And I didn’t feel bad anymore. “Ass,” I muttered.
Titus chuckled beside me. “You know, Exos, I’m starting to see why all this happened. Your bedside manner sucks.”
“Do you speak to all Royal Fae in this manner, or am I a special case?”
Titus paled a little. “I… I’m…”
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Exos said, turning away from the field. “Let’s go.”
Titus cursed softly, his hand falling from my skin and leaving me cold without him. “We, uh, need to follow him.”
“Why?” I asked, not understanding the power play here.
“Because Exos says it’s time to go.” He stood and held out a hand for me.
“And we have to do what he says?” I asked as I accepted his help up from the ground—mostly because I wanted to touch him again.
“Yes.” He linked his fingers through mine, something that seemed a little unconscious on his part. His focus was on the third male, with the floppy hair, waiting for us near the tree line.
“Why?” I pressed as we started forward. “Why do we have to do what he says?” Because a part of me really wanted to disobey him.
“He’s a Royal Fae,” Titus replied.
“Okay?” That meant little to me.
He glanced at me. “He’s the Royal Prince of the Spirit Fae, Claire.”
I nearly tripped over the flowers beneath my feet. “Wh-what?” Was that like… like a European prince or something?
“Technically, he’s King of the Spirit Fae,” the other man mumbled, his cheeks flushing pink. “He, uh, renounced his throne to his brother, preferring the warrior life. But, well, Exos and Cyrus are the last of the royal line. At least until Cyrus finds a mate, which isn’t likely since, uh, yeah, you know, most of the Spirit Fae are dead.” He didn’t look at me the entire time he spoke, his gaze on my bare feet.
“This is River,” Titus said, grinning. “He’s a Water Fae.”
“Hi.” He waved, his focus still on the ground.
“Hi,” I replied, concerned that I’d offended him somehow. Or maybe he was just shy? “I’m Claire,” I hedged, trying to see him through his mop of dark curls.
“I know.” He peeked up at me, his eyes widening when he realized I was staring directly at him. He stumbled backward, almost falling, except Titus caught his wrist and yanked him upright.
“She’s not going to bite you, dude.”
“I-I know,” he repeated. “It’s j-just that, well, she’s… she’s human.”
Titus sighed. “River has an obsession,” he told me, glancing sideways.
“And I need a fucking shower,” Exos snapped, appearing again on the path. “Can we please go back to Elana’s now?”
Titus straightened, his gaze narrowing. “This woman has been through hell, Exos. Cut her some slack.”
“Yeah? She’s also put me through hell. What a coincidence.” He didn’t pay me a glance as he turned to lead the way—again.
“I don’t want him to go to dinner,” I decided.
“Something tells me he won’t be giving us much choice,” Titus muttered. “He’s been assigned as your protector.”
“My protector?” I frowned. “Why?”
Titus just shook his head. “Let’s just follow him. We can talk about more over dinner, okay? I promise.” His words sent a tingle down my spine as if his vow held power and purpose. Maybe it did.