Damn. Silas gulped. It would be hard from now on not to think about her female parts. Or his own parts that were reacting. “I assure you, I will never forget.”
“Sheesh, Gwennie,” Brody muttered.
Heat flared in her cheeks, and she glanced frantically around the room. Dear goddesses, what have I done? Should I crawl under the bed? How can this day keep getting worse?
“My lady.” Silas stepped toward her. He wanted to tell her she was beautiful, but he suspected she wouldn’t believe him right now. With her cheeks inflamed with embarrassment, she was refusing to even look at him. “Could you excuse us for a moment? I need to talk to Brody.”
“Of course!” She dashed from the room.
Silas winced at the sound of the door slamming. “I didn’t mean to upset her.”
Brody snorted as he rose to his feet. “You should have thought of that before you had your dragons kidnap her and Eviana.”
“The dragon that kidnapped Eviana is not under my command.”
“Whose command, then?” Brody tied the sheet at his waist.
Silas sighed. It wouldn’t help matters if he admitted that the king and queen of Norveshka were responsible for the abduction of the Eberoni princess. “A mistake was made.”
Brody scoffed. “You could say that again.”
“I want peace with Eberon and Tourin. And I will offer my sincere apologies to King Leofric when I deliver his daughter safely to him tomorrow.”
“You can do that?”
“Yes.” Silas nodded. “I’ll bring the princess and Gwennore down the Norva River by barge. We’ll leave at dawn, and by noon, we should be at Vorushka, close to the border. If Leofric can meet us there—”
“I’ll make sure he does,” Brody replied. “Before I go, I should verify that Eviana is all right.”
“Of course.” Silas motioned for the shifter to follow him through the door to the dressing room.
Silas pushed open the door to the nursery. The servant was back, and the little girl was pushing a small pram around the room, loaded down with a dozen dolls. Gwennore’s gown was properly laced up now, and she was sitting by the fire, trying to tame her beautiful hair with a brush.
Brody watched silently for a while, then retreated to the bedchamber. “I’ll trust you to take good care of them.”
“You have my word.” Silas joined him. “What is this gift Gwennore was talking about?”
Brody gave him a wary look. “I don’t think it’s any of your business.”
“She seemed to think she could help us.”
“That’s not happening. Whatever is going on here, it sounds dangerous. I don’t want her involved.”
A twinge of annoyance shot through Silas. “Do you care about her that much?”
“She’s a good friend. And a good person. I’ve seen her get hurt too much. I don’t—”
“Who’s been hurting her?” Silas growled, and when the shifter looked surprised, he paused, wondering why he had reacted so strongly.
Brody tilted his head, watching him carefully. “She’s been enduring some prejudice at the Eberoni and Tourinian courts. Snide remarks and rude stares from other courtiers.”
“And you let the assholes get away with it? What kind of friend are you?”
Brody scoffed. “I’ve offered my help, but she always refuses. She doesn’t want to cause any strife between her sisters and their subjects. I’ve never seen her lose her temper before. That is, until she encountered you.”
Silas stiffened. “I wasn’t being snide or rude.”
“You were staring at her.”
“Because she’s—” Silas stopped himself.
Brody’s eyebrows lifted as he waited.
Silas motioned toward the open window. “Didn’t you need to go?”
Brody snorted. “Fine. See you tomorrow.” He pulled off the sheet, shifted into an eagle, and flew out the window.
As Silas headed back to the nursery, his heart began to thud in his chest. It was time for a long talk with Gwennore.
Chapter Six
Gwennore winced as she accidentally ripped out a few more strands of hair. How could this day keep getting worse? After promising herself that she would vent her rage with glorious indignation, she’d finally done it. In the worst way possible.
I have the exact same female parts as every other woman on the planet!
With a groan, she dropped the hairbrush on the table next to her chair. Of all the stupid things to say!
She glanced over at Eviana, who was babbling to the dolls, happily bestowing names on each of them. After everything the child had been through today, she was still able to find joy. I should be resilient like that, Gwennore thought. And most of all, I need to be strong.
After all, it was her weakness, her reluctance to stand up for herself that had set up the scenario resulting in Eviana’s kidnapping. So, instead of being embarrassed, she ought to feel relieved. And proud. She had, at last, released her anger and defended herself.
But why had she picked General Dravenko to be on the receiving end of her rant? He was, most probably, her best hope for getting Eviana home, so he was the last person on Aerthlan she should have yelled at. What a foolish mistake for someone who prided herself on always being reasonable and intelligent.
Why him, of all people? Had she finally reached her limit where anyone would have set her off?
She shook her head. There was a growing suspicion in her mind, one she was trying to ignore, but what if she’d lost control with the gorgeous general because his gawking stare had hurt her feelings more than the others?
With a sigh, she leaned over and rested her face in her hands. He could definitely be considered the Most Handsome Man on the Planet, what with the way his leather breeches clung to his long muscular legs and the way his shirt and leather breastplate accentuated his broad chest and shoulders. She suspected he was even taller than Leo and Rupert, and the way he walked with those long legs had nearly caused every woman in the castle to faint. Including Gwennore.
Some might say his jawline was too sharp and his gaze too intense, but she thought it suited
