“This was wonderful, Elissa,” he said simply. “I’m not sure how well I could handle winters here, but I’d certainly be willing to try.”She turned to look at him. “I’d really like that...” she was still smiling so wide. “We would get your warm clothes and good boots,” she laughed. “And if all else fails I can just cuddle up in bed with you and keep you warm.” she snuggled closer to him, sitting up enough to be able to look him in the face without him having to turn. “I’m scared shitless, but I’m also really excited to see what happens.”He smiled up at her. “Excited and scared... yeah, sounds about right. Maybe in the winter I could take you to see the desert... if I thought it was safe. So... probably not soon.” He folded his hands behind his head and simply smiled at the sun.And then his stomach growled at him. “Oh, for pity’s sake! I fed you!” It answered with another rumble. “Ugh, fine.” He looked apologetically at the princess. “I’m still healing. So I’m still hungry. We should

The king had been pouring over everything that had happened since Hayward had arrived in his study, the room to the side of his bedroom. No one entered it, not even his wife, unless it was an emergency. It was where he went to think and he alone. He’d asked for lunch to be brought up and placed outside so he could continue to think things over. It was necessary for him to have his thoughts in order before he spoke with the prince that afternoon. He knew he’d have awhile as Elissa had offered to take him to the mines, but he wondered if that had been such a good idea. She hadn’t looked like herself that morning. He thought perhaps that had something to do with the events of the day before. He knew she was grown and strong and could easily hold her own against anyone, but the fact that in the time since the prince had arrived she’d developed a liking to him (one of the first men she had ever done so), overslept for a hunt (which she had never done before), been in the line of fire for

She was lying on the floor snuggling with Sasha, who had been somewhat neglected since his arrival. “Come in! It’s open!” She called, lifting her head off the white fur to make sure the sound wasn’t completely drowned out. One of her arms was hooked around the neck of the gigantic creature, scratching her behind the ear, and she had Sasha’s muzzle in the crook of her neck. The giant cat was purring so loudly there was no way he couldn’t hear it through the door. She didn’t even look up as the door opened, expecting no one else but him. “How’d it go?” She asked casually, not even looking in his general direction. Hayward entered and quietly closed the door behind him. He looked briefly for Elissa before finding her on the floor with the cat and chuckling. “It went… well. Your father was more agreeable than I expected. I’m going to lie to the Aasleaghans about how difficult it would be to invade Treiaul, and he’s going to try to make those lies more believable.” He sighed. This was t

Hayward turned and watched Elissa leave but didn’t go anywhere; he was still hungry. Internally, his mind raced. Well, shit. Now what? The queen will probably be scandalized. Her father won’t be happy either… ah, fuck it.When he needed to be, the young prince was utterly shameless. He would deflect matters simply by acting as if they weren’t important. And with humor. That was vital. He pointed his fork at Kohl. “That… that was a dick move.” He took another bite. “And someday, you may find yourself with a young lady friend, and you may do something that you don’t want your parents or hers to know about; and you will realize just what a dick move it was.” He took another bite. “And if you’re very unlucky, I’ll still be here to repay you in kind.” He grinned playfully at the younger prince. It was dangerous, of course, to address the prince and ignore the parents, but he was going to play it off like it wasn’t a big deal. Kohl just huffed. “I wouldn’t be as careless as you two are…” h

“So I know why you hate your dad. Rightfully so. But... what about your mom? Or your siblings? Why did you not have any common ground with any of them?” Hayward smirked. “This is going to sound strange, but it’s because I was supposed to be a girl.” He licked his lips. “There’s this… this expectation, among Aasleaghan noblewomen. Their first few children will be sons, and then they’ll have daughters. Supposedly, this is actually a common pattern, something in the bloodlines that causes them to have daughters instead of sons as they get older. But I hear more often about women who ‘fail’ to fit the mold than about the ones who succeed, so… who knows?”“Anyway, my mother was a perfect exemplar until I came along. Three handsome sons, a beautiful daughter… and then me. And then another daughter. See, political marriages are a big deal for us, and daughters are important, traditionally—can’t have marriages without them, you know. So while it might be better to have a bunch of sons in the