As she stepped into the room, followed by Sarah, Elora gasped. Her examination traveled from the linked flowers on the wall and ceiling to the blossom-covered table.
“Do you like it?” Julian asked hopefully.
Adam closed the door behind them.
“It’s beautiful!” she inhaled. “How did you—”
Julian scanned the room with satisfaction, and then his stare turned to Elora. Her eyes were wide in excitement; her lips parted in amazement. A petal fell from the ceiling to land on her hood. He removed it gently from her head and then eased the hood down around her shoulders. “Are you hungry?”
She nodded, continuing to scan the small room. She waved at Heather as Sarah walked to the hearth.
He extended a hand to her to sit at the table.
Adam approached them with a flask of ale. He filled the mugs.
“Ah!” Elora exclaimed, recognizing the boy. “My dutiful knight!”
Adam bowed and then moved away to the hearth, helping Heather and the children with the food.
Elora looked at Julian suspiciously. “You had help.”
“I could not have done this by myself,” Julian admitted, looking around at the flowers draped over the table and on the ceiling. He nodded. “I had help. A lot of it.”
“It’s lovely,” Elora breathed.
Julian couldn’t take his eyes off of her. “Yes. Lovely.”
She met his stare, and her cheeks reddened. She turned away and quickly took a seat at the table. “I would have enjoyed a picnic, as well.”
Julian opened his mouth. He knew it! He should have kept his original plan with the picnic. He sat beside her. “I was torn. I didn’t know which to do.”
She placed a hand on his arm, calming him. “It doesn’t matter what we do as long as I’m with you.”
Julian’s heart swelled as his hungry stare swept her. Her dazzling eyes, her kind personality. Her exquisite blonde waves framed her face. He shifted as he began to grow hard. He cleared his throat and glanced back at Heather near the hearth before looking at Elora again.
“How is your shoulder?” she wondered.
He moved it back and forth. “Sore but manageable. I owe Mace a debt of gratitude. And you for bringing him to me.”
“It was luck, really. I knew you were hurt, and he escorted me.” She squeezed his arm. “I’m glad you were not seriously hurt.” She straightened, looking down at him imperiously. “And I’m glad you kept your word about Osmont.”
He puffed out a breath. “That was a vow I would not break.”
She leaned in closer to him. “I loved seeing how angry he was. He stomped his feet like a spoiled child. It was embarrassing.”
Julian nodded, but his smile faded. “Ellie, when I was jousting him, he was guarding his left shoulder.”
“Shouldn’t he?”
Baldwin’s words rang in his head. “Be very careful what you tell her.” He had to know. Something was wrong. It festered in his mind, and he wanted to cleanse it.
“This morning when you visited me. At the river, we spoke about his flaw.”
She twirled her flower before her. “Yes. I remember. You told me it was his right shoulder.”
Julian’s gaze moved over her face. Innocent. It didn’t make sense. She knew it was Osmont’s right shoulder, and yet, he had been protecting his left. A nagging doubt tickled the back of his mind. “Did you speak to him after I told you that?”
She swallowed but would not meet his gaze. “You already defeated him once. You knew you could do it again.”
