The Reluctant King

by Rachel Higginson

Page 28

 

  We were peacefully quiet as Amelia led us through a maze of side streets. Her hand stayed in my mine the entire way, and I was content to follow her. I had wanted this to be my thing, my big show of chivalry or something like that, but she had this way of overpowering every alpha male instinct in me until I was putty in her hands, willing to let her lead me anywhere and do anything she wanted, and at the same time ramping up all of my testosterone until I was a possessive, psychotic Neanderthal and I felt the strongest urge to throw her over my shoulder and declare “Mine!” to everyone we passed.

  We finally stopped at a tiny little café with a small outside seating area filled with Parisians enjoying bottles of French wine and smoking in the crisp night air. She led me through the tables and into the dimly lit café where the hostess showed us to a table tucked away in the back of the restaurant.

  Amelia chatted in French with the hostess as if they were old friends and before the human girl who seemed to be in her early twenties left us she gave Amelia double air kisses on both of her cheeks. I pulled out the chair for my date, and helped her get settled before I took my own chair across from her.

  “Friend of yours?” I asked, admiring how the soft light from a candle in the middle of the table darkened Amelia’s eyes but kept her red lips perfectly illuminated. God she was gorgeous.

  “She’s the daughter of the owner and chef,” she explained. I stared at her lips, completely mesmerized with their every movement. “I told you, this is my favorite café, I come here a lot when I’m in town. Her name is Evelia, or I call her Evie and she has a three year old daughter named Claribel who is the most precious thing you’ve ever seen. Evie’s husband was killed in a motorcycle accident when Claribel was only a baby. Evie works for her father in the evening while her mother watches Claribel. She is the most beautiful person, Avalon, but her heart is broken. I wish there was something I could do for her, some way to help her heal from losing the love of her life and the hardship of being a single mother…. I mean there are tangible things I can do for her, but it’s like her pain is so much deeper than physical needs. I just hate it for her. ”

  I sat silent for a long time, not sure how to respond to Amelia’s compassion. I had never met anyone like her before, someone who put everyone before themselves, who thought about needs and feelings and hardships that would never even cross my mind.

  I didn’t like to think of myself as a selfish person, I mean I had risked my life for the sake of thousands of people I didn’t even really know on like a personal level. I would do anything for the people in my life and I would kill anyone that tried to hurt them. But for the most part, the human population never crossed my mind at that deep of a level, save for the Gypsy village but Ileana refused any and all of my help or money.

  Amelia thought about everyone, about everything.

  She was a beautiful person. She radiated with light and love and warmth.

  She was incredible.

  And if she said anything else…. Anything else at all, even if it was about the weather…. I knew I would fall for her.

  I would lose myself to her.

  “What?” she asked shyly, her cheeks blushing under my open stare.

  And that was all it took. I was lost in her.

  “I just…. it’s nothing, I uh, I’ve never met anyone like you before,” I finished lamely, knowing the intensity of my feelings for her would scare her off if I was honest with her.

  “I hope that’s a good thing,” she laughed self-consciously.

  I reached for her hand across the table, hating that we had a table separating us. I smiled at her, or at least widened my smile, because I was pretty sure I hadn’t stopped smiling since she agreed to get out of my car and spend time with me.

  “It’s a very good thing,” I promised and then was rewarded with a deeper flush to her cheeks. “Are you hungry?” I asked, hoping to calm her down a little bit, I could feel her jumpy magic as I made her nervous with my interest in her.

  “Not really,” she admitted and I hoped she was being honest with me. Although we just ate dinner not that long ago and I wasn’t really hungry either. “But their cappuccinos are fantastic. ”

  I signaled the waiter over then and gave him our order for two cappuccinos. As soon as he was gone, I refocused my attention on Amelia not even knowing where to start. It could be said that I had never been tongue-tied before in my entire life. But looking down at this beautiful creature across from me, I didn’t even know where to start.

  “Avalon, seriously, why are you looking at me like that?” Amelia laughed at me. She shook out her hair and averted her gaze.

  I laughed with her, a little self-consciously, hoping I wasn’t scaring the hell out of her. My only encouragement was that she didn’t pull her hand out of mine. “How am I looking at you?”

  “I don’t know,” she fidgeted a little, fixating on the table cloth. “Like…. like you’re shocked I’m sitting here with you. ”

  “I am shocked I’m sitting with you. ” I squeezed her hand in mine and gave her a crooked smile I hoped came off as charming. “I keep waiting for you to remember how much I irritate you. ”

  “Irritate me?” she asked, her eyes flashing with confusion. “You don’t irritate me. You…. I just…. I don’t think I trust you yet. ”

  The waiter came back with two small cups of strong smelling foamy coffee. I watched her closely as he set down our drinks in front of us, letting her words sink in and trying to figure out what to do with them.

  As soon as he left she took a sip of her coffee, her eyes darting around the restaurant nervously. She was probably hoping I would let the whole thing drop, but I couldn’t.

  “I’m trying to decide if I should be thrilled you don’t find me obnoxious or worried because you don’t trust me,” I admitted lightly, hoping she would explain better what exactly there was not to trust me with.

  “Ok, maybe I was a little too generous earlier. You’re not irritating me tonight,” she smiled at me, batting her thick eye lashes innocently.

  I chuckled at her sense of humor. “I figured as much, I’ve been told I’m a very difficult person to get along with. ”

  “Who told you that?” Amelia asked, leaning forward and resting her chin in her free hand.

  “Mostly Eden,” I admitted. “And Jericho, and Kiran and uh, Talbott…. Lilly says that a lot too I suppose. Actually the list could go on and on,” I pouted thinking about my council and my list of friends and old teammates. “But in my defense I don’t exactly try to get along with all of those people, or uh, any people. ”

  “That’s what I mean,” Amelia bubbled animatedly. I gave her a questioning look and so she continued. “What makes me different? Why are you trying with me Avalon? And why now? You’ve known me for years and until I showed up in Romania you barely noticed my existence. ”

  “Only because this is the first time I have been around you since Eden’s wedding,” I defended myself and worked at keeping my tone gentle. “I’m fairly certain if you would have been a more permanent fixture in my life I would have been trying for years now. ”

  “I don’t understand why,” she mumbled, tearing her eyes from mine to stare down at the tablecloth again.

  “Do you really not know how amazing you are?” I asked, and felt myself smile again just because I couldn’t help it. “You’re compassionate and sweet, you’re confident and humble, you don’t put up with my BS or let me get away with anything. You are this incredible woman and I just can’t seem to get enough of you. I want to, no I need to get to know you better. I can’t help myself, I can’t…. stop myself and I honestly don’t want to. ”

  Amelia looked up at me, her face shy and half hidden in the candlelight. She was silent and thoughtful for several moments before she finally responded, “I don’t want you to either. ”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “I have to ask you,” Amelia asked seriously after a moment.
She withdrew her hand from mine and tucked it under the table away from my reach. I bit back my objection and stilled the nervousness simmering in my chest. “How dangerous is Terletov?”

  All at once I let out a breath of relief because this wasn’t the question I was expecting and I was happy that she wasn’t pulling away from whatever was between us. At the same time though I was wary to go into too much detail with her because I didn’t want her to worry.

  Terletov was my problem. And it wasn’t just Amelia; I didn’t want anyone to worry. Well, except me. I could worry because I would take care of him.

  “He’s dangerous,” I admitted, even after convincing myself to keep her sheltered from the truth.

  The exciting atmosphere of the beginning of a relationship was completely sucked out of the air between us and we were left somber and serious. Even her magic that had been happily flirting with mine retreated.

  Damn it.

  I had even more of a reason to hate Terletov.

  He was apparently in the business of torturing Immortals and ruining my dates.

  “More so than my uncle?” she asked, her eyes revealing her depthless concern.

  “In some ways, yes,” I held her gaze, deciding I very much wanted to pull her into me and comfort her. She was too considerate for this not to affect her. I had ordered for the details of our findings to be kept confidential and knowing what kind of guy Sebastian was I knew she hadn’t heard any of the more gory aspects of our trip to Siberia. I planned to keep it that way. Her lips parted so that she could ask more questions and I decided to offer her more information to curb her curiosity. “Lucan was dangerous because the Kingdom followed him without question. I mean…. he was the King. He obviously had unlimited power. He was the ultimate authority and he abused his power and his people. Terletov is dangerous because he wants the same thing. His plan seems to restore Lucan’s totalitarian rule only extend his cruel reach to every citizen. Whereas Lucan was bred to believe and act the way he did, Terletov was given options and chose this path completely free of influence. I don’t know much about him, but I do know that he, if given the chance, would make what our people went through with Lucan feel like vacation. ”

  “And you’ve seen evidence?” Amelia asked, her golden eyes lit up with scrutiny. “I’m not trying to offend you Avalon, but your democracy is new and untested. Are you sure he is not just a concerned citizen that doesn’t trust you? That he simply believes he would be a better ruler?”

  I swallowed back my impatience. I was used to people just going along with whatever I said. It hurt my pride to have Amelia question me. Was this what she meant when she said she didn’t trust me? That she actually didn’t trust me as King?

  That was a slightly frustrating revelation.

  “I am positive he is not a concerned citizen,” I all but growled and then regretted it immediately. She wasn’t in Siberia. She didn’t see the carnage or feel the evil. She wasn’t with Henri and Sophia when they passed away, rotting shells of what they used to be. “Amelia, trust me when I say that this man is the worst kind of evil. He has no respect for our people, or life in general. His fight isn’t to ensure our people have the right kind of freedom, or democracy, he wants to ensure they remain enslaved and imprisoned. ”