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“Charming,” I said with a grimace. “Will they be done soon?”
“Hmm, you look like you may want to beat someone to a bloody pulp,” Cerridwen said with a sly grin at me. She folded neatly to sit on the stone ground, patting the spot next to her. “What did he do now?”
“The usual,” I said with a sigh. I didn’t feel like getting into everything that happened with Cerridwen, and facing either her judgment or her encouragement, but I joined her on the ground anyway, sitting cross legged to watch the males spar.
The way Carnon was swinging his sword as if it weighed nothing told me he had done this many times before, and I couldn’t help but admire the ripple of muscles beneath his golden skin as he moved, all grace and agility against Herne’s sheer bulk. Carnon struck a glancing blow, nicking the skin over Herne’s ribs. A bright line of red blossomed from the cut, and Herne growled.
“Is he alright?” I asked Cerridwen, who looked totally unconcerned at her mate’s injury.
She smiled at me. “Yes,” she said, laughing a little. “Demons heal quickly. A scratch like that will be gone by this evening.”
“Do they often draw blood?” I asked, wincing as Herne struck Carnon in the gut with the pommel of his sword, making the Demon King gasp for a moment. Herne’s grin of victory was short lived as Carnon cast a ring of fire around him, trapping him neatly. Herne cursed.
“Usually it ends like this,” Cerridwen said, smiling wryly as Carnon commanded, “Yield.” Herne threw his sword down in frustration and Carnon smirked, snapping his fingers and vanishing the flame. “Show off,” Cerridwen muttered under her breath.
Despite the loss, Herne stuck out an arm, pulling Carnon into an embrace when he took it.
Cerridwen rolled her eyes, giving me an exasperated look. “Males,” she lamented, pushing herself to stand as Herne came toward us, giving me a hand to pull me up with her.
Herne looked strangely less thunderous than before, and to my surprise, he knelt before me. “Lady Elara,” he said in sonorous tones. “I’m to make my apologies for my rudeness and my distrust.”
“And for running to the Lords,” Carnon shouted, pouring an entire water skin over his head. I tried not to notice his gleaming skin, and kept my attention fixed on Herne.
“And for calling the Lords before you were ready,” Herne conceded through gritted teeth.
Carnon came over and dropped a heavy hand on Herne’s shoulder. “See?” he asked, smirking at me in a way that told me he wasn’t done with me, despite our argument in the dining room. “That wasn’t so hard, was it?” I raised a brow at him, and he mirrored my expression. A challenge and a promise that he wasn’t backing down so easily.
Herne growled. “I cannot rise, my Lady, until you accept the apology.”
“Oh,” I said, a little surprised. I supposed Carnon must have demanded this if he won. “I accept.”
“Thank you, my Lady,” Herne said, rising and giving me a polite nod.
“Elara is fine, really,” I said, not sure what to make of the huge demon. He was clearly devoted to Cerridwen, but his relationship with Carnon confused me.
He gave me another nod, turning to Carnon and holding out his arm. The Demon King grasped it, pulling the huge male in for an embrace.
“Apologies, brother,” Herne said, stepping back from Carnon and putting his hand over his chest.
“It’s forgiven,” Carnon said with a nod. He turned to me, giving me an appraising look. “Now that all of that awkwardness is out of the way, it will make our trip much more pleasant.”
“Trip?” I asked, injecting ice into my tone as I met his emerald gaze. I attempted a glower, which Carnon met with a snakelike smile.
“After the ball. Since you’ve outgrown fruit,” he replied, raising his brows at me. I had almost forgotten about the cursed ball, and I groaned inwardly as he continued, “I figure we will need something bigger to practice on. The Court of Beasts is remote enough, and heavily forested.”
“And the Spider won’t dare come near,” Cerridwen added darkly, glancing at Carnon, who gave her a curt nod.
“It would be…complicated if she found out about your littlesecret,” he agreed.
I scoffed. “Which one?” I asked, giving Carnon my most disapproving frown. “I can’t even keep track of their number any more.”
Cerridwen looked between us, biting her lower lip. “We’ll leave you to talk,” she said, pulling a resistant Herne along with her as she headed back toward the castle. “See you tonight!” I gave Cerridwen a beseeching look as she left—a silent plea for her to stay. She mouthed, “sorry,” over her shoulder as she dragged her mate away.
“You’re being remarkably civil to me,” Carnon said as soon as the pair were out of earshot. “Have you changed your mind about last night?”
“No,” I snapped, eliciting a wicked grin from the Demon King that put my teeth on edge. “Nor will I ever.”
“Hmmm,” Carnon said, his tone of disbelief maddening in the extreme. “Then by all means, continue to be angry with me. It makes your eyes sparkle.”
