Betrayals of Spring (Forever Fae #2)(24)
“You do realize this is a black and white affair, Princess?” Ashur utters silently.
I glance over at him and he’s shaking his head in disbelief. I shrug my shoulders at him and taunt back sarcastically, “I guess I didn’t see that on the invitation, Ashur.” I put my hand over my mouth, “Whoops.”
“You know you’re getting just as bad as Ariella with breaking the rules.”
Thinking about it, this would be something she would do. The thought brings a smile to my face and Ashur quickly pipes in, “Laugh about it now, Princess, but we will see who is laughing when they throw you out of the ballroom.”
I wave him off and turn our conversation vocal.
“They will do no such thing,” I tease.
I see Elissa waiting by the door looking ravishing in a black jewel-encrusted gown. She smiles as I approach.
“Ashur giving you a hard time?” she asks.
“Doesn’t he always?” I reply back.
“You look beautiful, Meliantha.” She looks down at my hand and sees the bow and arrows I have clutched in my grasp. “Do you really think you will need those tonight?” she asks dubiously. I hope not, but with the way things are going, I probably will.
I shrug my shoulders at her and confess softly, “You never know, Elissa. That’s one thing I’ve learned…you never know.” I give her a warm smile. “You look amazing tonight.” She blushes and waves me off.
She doesn’t seem frightened at all about the dark sorcerer being around and for some reason that bothers me. She could easily be a target just like Ashur and Finn could be. We all saw how easy it was for the dark sorcerer to infiltrate his way into Finn’s body.
“Come on ladies, we need to go,” Finn urges while gently pushing me toward the door.
“OK, OK, let’s go,” I give in.
Ashur opens the door and a blast of cold wind comes rushing in sending shivers racing down my body. I grit my teeth to keep them from chattering. I hate the cold weather. I notice two warriors stationed outside the door on both sides and I kindly give them both a nod. They bow their heads before preparing to escort us to the palace. I appreciate the added security, but I also hate it because it makes me look helpless. There’s nothing they can do against the dark sorcerer, or any of us for that matter, because unfortunately no one has figured out how to destroy him.
Finn takes my arm and walks me down the steps. I take a quick peek over at Kalen’s cabin and it looks eerily dark and quiet. He must have already left. The back veranda of the palace is swarming with people, and they are all milling about and smiling like they have no other care in the world.
Twinkling lights are floating all around and it reminds me of my sprites back home. I really miss them and the times I would spend with them in my gardens. As soon as I get home, I plan to devote all my extra time with them. The twinkling lights also remind me of the mortal realm at Christmas time. We don’t celebrate mortal holidays here, but I guess you could say this ball is our Christmas celebration, minus all the presents. This is more of a Winter Court celebration that we are obligated to take part in.
Walking in the snow in high heeled sandals may not have been the best idea. My toes are numb and they’ll probably fall off from frostbite. My temperature runs naturally hot, but the cold still affects me. It only takes a few minutes to reach the veranda at the back of the palace. Now that Kalen is the leader of the Winter Court Army, he must have ordered extra security for the ball tonight. The place is swarming with warriors.
We enter through the doors and are motioned toward what I can only assume is the ballroom. I can’t really see because of the huge mass of people scattered about. There’s a long line of guests waiting to enter, and I can hear the booming voice of an announcer calling out each individual’s names. I silently groan and squeeze Finn’s arm to grab his attention.
“This is going to take forever,” I whisper to him.
He just smiles and elbows me in the ribs lightly.
“Look at it this way, Cinderella, at least you get to make your grand entrance with that beautiful gown of yours.” He lifts my hand to his lips and kisses it softly. “I’m honored to be by your side tonight.”
But for how long, I think to myself.
“I heard that,” Ashur says, interrupting my inner turmoil.
I peek over my shoulder to steal a glance at him. He’s holding onto Elissa’s arm escorting her just like Finn is doing with me.
“Kalen wasn’t the one that broke my heart, Ashur. I’ve hated him for nothing, and because of what the dark sorcerer did, I closed off my heart and soul to the people that cared about me the most. I’ve missed out on so much.”
I turn my head forward and we continue our slow pace to the entryway of the ballroom. Ashur’s voice comes back full force inside my head.
“You may have closed off your heart during the past five years, but I feel it beginning to open up again, and I love the feeling. For the first time since I’ve been your Guardian, I can feel that spark of happiness trying to come back into your life. The dark sorcerer made a mistake when he played you for a fool. I hate to say this, but this experience has opened your eyes and made you a stronger and smarter woman.”
My eyes begin to burn, but I fight it off.
“I hope so, Ashur. I truly hope so.”
We eventually make our way to the ballroom doors and the announcer obviously recognizes me.