunities for my partners to discover I was a threadmender. My...interactionswere far from public.”
“One of these days, I’ll drag you to a coupling fete. It’s quite the experience,” Seville said. She skewered her lower lip with her teeth, biting back a teasing smile. Lydia nodded her agreement as she cut a furtive look toward Rorik, and Clesian coughed. Both Tasia and Amalyss seemed to vibrate in their seats, their gazes alight with blatant intrigue. Rorik was the only one who stiffened. His entire expression went cold.
“That is a horrendous idea,” he said, tone unfalteringly even but somehow filled with silent threat.
“Why?” Seville laughed as she finished her wine. “Edira’s life is short, and as Tasia pointed out, her experiences have been lackluster—including the one she entertained within these walls.”
Rorik’s daggered glare sliced through the air, and my stomach knotted at the hint of my relationship with Orin. But rather than utter his name out loud and give him any more space in my life, I gripped on to the one lifeline Seville had tossed: her offer.
“What’s a coupling fete?”
Rorik plunged the knife he’d been twirling into the table. “Something you will not be participating in.”
The pain behind my eyes flared. “Telling me what to do now?”
Seville ignored him entirely. She flipped her hair over her shoulder before reclining in her chair. “The name speaks for itself. It’s a type of fete for Evers to come together and... couple, if you will.”
Clesian spoke up then, clearing his throat before meeting my gaze. “Originally it was held as a way for Evers to mingle with the hopes of conceiving a child without formerly attaching themselves to another family.”
“Power sharing is a touchy area for many of our kind,” Lydia said as she straightened in her chair. “Coupling fetes tend to appeal to those who have no desire to form heartbonds. Some attend purely for the fun of it, though. There’s an herb that can be taken by either party to prevent conception.”
“Rorik never did want to be tied down,” Seville said with an exaggerated sigh.
“We were already burdened with Father’s vow. No one else needed to endure that.” His words were clipped, and Seville nodded in agreement.
My chest tightened. I couldn’t bring myself to hold Rorik’s gaze. Instead, I stared at my empty plate. He’d carried so much weight throughout his life, first with his father, then Orin. And now, me. We weren’t bound by an evervow, but we were tied together just the same. He didn’t want to be in this predicament any more than I wanted to. And while I couldn’t blame him for that, I couldn’t deny the small swell of... sadness? Uncertainty? The foreign, squirming emotion made my stomach roil and my jaw clench.
I hated it even more that I couldn’t tell if it was mine or his.
Fortunately, the headache that’d been brewing all evening decided that now was the time to come in full force, and I sucked in a sharp breath as the throbbing pain crawled down my neck. Slowly, I stood.
“I think I’m going to call it for the night.” I offered what I hoped was a convincing smile, one that hinted at tiredness but betrayed none of the pain I felt—both the unfamiliar one twisting through my chest and the needling ache in my head. But while I received polite good nights from the family, Rorik only scrutinized me with narrowed eyes.
What’s wrong?His voice twisted through the fog of discomfort in my mind.Hallucination?
I bit back a groan as I exited the dining room and headed for the stairs. Leave it to Seville to share my vision of the Ever to Rorik. If he thought my health was declining, there was no way he’d continue to train me.
I haven’t had any problems since being back here.Lie. Sort of. At least no hallucinations of Death or insanely attractive Evers. Perhaps my mind had enough material to work with just being back within these halls.
We’ll scale back on training.
We will not,I thought back.I want this. Don’t you dare take it away from me.
Edira...
No.One word spoken with all the control and power I could manifest. Thankfully, it was enough to shut him up. Once I was in my room, I let out a sigh as I rubbed my temples. I didn’t even bother to change before slipping into bed and burrowing my head beneath the pillows.
The headache would subside. Everything else... Only sleep would tell.
Ten
Sleep worked wonders on my headache, but when I rose the next morning, I made an effort to move slow. To relax in a bath filled with soothing herbs and salts to alleviate muscle pain. To stretch and greet the midmorning sun slanting through my windows with a round of breathing exercises. Rorik would be proud. Irritation soured the back of my tongue at the thought of his name. Yet, I endured. I had to find a way to harness his power so I could strengthen my own. All without falling prey to his devilish grin and dark taunts.
