by Spear, Terry
“Of course,” he said, glancing at Brett, now the shopkeeper’s look one of speculation.
She should have kept her mouth shut.
“Dark blue or light blue?” Mr. Everett asked.
Blue to match Brett’s eyes, she thought, but she’d already said way too much. “Any shade, light, dark, it doesn’t matter.” Then she quickly added, “His clothes will match my staff’s better since he’ll be working with them. More…uniform, that way.”
Only she had never really noticed what her staff wore. When Cook had applied for the position, she was concerned she’d have to wear black like Ena. Lila hated the color. So as Ena recalled, the woman always wore bright colors. Maybe blue sometimes. What did she know?
Ryker wore black because that’s what he believed butlers should wear. Her lady’s maid… Ena had to think hard on that. She didn’t remember. A dull yellow dress once. She didn’t like dull yellow so that stuck in her mind. And her cleaning ladies? They wore white aprons to dust in. She didn’t know what they wore under the aprons. A variety of colors, she supposed. So why did she care what Brett wore? She was paying for the clothes, for one.
“Of course,” Mr. Everett said. “Blue.”
He knew very well Ryker shopped in this store for only black. Thankfully the shopkeeper didn’t remark on it.
Brett cast her an amused smile. Did he remember what the others wore? She frowned at him. “Hurry up. I swear you are trying to waste the whole day so you don’t have to garden.”
He did not remind her that the business of buying him clothes was all her idea, and he would have skipped such a time waster if it had been his choice.
He might not have liked the idea of wearing all fae clothes, but he had a spring in his step as he headed for the fitting room, following after Mr. Everett, who had grabbed a selection of every shade of blue he could find. He knew how to work a sale.
“Which of these are the least expensive?” Brett asked the shopkeeper, as he shut the door to the fitting room.
She smiled to herself. She appreciated that he kept worrying about the price of the clothes. Did he think he would be indebted to her forever? If she didn’t give him a price cut, he would be.
“They are all the same price,” the shopkeeper said.
Which meant she would pay the highest price he could get from her no matter the quality. She hoped that Brett would select the highest quality among the selections since she was paying for it anyway. Such was the problem when everyone in the village knew she was a dragon shifter and could well afford higher prices. She didn’t mind much though. The non-shifters depended on the shifters’ generosity. What was the use of earning her wealth in gold if not to spend it—on occasion. By dragon nature, she did love to hoard her gold, though at times like these, she’d splurge a bit.
The door to the shop opened with a squeak behind her, startling her, and she turned to look to see who had arrived.
Three male dragon shifters entered—her possible suitors—all wearing scowls and looking highly annoyed with her. She figured Alton must have been drinking with them in the tavern, and he told them about her boot-buying venture and that she was now outfitting the human in the rest of the fae clothes. Since they were here, they obviously hadn’t liked it and would let her know how they felt about it. Didn’t they know that all this male dragon posturing was pissing her off?
It certainly wasn’t a way to encourage her interest in them. She’d heard dragon shifters lived in other territories far from here and if the ones here continued to annoy her while she took care of her prisoner, she would look elsewhere for a mate.
“Kiernan, Olaf, Amerand,” she said in greeting. She didn’t believe for one minute that all three were here merely to shop.
But Mr. Everett hurried out of Brett’s dressing room to see to the new customers as if he believed they were ready to buy his store out.
“Ena,” the three shifters belatedly said in unison in greeting.
“Shopping?” she asked, as if she was dumb enough to think that.
They had all turned their heads to watch the dressing room like a bunch of predators, listening to their prey nearby and wondering how best to corner it.
“We were looking in on you,” Amerand said, shifting his gaze to her, finally answering her question about what they were doing here.
That would have been nice, especially if they had looked in on her when she was confined in her brother’s dungeon! And not when she was shopping for her prisoner!
She liked Amerand best of the three males. His curly blond hair swept his shoulders and he turned into an emerald green dragon when he shifted. She had wondered if his genetics would produce emerald green offspring or if the color was more of a recessive trait. She liked his vibrant green coloring, very showy, and she always felt her scales were a dull green in comparison so she had always admired his looks. So had all the other females though. That was the problem when a dragon was so colorful and noticeable.
His eyes were a darker green than hers also, and he usually had a smile for her. But not today. He didn’t seem quite as aggravated with her as the others did now though. More concerned.
“Alton said your brother locked you in his dungeon,” Amerand said, and he was back to being displeased, but she wasn’t sure if it had to do with the reason she was confined, or that Halloran had done so.
Alton must have told the whole blasted lot of them what was going on with her. She shouldn’t have told him anything, yet she’d wanted to see his reaction, to learn if he had been speaking the truth or not about whether he knew Halloran had locked her up.
“Halloran wouldn’t have done so,” Olaf said, “unless you had gotten yourself way in over your head with the royals.”
Now she was more than incensed. If Olaf was going to stick up for her brother, he was in the same boat with him, as far as she was concerned.
Olaf was brown-haired, brown-eyed, and when he shifted, a brown-skinned dragon. Some might think he was boring looking, but every scale was edged in specks of gold that in the sunlight made him glimmer, and in the pale moonlight made him shimmer. His brown eyes when dragonfied turned a brilliant gold. Others teased him that his coloring meant well grounded—which meant he was more suited to remain earthbound instead of flying high in the heavens.
Brown was an unusual color for a dragon, so he strutted his scales as if they were a peacock’s coloration instead, different from all the rest. She had to admire him for that because she was kind of like him, wearing all black when most of the shifter females wore colorful dresses to catch the males’ interest.
Some of the males gave Olaf a hard time because brown was also thought of as the life giver—god of fertility, mother earth. He turned that around and winked at the eligible females, letting them know he was hot stuff if they ever selected him.
She folded her arms. “My brother did not have to lock me in his dungeon!”
Chapter 13
Ena stood her ground, waiting for any of the three dragon shifters to disagree with her. It didn’t take long for one of them to.
“If your brother had incarcerated you anywhere else, you would have burned a hole in the place and made your escape,” Kiernan said to Ena. He was a redhead with bright blue eyes, nearly as stunning as Brett’s, though why she should think of Brett’s as stunning when he was her prisoner, she couldn’t fathom.
Kiernan was a red dragon, blood red, which made him look more aggressive, fiery tempered, battle ready, and dangerous. She thought he was the least aggressive of all the males, but that was probably because he looked like he was so hot-tempered, no one messed with him much.
Perception was everything sometimes.
“What are you going to do with him?” Kiernan pressed.
Him had to mean the prisoner.
Since they had been talking about her brother incarcerating her, she chose to speak of that him instead. “I have no idea how I’m going to pay Halloran back. If I tell any of you what I intend to do, the wor
d is sure to get back to my brother.”
Kiernan’s blue eyes slimmed into slits. “I meant the fae seer.”
“Oh, him. Well, all of you know how terrible my gardens look. He’ll be my gardener and take care of the disarray. I can’t seem to hire anyone who can do the job right. I even tried to bribe Alton’s gardener once, but he said he couldn’t afford to be on the dragon shifter’s bad side. So my prisoner will do the work.”
As if it was anyone’s business, she desperately wanted to say. But she figured if she made it sound like she was going to make Brett work really hard, they’d back off a bit.
“Good,” Amerand said.
Score one point for Amerand.
The others didn’t appear to be appeased.
That was another reason she liked Amerand. He at least attempted to get in her good graces.
Brett came out of the fitting room, wearing a pale blue tunic and navy trewes and looked straight at Ena as if he didn’t see the male dragon shifters crowding around her. He was holding a royal blue tunic in one hand and a slate gray blue in the other. “Which of these do you like better?”
He looked great in fae clothes, but no way could she reveal what she was thinking to the dragon shifters. Or to the human either.
She wanted the floor to swallow her up. If she’d been alone and he’d been a dragon shifter she was interested in, she would have said that any of the three would do as they each highlighted his beautiful blue eyes. But in front of the dragon shifters who were already pissed off about Brett when he was only human? No way. She shouldn’t even be thinking such thoughts!
Her lady’s maid burst through the shop door, startling them all. “Mistress Ena, I’ve been looking all over for you. You’ve been summoned to court.”
Her stomach tightening, Ena quickly looked back at Brett. The king wasn’t going to back down on allowing her to keep Brett as her prisoner, was he?
“I had to come and tell you because you’re to wear something…uhm, other than black.” Muriel quickly looked at the floor as if saying so was sacrilegious.
“What?” Ena snapped.
Black defined Ena. Everyone knew her because of what she wore. Once, she wore pale green to an event because of her eyes, and she faded into the background. No one even knew she’d arrived at the dragon fae festivities. She was just like all the other dragon fae, blending in. No one even realized she was a dragon shifter. And that wouldn’t do.
“Beg your forgiveness, Mistress Ena,” the maid said, eyes still lowered to the floor. “He, well, King Tibero insisted you be there, and he furthermore stated you will not wear black. It’s a celebration, he said.”
Celebration. Were they celebrating that she’d saved Alicia? Alicia must have finally returned home to Crislis Castle.
Ena sighed. “All right, all right. I’ve got to make a trip to the women’s store then.” Maybe she could get by with a color that was so dark it was nearly black. “He didn’t say anything about my prisoner, did he?”
The maid finally shook her head.
“Okay.” Ena turned to Brett who was still standing there, holding the other blue tunics. “Any will do. You pick. And hurry it up. I have to shop some more.” She growled the last words. She hated to shop. Especially for something that she wouldn’t wear again.
She glanced at the male dragon shifters and saw them watching her with barely constrained smiles. “What?” she snapped. “Don’t you have anything better to do with your time?”
Olaf asked the maid, “When is the celebration scheduled for?”
“This afternoon,” Muriel said brightly.
Olaf clapped Kiernan on the shoulder. “We must away and get ready. I should like to see what Ena ends up wearing that would not be black.”
Amerand cast Brett one last scowl, and then he and the others headed out of the shop.
“I’ll return soon,” Ena said to her maid.
The woman curtseyed, then left.
Brett hurried back into the dressing room.
Ena called out to him, “Wear the clothes you wish to buy and leave your human clothes behind.”
“I love these jeans and this—”
“Just do it,” she ordered.
“Will your gardener be attending the celebration?” Mr. Everett asked, looking hopeful that she might purchase a more expensive tunic also for Brett to wear to the celebration.
“No.” She didn’t want Brett anywhere near the king. If he should see him again, she was afraid he’d want him terminated immediately. Especially if he was anywhere in the vicinity of Alicia.
Besides, he was supposed to be home gardening.
Brett came out of the fitting room wearing the royal blue tunic. “I can‘t decide.”
“Oh, for heaven sake. Do I have to do everything for you? I like the one you have on. Put the cost on my account, Mr. Everett, if you would.”
“Yes, Mistress Ena. I do say I like that color on him the best.”
Brett smiled at Ena. “It was my favorite, too.” Looking reluctant, he handed over his human clothes.
“He will probably need some undergarments,” Mr. Everett said.
Ena instantly looked down at Brett’s trewes as if she had vision that could see through the navy fabric to what he was wearing underneath them. She felt her face flame at the notion.
“A week’s worth,” she said quickly. “And socks.”
“I have several different styles of undergarments,” Mr. Everett said. “Dark blue, white, black, and brown. Short, long, skimpy, very skimpy.”
Fighting a smile—the devil take him—Brett looked at her, waiting for her opinion on the garments in question.
Embarrassed to the marrow of her bones, she turned and stalked out of the shop.
After Brett hastily picked out his undergarments and joined her where she was pacing outside the men’s shop, they quickly headed to the women’s shop down the street. As soon as she entered the store, figuring she’d grab the darkest gown she could and be done with it, she found she was having a horrible time making a selection. She wanted to wear trewes. She wanted to wear black. What she discovered was that the shop carried only colorful gowns and black of course, but that was it! No dark anything that would be close to being black.
Brett pulled out one dress, eyed her, and set it back on the rack. He pulled out another, looked her over, and set it back.
Goddess this was awful. She would have been home long before this if the king had allowed her to wear black. She did have one gown that was that color.
“This one,” Brett said, holding up a sexy red grown.
Her eyes widened.
“With your dark hair, it would look great.”
Mrs. Honeywell smiled. “He’s right, you know. With your dark hair, any of the bright colors would look good on you.”
“Or white or black,” Ena said, scowling as she turned her attention to the gowns hanging on the racks again.
“What is the occasion that you need the dress for?” the shopkeeper asked. Mrs. Honeywell had to realize it had to be a really unusual affair, or Ena wouldn’t be looking for a dress other than black. Or looking for a dress period.
“The king has summoned me for a celebration this afternoon.”
Mrs. Honeywell frowned. “There is no celebration at the castle.”
Ena glanced at her. The woman would know. All the women who would be attending should have been here, looking for a gown at the last minute. “But my maid said the king…” She shook her head and began poking at the gowns again. “It’s impromptu. I’m sure it’s in celebration of Alicia’s return, and he hadn’t known exactly when she’d return.” She wondered what had happened to Micala and Cassie and hoped they were all right.
“Hmm, and since you rescued her, you’ll be honored. You must wear something truly special. I have one in the back that I just finished creating. It hasn’t been on the rack yet, but I think it might be just what you’re looking for.”
Ena folded her arms. “What is t
he color?”
Brett pulled out a hot, hot, hot pink. “How about this one.”
“No.” She’d look like a tression wildflower.
“It’s green,” Mrs. Honeywell called out from her store room and dressmaking shop in the back of the store.
Green. She’d blend in, disappear, and fade among all the other dragon fae. She sighed. Well, she supposed it was best for an event like this. No one would see her wearing the gown, and she could give it to one of her maids afterward. She really didn’t want anyone seeing her wearing anything other than black. And it wasn’t like she was trying to attract anyone’s attention at this dragon fae party anyway.
When Mrs. Honeywell carried the gown into the shop, Ena’s jaw dropped. The satin fabric was emerald green, sequins and emeralds sewn onto the material sparkling under the shop lights. She was awestruck and in love with it. The gown reminded her of Amerand and his beautiful green skin as he soared high above in the sky, the sun shining off his brilliantly-colored scales.
“Would you like to try it on?” Mrs. Honeywell asked, smiling at seeing Ena’s surprised expression.
“Yes,” Brett said at the same instant Ena said, “No.”
She gave him a warning look. She was in charge here and it was her dress to choose!
“I’m sure it’ll fit,” she said. “I don’t have any more time left to shop.” She didn’t want Mrs. Honeywell or Brett or anyone else in the world to know how much the dress pleased her. Next, everyone would be expecting her to wear colorful dresses all the time.
Once. She’d wear it once, and never again.
“Thank you,” she said, and had the shopkeeper put it on her account.
She didn’t have to ask Brett to carry it for her, and hadn’t planned to, but he took hold of it as if that was his duty and carried it along with his sacks of underwear and socks. She slipped her hand around Brett’s arm to take him back to the castle.
“Enjoy the celebration, Mistress Ena,” Mrs. Honeywell said.
“Thank you.” She hoped she would and wouldn’t stand out in a way that was embarrassing. And then they were off.
