Queen of Fire

by K. V. Adair

  Aidan wrapped his hand gently around my upper arm and nodded, indicating I should take the lead.

  “Following you,” I said directly at Eoin, ignoring Innis completely. Yeah, I was a little petty.

  Eoin gave me another small smile and turned.

  Innis hurried ahead like a horde of hungry cats were on his behind. Not that I was looking at his behind. That would be rude.

  I had a hard time keeping pace with Aidan and Eoin. My short legs were no match against their matching long strides. I had to half jog to keep up.

  “You never said how we are getting to the, uh, castle,” I said.

  Castle. That was weird. There were no castles in the United States, and I’d never traveled overseas. That costed money.

  “There’s another portal up ahead,” Eoin answered. “It’ll take us directly to the receiving area.”

  “Receiving area?” I peered around his back, still a few steps behind the giant. Not that I was complaining. I liked my men towering over me. More fun to climb.

  I didn’t see anything that looked like a portal. Then again, I hadn’t seen anything that had looked like a portal until Aidan had waved his hands in the air like a dramatic magician.

  “The receiving area is where guests wait before being presented to the king.”

  “I get to see my brother now?”

  Innis had reached whatever portal was ahead. His hand flourish looked both elegant and rigid.

  I wasn’t surprised.

  “My apologies, princess. He will not be there to meet you.”

  I frowned, still mesmerized by the display of magic summoned by the dickhead. As we got closer, I noticed the same mix of colors as the previous magical door. Only these were brighter.

  Innis stood in front of it and threw a glare over his shoulder.

  “Hurry up,” he barked.

  “What crawled up his ass?” I asked loud enough for him to hear me.

  Eoin chuckled. “He’s just nervous.”

  “Because of me?”

  “No, because tomorrow his sister weds the king.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me. Mr. Tall, Dark, and Frigid is my brother in law?”

  Innis grunted. I stopped next to him, unsure if I wanted to cross his threshold.

  “Welcome to the family,” he muttered.

  Chapter Six

  Going through Innis’ magic portal was nothing like going through Aidan’s.

  With Aidan’s, I’d felt warmth and love and acceptance.

  Now, I felt nothing but cold despair and loathing. No surprise. Innis was more predictable than a horror movie.

  I stepped out of the portal and into Beast’s castle. At least, that’s what it reminded me of. Gold and silver gleamed around me—everything pristinely polished. Was it due to magic or an army of maids?

  It was nearly blinding. I stumbled forward, suddenly off-kilter. A hand grabbed my arm to steady me. I turned to say thanks when my eyes met the dark brown of Innis’.

  He didn’t look happy to be touching me, but the thrill in my gut said I was.

  “Careful. You die, and it’s my head.” He let go of my arm and stomped off out of the room.

  “Thanks,” I muttered.

  The receiving room was empty except for the three of us.

  Aidan put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze.

  “Remember what I said.” He bent and kissed the top of my head. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  I frowned. “You’re leaving me alone?”

  He gestured to Eoin who was standing next to me looking perturbed. “You’re not alone.”

  I pleaded with my eyes for him to stay, but he turned on his heel and marched through the door Innis had gone through.

  My heart pounded in my chest. Left with a stranger in a foreign place. Maybe I should have stayed home.

  Eoin smiled again, this time with amusement in his eyes. They were very nice eyes.

  Holy hormones, Morgan.

  This couldn’t be normal. Sure, the Fae seemed to be unnaturally beautiful, though the genes must have skipped me. I was pretty, maybe even beautiful to some, but nothing you couldn’t see walking down the streets of LA.

  Here the beautiful would cause traffic accidents.

  Then I remembered Aidan’s ability to shift reality, and the truth dawned on me.

  “Do you all use magic to make yourselves more attractive than usual?”

  Eoin looked at me funny, but then my words registered. He chuckled. There was a haughtiness to it I hadn’t expected considering his behavior and manner before.

  Maybe that had been an act and he was just better at hiding his asshole than Innis.

  “Only children of Zephyr command illusion magic. The rest of us are stuck with the faces we were born with.”

  “Pity,” I mumbled.

  I noted he said Zephyr like it was a big deal and tucked it away. Knowledge was power, and I intended to gather as much of it as I could.

  Eoin offered his arm. “Come, princess. There isn’t much time to get ready.”

  I ignored the invitation to touch him and walked toward the door Aidan had exited.

  “Wrong way, Princess. The sleeping quarters are through here.” He gestured to another doorway, this one with an ornate decoration on the top with strange script over it.

  I pointed. “What’s that mean?”

  He looked up, surprised. “I don’t know, Princess. Only your family line are taught the ancient tongue.”

  The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. He was lying, but I had no idea why he would be.

  “Call me Morgan. Princess just sounds weird.”

  He smirked. His cordial mask was slipping. I couldn’t help but wonder what he was hiding behind formality.

  “It wouldn’t be appropriate.”

  I shrugged. “Think about it this way. If you have to get my attention from across a crowded room and you yell princess, I won’t respond.”

  “You are the only princess.” Another smirk. “Princess.”

  “You’re as bad as my snooty future brother in law.”

  He cocked his head to the side, studying me. I didn’t like it. “You have no idea how bad I can be.”

  I choked out a laugh. “Was that a come on?”

  He shook his head. “Sorry, you aren’t my type.”

  He walked toward the other door without looking behind to see if I followed. I didn’t at first until the double doors behind me opened, letting in half a dozen strangely dressed men. They looked at me, much the same as Innis and Eoin had.

  Great, I was a freak here. There went my plan to blend in.

  I scurried after Eoin and through the door leading to the sleeping chambers.

  I wasn’t prepared for what I found on the other side.

  When I heard the words sleeping chamber, I’d expected a little decadence, especially considering the glittering gold of the receiving area. Not to mention we were in a legit castle.

  Instead, I felt like I had just stepped on the set of Full Metal Jacket.

  Rows upon rows of bunk beds, no particular bed larger than a twin, lined the room. There was barely any space to walk through them and to the next door.

  I noticed there were more strange markings above the door.

  “This is where I’m sleeping?” I asked.

  My tiny apartment and futon were looking pretty good right now.

  “No. These chambers are for those who live and work in the castle. The royal chambers are through these doors.”

  “Where do you sleep? In here?”

  He wrinkled his nose like I’d said something foul. “I personally attend to your brother’s needs, so I sleep in a smaller room connected to his.”

  “That’s romantic,” I said with a chuckle.

  I expected an indignant response, so I wasn’t prepared for the laugh he gave. “I’ll be tending to you as well.”

  Was I a garden or something? Who phrases it that way. “What exactly does tending en
tail?”

  “Whatever you require.” I must have had a leacherous look on my face because he quickly backtracked. “Within reason.”

  “That’s vague. What else do you do around here? Other than tend needs and pick up strangers.”

  “I…” He hesitated. “I advise as well. Your brother trusts my opinion fully. I was his father’s right hand. And his father before him.”

  My mouth dropped. He didn’t look past thirty. “How many generations have you served my family, then?”

  His hazel eyes darkened and his lips tightened into a straight line. “I do not serve anyone.”

  “What exactly does attend mean then?”

  He huffed out a breath and for a moment I was worried he would strike me. That was silly, though. Wasn’t it?

  Better safe than sorry.

  “I choose to attend to the needs of your brother, just as I will choose to attend to yours. But I’m not your servant. You’re not above me in stature. We are equals.”

  “Oh, I see. You serve at your own pleasure.”

  He grumbled something under his breath. “We can argue the semantics of connotations later. It’s time to get ready.”

  He looked me over, and then put his thumb on his lips.

  I couldn’t read his expression. He might have been disgusted by my lack of fashion sense, or he might have liked what he saw.

  I leaned toward the former. Considering how immaculate he dressed, clothes were a priority to him. I just bought what was on sale at Target.

  “What? You don’t like?”

  “Your clothes are fine, if a little too casual. I’m more concerned with you fitting in with the rest of the nobles. Perhaps it would be better if you didn’t. Be a reminder you are different from them.”

  A chill went through my body. “Why would I want to be seen as different? I want to be accepted.”

  He raised his eyebrow. I realized too late how vulnerable I appeared with those words.

  Showing vulnerability to anyone was a recipe for pain and heartbreak. Here it could be deadly.

  “They will never accept you, Princess. You are foreign, and they do not look kindly on humans.”

  “I’m not human.” I remembered Innis’ words from earlier. “Will all of them be like Grumpy Pants?”

  “No. Some of them will be worse.”

  That wasn’t reassuring. “I’d still like to change.”

  He nodded and walked toward the far door. I quickly followed, trying my best to keep up with his long stride. He ushered me through.

  I entered and found myself standing in a hallway of sorts. Since these were the royal chambers, I was again taken by surprise.

  Yellow paint peeled on the walls. The carpet looked like it has been bought at a discount retro store. One of the lights flickered at the end of the hall, creating a spooky effect.

  It wasn’t a torch or any kind of fire that lit the hallway. The lights were fluorescent, like you’d find in an office. They had electricity, which seemed odd to me.

  I was going to ask Eoin why it looked so worn and dirty, but he’d kept walking to another door down the hall. I scurried after him.

  I was doing a lot of that lately.

  He put a key in the keyhole on the door, twisted it, and gestured me inside. I wondered what kind of horror show I was in for next.

  Instead, I walked into Wonderland. The room was huge. Plenty of space to pace around, something I tended to do when thinking. The bed was easily king sized with a sheer white canopy. The bedding and the rest of the decor were various shades of green with accents in gold.

  The furniture included a five-drawer dresser, two nightstands, and an armoire. A desk was pushed against one of the walls. On top of it was what looked like a typewriter but with a screen attached. I wondered if they had Internet here.

  A large vanity was against the other wall. The mirror on it was huge and small bulbs lined the top.

  All the furniture looked new and was a polished dark brown with gold trim.

  The juxtaposition between the hall and the room was unnerving. I was missing something important, but asking Eoin would make me vulnerable again, so I kept my mouth shut.

  There were three doors other than the one I’d entered, two on the right and one on the left. I walked to the two on the right and opened the first.

  It led to a bathroom. Just like the bedroom, everything looked new and elegant.

  And expensive.

  There was a standing shower in one corner. A toilet in the other. A bidet sat next to it. I’d never used a bidet before. There was another vanity, this one onyx like the toilet and shower.

  But what caught my eye was the giant roman tub in the middle of the room. It was the size of a comfortable Jacuzzi, easily able to fit six full size adults.

  I pointed to it. “Ain’t that a bit big for one person?”

  Mischief twinkled in his eyes. “Who says it is for one person?”

  I grunted. “Thought I wasn’t your type.”

  “Never said me.” His words contradicted the suggestive smile on his face.

  I went to the other door and opened it. Inside was a closet the size of my apartment. No exaggeration. There was barely anything in it, though.

  “Where are all the clothes?” I asked.

  “I didn’t know your style or taste, so I’m leaving it up to you to fill.” He grabbed something in a garment bag. “This will do,” he said as he walked out the closet.

  I was eager to see what was inside. Would it be like the hall, ugly and torn. Would it be like the sleeping barracks, all practical and dull? Or would it be a reflection of my beautiful room?

  While he unzipped the bag, I walked over to the final door in the room. I twisted the knob but it was locked.

  “Where does this go?”

  He didn’t look up from removing the dress from the bag. “My room.”

  “It’s locked.”

  He glanced up with a smirk. “No shit, princess. Privacy is sacred. Now get undressed so we can get this on. We are already running late.”

  I noted the use of the curse and tucked it away as well.

  I didn’t want to keep my brother waiting, and I really wanted to see him too, but no way was I going to strip in front of a stranger. Especially not an attractive, judgmental one.

  He smirked harder—if that’s possible—at my reluctance.

  “Don’t be modest, princess. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

  “But not on me!”

  He shrugged. “If you’ve seen one pussy, you’ve seen them all.”

  I flinched at the crude word. Not that I was a prude or anything. And I’d said much worse, but it sounded odd coming from the lips of someone who appeared so formal and stiff.

  Alfred would never have said pussy.

  I turned my back to him and started undressing. When I stood in only my bra and underwear, I turned back around. He didn’t even glance up as he straightened the dress on the bed.

  Like my room it was dark green with gold trim. It wasn’t shiny or sparkling, but sleek. High cut in the front, the skirt had a long slit right up the middle on the front.

  I’d have to be careful not to flash anyone. No one needed to see my Thursday kitten panties.

  He pointed to the dresser, still fretting with the dress. “Change completely.”

  I grumbled but did as I was told. I was curious what kind of underwear he’d picked out. I hoped he’d gotten a second opinion, especially from a woman. Men didn’t always understand how uncomfortable under garments could be.

  I opened the top drawer. It was full of panties in every color imaginable. The styles differed from thongs to lacy things to the more practical. There were even granny panties for those time of the month days.

  I picked out a dark green pair of boy shorts. They looked comfortable and if I did flash someone, at least they’d match my dress.

  I opened the next drawer. It was full of socks. Not useful. I wasn’t a sock person.

&n
bsp; The third drawer held the bras. Just like the panties, there were an array of colors and styles. I grabbed a lacy one with no underwire, this time in black. There was no tag on the bra, so I didn’t know the exact size, but it looked like it would fit.

  Quickly, I removed my current under garments and put on the new ones. The underwear was comfortable and the bra fit perfectly.

  A little too perfectly.

  “How did you know my bra size?” I asked as I turned around.

  “I know a lot about you, Princess.” He raised his gaze and frowned. “The dress has a low cut back so no bra. You’re going to have panty lines as well. Change again.”

  “I’m not going without a bra.”

  “Yes, you are. Now change so we can get this dress on.”

  We stared at each other in a standoff, neither of us wanting to budge.

  He sighed and walked over to me. I took a step back instinctually. He gave me a reassuring smile.

  “I don’t bite.” He paused. “And I’ll never hit you.”

  It was the combination of I know a lot about you and the not hitting comment that had me suspicious. How much did he know about my past?

  The thought of him knowing anything about it made my heart race. There is nothing more vulnerable than a cowering child.

  He took a step closer and reached around me. He didn’t touch me anywhere. He unhooked the bra I was wearing, and it fell down my arms.

  I didn’t miss his quick glance at my exposed chest with hunger in his eyes. He sucked in a breath and averted his gaze.

  Not his type my ass.

  I turned and went back to the underwear drawer, this time picking out something that wouldn’t be visible under the dress.

  He nodded when I turned around again, and I followed him to the bed where the dress laid, my arms crossed over my chest to keep a little of my dignity. He picked the dress up. The back was indeed low cut. If my underwear had been an inch higher on my hips, it would be visible.

  He brought it over and helped me into it. Tight but not uncomfortable, it fit my body like a second skin. I walked to the full length mirror next to the vanity table and gasped.

  I looked like I had just stepped off the pages of Vogue.