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However, I don’t like the idea of him seeing my mate in bed, so I make sure I’m blocking his view into the room.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, confused because he’d have to have a good reason to come all the way from the Night Realm.
“Pardon the intrusion, but I have news that can’t wait.” In the next breath, he says, “Princess Zaylee has returned.”
I blink at him. I almost can’t believe it. It’s the one thing Ro had I have been hoping to hear.
My wife prays for it. Each night. Every visit to the temple. Before meals, and even during mundane tasks such as brushing her hair.
I’ve gotten used to her muttered words, sometimes in English but more often in Portuguese. They’ve become a comfort to me, even if I haven’t put any of my own belief into her god.
Well, maybe her prayers just got answered.
“Where is she?” Ro asks excitedly, and I can hear her wrestling with the covers behind me.
I glance back to see her wrapped in a sheet as she waddles over to us. Grabbing a robe off the back of one of the dining chairs, I drape it over her shoulders and tie the front to cover her.
She gives me a look like this isn’t the time to be worried about being exposed, but I can’t help it. If Alosi even catches a glimpse of a nipple through the fabric, I might end up getting the tournament violence out of my system early.
Respectful, Alosi’s gaze is stoic and unaffected. “Princess Zaylee arrived in the Night Realm outside of Delaveria just minutes ago. She was with a… very unhinged looking man. I don’t mean to be rude, but that’s the best word I can use to describe him. Unhinged.”
“Madden,” I blurt at the same time as Ro.
“I wasn’t told his identity,” Alosi says as if our guess might be incorrect. “King Kirian just gave me a box of portals and told me to inform the royals of the princess’s return as soon as possible. You’re my second stop. King Zander and Queen Maelyn were first, of course.”
“Was anyone else with Princess Zaylee and this man?” I ask. “Pippin?”
With a disappointed frown, Alosi shakes his head. “I’m afraid not.”
“We have to go,” Ro states, assaulting me with her doe eyes again. “Right now.”
Okay.
She’s going to get her way because this changes things.
We’ll have to mitigate the—most likely—hostile situation with Madden. We’re the only ones who actually know anything about him, and it will be much better if we’re there to vouch for him. I can’t see it going very well when King Zander finds out his daughter has been kept in a glass case for years.
With the shift of plans, I glance at our luggage. I mentally sort through what I packed.
Regrettably, I grimace at the suitcases. “We don’t have proper attire. It’s all jeans, T-shirts, hoodies, and sneakers.”
Beaming, Ro shuffles away. “No worries. I already prepared my own bag with fae dresses and shoes, just in case. I even have a couple outfits for you.”
She pulls a black backpack from a hiding spot under the bed, looking so damn proud of herself.
My jaw drops.
That little sneak.
All along, she’s been holding out hope for the best outcome instead of assuming we’re all doomed. She had faith that it would all turn out right.
That’s such a huge leap from who she was when I first found her, and this is a pivotal moment.
For some reason, it’s just now hitting me how much she’s improved. How much she’s healed. How strong she really is.
“Do you need a portal?” Alosi offers, but I’m already shutting the door in his face.
He won’t take offense to the rude action. He’s in a hurry to be somewhere else, and so are we.
