Dark Sexy Knight (A Modern Fairytale)(18)

“How many people?” she asked.

“All told? Hundred and fifty? Two hundred? Thereabouts.”

“Wow. I didn’t realize . . .”

“You’ve seen the castle?” he asked, glancing at her.

She nodded. “Sure. On Peachtree. You can’t miss it.”

“So you know. It’s a big place.”

“What’s a . . . falconer?”

“He’s the guy that trains the birds. You know . . . to fly around the arena?”

“Birds fly around?”

“Two hawks. Fred and Ginger.”

“During the show? Is that safe?”

He nodded. “It better be. They fly around every night and twice on Thursdays, Fridays, and weekends.”

“Wow,” she sighed. “I can’t wait to see the show.”

“Sit in the yellow section,” he said, regretting the words as soon as they’d left his lips. “If you can.”

She grinned at him. He didn’t look at her, but he could feel her smile lighting up the whole car. “Is that your section? Yellow?”

He nodded once, feeling foolish. It’s not like he’d win tonight. He only won once a week, during the Sunday matinee. Artie, the blue knight, always won on Mondays, but at least she’d be cheering for him, not for Artie or one of the other guys.

“Then yellow it is,” she said. She peeked around the seat at her brother. “Ry, you okay? You nervous?”

“I like horses, Ver’ty.”

“I know you do, and you’re real good with them, Ry. But you mind your boss today. Don’t go wandering off. Please, please, please pay attention the best you can.”

“Okay, Ver’ty.”

“I’ll come see you if I get a break. If I don’t, I’ll come get you at five, and we’ll get seats to watch the show together.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” said Colton, gritting his teeth as soon as the words left his mouth. Stop caring. You’ve done enough.

“Thank you,” she said, her hand reaching out and landing on his arm. Her fingers squeezed gently, and he clenched his jaw, wishing she’d pull her hand away. She was too distracting, making him feel too much. Squeezing again, she lifted her hand. “You’re so good to us.”

Colt cleared his throat, turning onto Peachtree and wondering how they’d do today. Verity would be fine. Beverly, the gift shop manager, was a gossipy bitch, but as long as Verity kept her head down and did as she was told, she shouldn’t have any issues. As for Ryan? Colton wasn’t as sure. Joe Sterns, the stable master, had been with the show since the castle opened, in 1990, and was about as kind as they came. An older man, he had the respect and affection of every knight and squire who spent time at TLOC. The problem was, not all the knights and squires were kind. And Ryan wasn’t exactly the picture of efficiency.

Then again, he remembered the way Ryan had sat with those rabbits on the lawn last night—some humans had animal sense, and from what he could gather, Ryan was one of them. If Colt was right, it would mean that Ryan’s presence would be soothing for the animals, organic and comfortable, and the cast members would notice that and appreciate it. At any rate, Ryan’s job was protected, in some part, because of his ADA status. And Colt was determined to make sure that the other knights, knights in training, and squires left the gentle giant alone.

He turned into the employee parking lot, parked in his usual space, and turned to Verity. “You’ll be fine. If you run into any trouble, I’m usually at the stables or the gym. Come find me.”

That smile. That sweet, perfect, goddamned smile that made his heart clutch. He remembered the feel of her palm against his cheek yesterday, the feel of her arms around his waist, her body pressed against his back.

“Okay,” she said.

“And meet me here at seven thirty. After the show. I’ll drive us home.”

She nodded, her smile widening, her dimples deep. “At the risk of sounding like a broken record . . . thank you.”

***

The castle bustled as they entered through the back doors, walking down a long hallway and through a door that led to the main hall, where, Colton explained, the guests waited for the doors of the arena to open. Men and women, young and old, passed them in the hallway, saying hello to Colton, who answered mostly in grunts, and not so subtly checking out Verity and Ryan.

As always, Verity was on her guard in a new situation, trying to figure out who was mean-spirited and who would leave her brother to work in peace. There was always a rotten apple. Always. The key was finding him (or her) and warning Ryan to stay away.

Then again, in this situation—unlike others, when she’d walked into a new place feeling alone and defenseless—Colton had promised to look after Ryan, and it filled her with such gratitude and reassurance, it was a wonder she hadn’t burst into tears in the car and cried all over him.

Because that’s just what he needed, right? A homeless, desperate, emotional basket case of a woman crying and snotting all over his pristine black T-shirt. Thank God she was able to hold back her tears and reach for his arm instead.

Opening a large door at the end of the hall, Colton waited for her to walk through, and she was about to thank him for his gallantry when she gasped in surprise.

Three-story ceilings were cut with dark brown crossbeams, from which hung herald flags of yellow, red, white, blue, and green bearing the arms of ancient clans and tribes. Crisscrossed swords decorated the walls, and the brick floor beneath her shoes added to the feeling of Disney-style antiquity.