My heart did a series of flips, and a smile came unbidden over my lips. Was Alok jealous of Helio? Did he actually give a crap about me?
I felt like I was floating on a cloud far above Goldendale . . . until I saw Alok push his hair back and start my way. I ran before he had a chance to catch me spying. I didn’t slow down until I reached the main halls. I ducked into the courtyard, where some of the guests were drinking lemonade and eating sugared cookies. Several smiled at me, and when they did, I smiled back.
I plunked down on a bench, where I stretched my legs, closed my eyes, and lifted my head to the sun. I bathed in the warmth of the day as I ran back over the image of coins raining from Alok’s long pale fingers to pay the lad. That had been no accident at lunch.
My lips formed a smirk.
“What’s so amusing?” Helio demanded. The air cooled when his shadow loomed over me.
Slowly, I opened my eyes. Helio had changed into a tailored riding outfit. His copper-highlighted hair looked freshly brushed.
“I was enjoying the sun,” I said with a sigh.
“You’re not in your riding habit,” Helio noted.
“I already went out earlier, as you know,” I said.
“And what of the afternoon’s hunt?”
“I’d rather stay here.”
“Then you should join the lake excursion.”
“I don’t fancy a swim.”
“Then sit and sun yourself beside the lake,” Helio said impatiently. “Vocla will escort you.”
I sat up and frowned. “I do not require an escort.”
“All females should have escorts.” Alok strode over, chest puffed. Ignoring me, he grinned at Helio. “I wouldn’t allow my sister to gallivant around the grounds unsupervised.”
My earlier elation burned up in an instant. Did he think females the weaker sex? That swine! Alok really ought to know better.
My fingers curled and nails bit into my palms. Noticing the rage in my eyes put a smile on Helio’s lips.
“Well, not everyone is as well-bred as you and I,” Helio announced proudly. “It is refreshing to have such a refined, noble guest at Amberhill for the week.”
“Indeed,” Alok said smugly. “Please let me know if I can be of service while you and your friends ride out on the hunt. I would be happy to keep an eye on your fiancée for you. I am already chaperoning my sister on the lake excursion.”
The sun, which had felt pleasant moments ago, now felt hot enough to boil my blood. I got to my feet and glared at Alok. “Don’t trouble yourself, Prince Alok. I’m sure you are far too important to spend your afternoon babysitting a nobody elf like me.”
“Nobody?” Alok lifted his brows. “Aren’t you this realm’s champion archer?”
“Undefeated,” Helio said, puffing up his chest as though the glory belonged as much to him as it did to me.
“Retired,” I said coolly.
Alok cocked his head to the side and shot me a curious glance.
“There was no one left for Fraya to beat,” Helio boasted.
“Ah,” Alok said. “Well, I’m sure my sister would be delighted by your company this afternoon, if you will give it to her.”
“Of course she will,” Helio answered for me. He waved Vocla over. “The prince has graciously invited Fraya to spend the afternoon with him and his sister at the lake.”
A hopeful smile spread over Vocla’s lips. “Does this mean I can join the hunt?”
Helio slid a glance my way and twisted his lips in thought.
“Fine,” I huffed. “I’ll go to the lake with Princess Reyna and her overbearing brother.”
Helio studied me a moment before relaxing his shoulders. He turned to Alok. “I trust you won’t let my future bride out of your sight while I lead the hunt. With her parents so far away in the mortal realm, you can understand my desire to keep a close eye on her.”
“Oh?” Alok looked at me with a slight frown. I would have thought he’d be thrilled to hear my family wasn’t around.
“I am all she has,” Helio said, as if my parents were never returning. I bet he’d like that. It wasn’t enough that he wanted to isolate me from my family. He probably delighted in their absence from the elven realm.
After placing a wet kiss on my cheek, Helio jerked his head at Vocla. As soon as the males started out of the courtyard, I scrubbed away the moisture left on my face.
Alok watched me with a mixture of irritation and desire. He’d always been observant. There was no sense pretending in front of him. Not that my disgust with Helio would help Alok worm his way back into my heart.
“Your fiancé keeps a tight leash.” Alok pursed his lips.
“You can hardly blame him for being crazy about me.” I tossed back my head, feeling the afternoon sun light up my hair and filter through the thin fabric of my dress, revealing every curve through the pale pink gauze.
Alok’s nostrils flared as he looked me over. “No, I can’t,” he said, sounding angry. “How fortunate to find such a committed male.”
I lifted my hand as though raising a flute of bubbling wine. “Yes, life has been all sweetberry sunshine for Fraya Keasandoral. A fucking dream come true!”
Alok frowned. “Do you expect me to feel sorry for you?”
“I don’t expect anything from you. We’re no longer friends, remember? We’re nothing.” I spun around, arms shaking as I dashed into the hedge maze. All I could hear was the chilly sound of Alok’s voice. It was too hard being around him. My traitorous heart wanted to return to the way things had been before our breakup. He’d been my best friend and the love of my life.
I nearly tripped in the maze, shocked by my thoughts.
Conall was supposedly my great love. Had I been lying to myself? To him? I didn’t want to consider it. I ought to pine after poor Conall for the remainder of my life. I’d known in the aftermath of his death there was no silver lining waiting for me on the dark horizon. I’d known it didn’t matter. I didn’t deserve a second chance at happiness. But that didn’t mean I had to bend over and let life kick me in the ass, either.
Thick green hedges surrounded me. More walls caging me into Amberhill. I had to get out of here. If I couldn’t ride, I’d walk!
Arms pumping, I rushed back to the courtyard, only to be stopped short by Alok and his sister. Alok’s twin wore a long, strappy gray dress and a wide-brimmed hat. A folded blanket was pressed under Alok’s arm.
“There she is.” He nodded at me. “Fraya, allow me to properly introduce you to my sister, Reyna. I was just telling her you’ll be joining us at the lake.”
“I—” I swung a glance from Alok to Reyna. His sister had that same uneasy look on her face when she looked at me. I cleared my throat. “Nice to meet you, Reyna.”
Alok raised a brow like he didn’t believe me.
“Hello,” Reyna answered softly, taking more interest in the blades of grass below her sandaled toes than in holding my gaze.
“Shall we?” Alok asked. Reyna quickly wrapped her fingers around his free arm, as if she thought I might try and snatch him up. I nearly snorted. Alok’s twin had nothing to fear, though her obviously weak opinion of me smarted. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much.
“You two go ahead. I’m going to take a nap.”
“You can take a nap by the lake.”
When I glared at Alok, he smiled.
“I swore to watch over you, remember?” He cocked one brow in challenge.
Great. So now Alok Elmray was my jailer. For the second time in a year, my fingers itched to let loose a line of arrows. I needed some straw dummies to let off steam. Instead, I felt forced to tag along with Alok and his sister to the lake.
We weren’t the only guests to choose lakeside lounging and swimming over riding and hunting. Over half of Helio’s guests laid blankets in the grass near the water’s edge. Females pulled their gowns over their heads and waded into the lake in their slips. Males stripped down to their white linen briefs. The thought of
Alok doing the same caused heat to creep up my neck.
Alok picked a spot away from the crowd, beneath a shaded tree, to shake out the blanket. He remained on his feet, allowing his sister and me to take a seat on the soft covering. I sat, arms folded, along one side, watching the elves splashing around in the lake. Reyna took the opposite side. Alok remained on his feet, leaning against the tree trunk while scanning the surrounding fields as though he expected an ambush at any second. I supposed he’d had to live his life on high alert ever since Liri put a price on his head. Not that anyone in the elven realm knew about Alok’s treachery.
The female I’d seen eating lunch with Reyna skipped over. “Want to cool off in the lake with me?” she asked cheerfully.
Reyna instantly smiled, which made her look even more beautiful. Just as quickly, the smile faded when she glanced my way.
“Go. Have fun,” Alok said.
He’d spoken with a sweetness that chipped at my soul. Without meaning to, I spoke up using my bitchy voice. “You’re not your sister’s keeper, Alok. She can make her own decisions.”
“The way you do?” he snapped. The shade of the tree seemed to fall directly over Alok’s face, its shadow deepening over his dark eyes and hair. Alok slid away from the trunk, arms folded. “Perhaps Fraya should join you. She seems to need cooling off.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Do whatever you want. I’m taking a nap.” With that, I stretched onto my side, keeping my back to the group. I closed my eyes, hoping they’d all go away. I’d scooted to the very edge of the blanket and could smell the grass and soil below my nose.
“Are you sure?” I heard Reyna whisper.
I didn’t catch Alok’s answer. I pictured him nodding.
“How do you know Fraya Keasandoral?” Reyna’s friend asked.
“We share family,” Alok said.
“Oh?” the female’s voice rose curiously.
Yeah, good luck explaining that one. Alok didn’t.
Reyna cleared her throat. “Let’s go for a swim.”
The females’ voices faded into the soft din of yelps, shouts, and laughter rolling off the lake. My hip bone dug into the hard ground beneath the blanket, but I kept still. I could sense Alok standing above me. With the entire blanket to myself, it was ridiculous to hover so close to the edge, but stubborn pride kept me from sprawling out.
“I’m not your enemy.”
I opened my eyes and rolled onto my back, looking up into Alok’s dark brown eyes. “I know.”
Alok didn’t look at me long. He ran a hand through his hair and watched the lake, probably looking after his sister. She was the one he cared about now. They’d had plenty of time to reconnect. My old anger at Alok flared up. He was supposed to be mine. After he fled Dahlquist, I couldn’t bear to go back to the castle again. I hadn’t, until my cousin Lark’s wedding. I’d hated Alok so much for making me feel that way.
“Where are your parents?” he asked.
Startled by his question, and the concern in his voice, I sat up and wrapped my arms around my knees. “They’re on holiday with my aunt Mel and her mates.” It still felt strange to think of Uncle Ryo as also being Alok’s uncle. I wasn’t sure what Uncle Lyklor was to Alok. A second uncle? Then there were our shared cousins, Reed and Ronin. Lark and Melody were technically second cousins of Alok’s.
“Did Mel take the kids?” Alok asked.
“The twins and their youngest, Melody.” Alok had probably heard about her, but I wasn’t certain. “Lark’s happily married and living at Dahlquist with his mate. He also inherited his mother’s fire magic,” I added, lifting my chin in triumph. At least one of us had found true happiness.
“So I heard. Good for him.” There was a bitter edge to Alok’s words. He and Lark had never gotten along. In fact, if it hadn’t been for my cousin’s intervention, I would have given Alok my virginity. I’d felt relieved about dodging that arrow after Alok tried to take over the castle. But in my darkest fantasies, I wished we’d gone all the way.
Sweat beaded beneath my breasts despite the tree’s shade.
I searched the lake for Reyna’s dark head of hair. She was treading water in the middle with her friend. “You should tell your sister I have no intention of telling my family about your trips to the elven realm. She looks at me like I plan to turn you in.”
Alok sighed, running his hand through his hair. It had a dark onyx shine that gleamed, even in the shade. “She’s afraid you’ll break my heart again.”
“Hey! You can’t blame me for that.”
“I don’t.”
When Alok took a seat on the blanket, a jolt of pleasure stirred low in my belly.
“How are the twins? They’re what, fifteen now?”
“Sixteen.”
“Sixteen,” Alok repeated wistfully. I nodded. Sometimes I wished I could go back to that age. Back to that time before everything bad happened. Back to us.
With a conspiratorial grin, Alok asked, “And are they still perfect angels?”
Before I could stop myself, I laughed. It was painful the way Alok’s eyes lit up. I loosened the hold I had around my knees and stretched my legs out in front of me. “They keep their parents and babysitters on their toes,” I said with a chuckle.
“Kaylin and Peridot are still with them?”
“Yeah, but mostly for Melody. Not that she needs them. Even at seven, she’s extremely independent.”
“Seems to run in the family,” Alok said with a smile.
Ugh. The way he made my heart flip was too easy. My family would blow up if they knew I was seated on a blanket beside Alok Elmray chatting away, skirting along the edges of flirtation.
“What are you even doing here?” I asked.
Eyes trained on the water, Alok answered, “My mother and her mate are on holiday, which is a rare opportunity for Reyna and me to get away. As you know, we can’t travel around Faerie . . . not without risking my head.”
“And what a shame that would be. It’s such a pretty head.” I ran my fingers through his hair before I could stop myself. Old habit. Alok went completely still as my hand brushed through his tapered locks. “It’s gotten so long.” My voice was barely audible.
In our spot of shade, set apart from the merry gathering, a deep loneliness welled inside of me. I was on dry land, yet I felt like I was drowning, and only the air from Alok’s lips could save me. I hadn’t allowed myself to admit how much I missed him after he went into hiding. There had been a void inside of me ever since. To smile and laugh beside him was playing with fire. My body reacted to his nearness. Needy, wet heat bloomed between my thighs. His nostrils flared as though he’d scented my arousal. I pulled a shaky hand away from his hair and pressed my legs together.
Sky above, I ached for him. I wished for everyone else to disappear and for Alok to pull my dress up to my hips, then fill me. I wanted him to obliterate the lonely ache along with every desire that burned bright within. I wanted what was mine, and I’d always felt that Alok belonged to me.
My breath hitched as if everything I’d imagined would play out.
Before I could regain my composure, Alok turned and palmed my breast. He angled his torso to block the view of his caressing fingers, but if anyone looked over, it wouldn’t be too difficult to guess that we were getting overly friendly. My lust-starved body was too delirious to care.
His hand on me was like a searing brand I only wanted to press into harder. I leaned into his touch, eyes fluttering half closed. I placed my palm on his thigh and raked my nails over his trousers, wanting to tear through the fabric and everything else that had ever stood between us. I wanted to strip it all away until I’d satisfied my desperate need for him.
This was sick. This was wrong. Yet my body begged for more.
His last words to me, seven years ago, still haunted my dreams.
“You’ll want me again one day, Fraya. And when that day comes, I will be there for you.”
I imagined Alok gloating as I groped him and s
hoved my breasts into his palms, but there was no gloating smirk on his lips. The intensity of his gaze and the rapid rise and fall of his chest made it apparent he was far more intent on our actions than on any thoughts of triumph.
Brazenly, I trailed my fingers up his thigh, making my way to his nether region and the bulge expanding beneath his trousers.
“Alok!” His sister yelled. Her voice was like a bucket of cold water dumped over our heads, pulling us apart.
CHAPTER FIVE
Alok
At first, I feared Reyna had seen me feeling up Fraya. It had taken me all evening to convince my sister to remain at Amberhill for the duration of the party.
“She won’t report us. Her family is in the mortal realm right now, along with our uncles,” I’d assured her, leaving out the part about observing Fraya’s discontent with her fiancé. I needed more time to assess the situation. And now . . . Now my head was spinning off into orbit.
Reyna stood at the edge of the lake, waving at me. Her soft smile told me she hadn’t seen what I’d been up to on the blanket.
“Hurry up, Alok. The relay is about to begin.”
I stared at my sister for several seconds, regaining control over my shaking arms. What in the seven hells was happening here? Fraya had a special knack for pulling me apart at the seams. I just hadn’t expected it to happen again. She was my greatest weakness. I felt like a bloody teenager all over again when Fraya Keasandoral touched me.
“I’ll be right there,” I called back.
Reyna bobbed her head. Blythe nudged her playfully, but my sister kept her eyes trained on me, like she didn’t trust me to pull myself away from the gravitational force that was Fraya.
She might be surprised if she knew I was relieved by her interruption.
I wasn’t a teenager any longer, and I wouldn’t let Fraya turn me into her plaything. Her dirty little secret. She’d hidden our relationship from her family back at Dahlquist. Now she seemed keen to pick up where we’d left off. Maybe she wanted to scratch an old itch before she promised herself to Helio Moongold. Perhaps she just wanted to piss him off. Whatever her motivation, I needed to get my head back on straight and walk away before the temptation became too much. Bedding her would be no sacrifice, unless I considered the damage it would do to my already blistered heart.
The Dark Pretender Page 4
