Free Princess Avenger - Brightcastle Saga Book 1 by Bernadette Rowley Page B

he
thought, but not more so than he. His destiny was to protect but
after last night, he was no longer sure what that meant. Oh yes,
he’d been foolish indeed to take the steps that had brought him to
this place. He shook his head. The distraction had worked for a
time, long enough to bring his ragged emotions back under control.
He was expected at breakfast.
     
    When Vard entered the
dining hall, Princess Alecia was already seated at the long table,
halfway along the side that faced the servery. Her eyebrows rose
and her gaze swept over him, lingering below his belt. He raised
one brow and waited for her eyes to lift, grinning at the blush
that stained her cheeks. He knew she recalled his undress of just a
few hours before. But his amusement was short-lived. It wasn’t just
his skin he had laid bare. She had seen him at his most vulnerable
and it could not happen a second time. There was no telling what he
might do if he lost control like that again.
    He crossed to
the servery and poured from a china teapot into a fragile cup,
savouring a mouthful of the fragrant brew as he faced his charge.
Her eyes had the dark smudge of fatigue beneath them. The niggling
familiarity struck him again. “Did I frighten you last night,
Princess?” He watched the delicate movement of her throat as she
swallowed, and his traitorous heart skipped a beat and raced
away.
    “ Startle, more like,” she said. “You were not yourself… Are
you -- well…this
morning?”
    He took a deep
breath and crossed to the table, disturbed by his reaction. He was
vulnerable to her! That shouldn’t surprise him after last night,
but it did. Alecia was very much a part of his current dilemma, his
lack of control. She was inextricably linked into this chain of
events that pushed his restraint to the limit. The truthful answer
to her question was ‘no’.
    “I’m
recovered, Princess.” He sat opposite her and piled potatoes and
thick mutton on a slice of hot bread, glad that his voice gave no
clue to his distress. Her presence tugged at him, made him want to
bare his innermost thoughts. “Where’s your father?”
    She didn’t
answer for a moment. “He has been delayed. We are to start the meal
without him. Why are you here?”
    Faint
stirrings of anger licked at his brain. How could she irritate and
intrigue him at the same time? He took a deep slow breath, resolved
to keep cool. “The prince requested my presence, Your Highness,
otherwise you can be assured I would’ve eaten in the kitchen or
with the men.”
    “I did not
mean to offend.” She examined his face, her head tilted to one
side. Her scent carried a mixture of nervousness and intense
curiosity, as though she were viewing an unfamiliar but dangerous
beast. He supposed that described him well enough.
    The silence
between them lengthened, their eyes locked together. The princess
gave a start and broke the contact when Prince Zialni stalked into
the room. They both stood but the prince waved away their
manners.
    “Be seated,”
he said, as he filled his plate and took his chair at the head of
the table. “So many things to attend to and so little time.” He
looked at Vard. “Have you heard the news from the township?”
    “No, Your
Highness.”
    “ More
killings,” Prince Zialni snapped. “In the same area as the first.
There is foul murder at work here and I will get to the bottom of it.”
    Vard glanced
at the princess. Her eyes were fixed on her plate, the fork in her
hand trembled and a wave of her fear struck him hard. He had not
thought her easily upset. “Perhaps we should discuss this alone,
Your Highness,” he said to the prince.
    “Nonsense!
Alecia has to understand the risks of her office. In the past, she
has disregarded the need for security. It will do her good to see
that even hardened mercenaries can be victims.”
    “Hardened
mercenaries, Highness?” Vard said.
    “The very
same.” Price Zialni’s brow creased. He did seem disturbed by the
news. “Two