by Paige Watson
“Am I going to turn up missing, like in a CIA movie or something?” Caroline asked.
“No,” Milton laughed. “But I would advise you to practice the utmost discretion with the information you now have.”
“Of course, Evey is like my sister; I would never do anything to put her in danger.”
“Good,” he smiled.
“So Everest was named caput, only after Thea died?”
“Yes,” he answered. “He is a great caput, just like Thea before him.”
“Then why did you choose to be one of Noah’s secundae instead of Everest’s?” Caroline shot a glance in Noah’s direction as she waited for Milton to answer her.
“Noah is different. He’s more understanding than the rest of the Concilium. I also liked how he openly stood up to Aden before we were aware of his true nature.”
A loud grunt forced the three of us to look back at Conrad and Terrick. Terrick was slashing left and right. He was trying to corner Conrad against the wall, but Conrad slid past him, kicking him in the back. Terrick stumbled forward into the wall and tried to brace himself. Once he regained his balance, he swung his sword at Conrad’s head. Conrad ducked underneath it and jabbed the hilt of his weapon into
his opponent’s exposed stomach. Terrick doubled over, dropping his sword to the floor. Conrad lashed his foot out and knocked Terrick’s feet from under him. Conrad stood triumphantly as the victor and Terrick stared up at him in surprise.
“I yield,” he said, looking down the blade pointed at his throat. “I have to admit, you’re the best I’ve ever fought.” Terrick accepted Conrad’s hand and was pulled to his feet. Conrad returned his weapon to the wall and came to stand in front of me.
“Well, I’m going to go talk to Noah,” Caroline said. She rose from her seat and crossed the room to stand beside Noah. He grinned as he saw her approaching.
Conrad took her spot beside me and set his hand at my back. “You looked nervous when I was fighting.”
“I’m always nervous when you’re fighting. I kept thinking about the night at the auction house, and I never want to watch you get hurt again,” I said.
“I know,” he said. “When we stop Aden, you’ll no longer have to.” He leaned in to kiss my cheek and at the last second I turned, meeting his lips with mine. I felt his hand grasp my shirt.
“If only all these people weren’t in here right now,” he whispered.
“You might find yourself in trouble,” I said with a smile.
“Is that so?”
“Oh yes.”
I could hear Caroline laughing on the other side of the room. Noah was talking and his hands were moving about wildly. He must have been telling some story, because she never turned to look at the commotion Milton and Warrin were starting. They’d challenged each other to a friendly duel, but neither man resembled anything close to the word. Both of their faces were set in a snarl as they appraised one another. The tension mounted between them as they prepared to engage one another. Without warning, Warrin ran toward Milton, axe raised, and Milton jumped to meet his blow.
“They look like they’re about to kill one another.”
“That’s just the twins. They never turn down a good fight.”
“I’m guessing that’s how they became Everest’s secundae?”
“That’s part of it,” he grinned.
We watched the two men fight, neither seemed obviously superior. Warrin would try his best to land a blow, but Milton thwarted him at every opportunity and if Milton tried to advance, he was in turn stopped by Warrin. They battled back and forth, covering every inch of the rubber floor. I could see sweat pouring from their faces as they continued their bout. They could only endure this pace for so long before the fight would have to end. After both men landed a couple of punches; the two finally reached the point
of exhaustion and called an end to their sport. Unlike Conrad and Terrick’s fight, there was no victor. Warrin and Milton were at a draw.
When the fighting was over, we left Everest’s apartment and headed back to the car. I stared out the window as the black SUV drove to The Hudson Hotel. With a quick glance, I could tell it was an upscale hotel. Caroline was right about one thing, being a consiliarius certainly did have its perks. As we walked toward the main desk of the hotel, I couldn’t take my eyes off the ceiling. Thick vines of ivy concealed the night sky that hung above the glass roof. The warm color of the wooden floor and desk, combined with the ivy, made the perfect combination of nature and architecture. Noah retrieved our room keys from the clerk at the desk and we headed upstairs to our rooms.
The room Caroline and I shared was on the seventh floor, just across the hall from Conrad and Noah’s accommodations. I walked into the room Caroline and I were to share. It had a large king-size bed centered on the far wall, with a fluffy white bedspread draped across. A vase beside the bed held a beautiful arrangement of white flowers. Conrad set my bag alongside the bed and Noah came in with Caroline’s stuff.
“Nice room,” Conrad said, looking around. “Does our room have a king size bed too?” He looked toward Noah as he spoke.
“No, it has two beds.”
“Oh… for a second there I thought you put us in the same room because you wanted to cuddle with me.”
“You should be so lucky,” Noah retorted. “There have been plenty of women who’ve expressed desire to share a bed with me.”
I shot a look at Caroline and she smirked at me. “Are the two of you going to make out now, or will you be going back to your room to do so?”
Noah turned to look at Caroline and I had to stifle a laugh as she stared him down. “I never said I expressed a desire to share my bed with them,” he said softly.
“Evey and I need to unpack,” she said. “Thank you so much for carrying our things up.” Caroline ushered Noah toward the door with haste.
“It was my pleasure,” Noah answered with a slight bow. His eyes never left Caroline’s as he straightened back up. Conrad raised his eyebrows at me. I shrugged, and watched as he filed out of the room behind Noah.
“What was that about?”
I watched her remove her shoes and pull a pair of black shorts from her bag. “I don’t know. I guess I just got a little jealous when he was talking about all the women that have wanted him.”
“I think you made him feel guilty,” I said with a laugh. “Did you see how he walked out of here like a lost puppy?”
“Well, serves him right,” She dressed in her shorts and a tank top, before sliding under the covers of the bed. “I feel like ordering some room service and watching a movie.”
“He really likes you. Conrad told me he’s never seen Noah show feelings for another woman, and he was one of Noah’s secundae for years.”
“You can really tell he cares about me?” Her voice was so soft I had to read her lips to make sure she was talking.
“Yes,” I said. “Every time you’re in the same room as him, he can’t take his eyes off you.”
“I really like him too,” she replied.
I took off my skirt and shirt and replaced them with a blue nightgown and gray sweat jacket. “I know you do. Why don’t you invite him to eat and watch a movie with you? I know that’s what both of you want.”
“Yeah,” she said. I walked to the door and opened it. “Where are you going?”
“To send you a tall, blonde surprise.” I saw her grin as I shut the door behind me. I was at their door in two steps and knocked on it. Noah answered it and looked down at me.
“I thought we would do a swap,” I smiled. “I wanted to talk to Conrad and Caroline wants to talk to you.”
“Really?” The tone of surprise was evident in his voice.
“She’s waiting for you as we speak.” I stepped back from the door and watched as he ran to our door. He didn’t even bother to knock before walking inside to meet her. I walked into the boys’ room and closed the door. Conrad was lying on a bed on the left side of the room.
&n
bsp; “What’s going on?”
“Caroline wanted to talk to Noah and I wanted to see you,” I said innocently. I stepped to his bed and crawled on top of it. The white comforter was soft to the touch as I crossed over it.
“I was just about to order some room service,” he said.
“Will you get me some too?”
“Of course.” I sat beside him on the bed and watched as he picked up the phone. He ordered both of us a hamburger and fries with a sundae for dessert. I turned up the volume on the television and snuggled closer to him. “The food will be up in a little bit. You want to watch a movie?”
“Yeah. Whatever you were watching is fine.”
“Well, I was watching Pulp Fiction, so if you want to change it, I understand,” he said. “Will you stay in here with me tonight
“It hadn’t occurred to me to stay anywhere else,” I answered. “And I don’t think Noah will be back tonight either. I’m sure he’ll be trying to grovel his way into Caroline’s good graces until dawn.”
“I wouldn’t put it past him,” Conrad laughed. “Or her for that matter.”
We watched the movie as we waited for dinner to be delivered. I sat with my back against the headboard and Conrad laid his head in my lap. I combed my hands through his hair, taking more interest in him than the movie. A few minutes later there was a knock at the door. Conrad sprang off the bed and accepted a tray of food from the bellhop. I grabbed a towel from the bathroom and spread it out so Conrad could set the tray on it.
“Here,” he said, handing me a bottle of water.
I took a drink from it before I started to eat. “It’s almost like having a picnic.”
“Evey?”
“Yeah?” I ate a couple of fries before I looked at him.
“Do you want to go on a date with me tomorrow?” His burger was still in his hands, but his focus was on me. “Our first date didn’t go as planned, and I was wondering if you wanted to go on a real date with me.”
“I’d like that,” I smiled.
“Good, because there’s a terrace on the fifteenth floor and I thought we could have a real picnic up there tomorrow.”
I dropped my burger on my plate. My arms stretched out to him, grasping onto his shirt. I jerked him to me, fixing my mouth upon his. “That sounds nice,” I said, sitting back on my heels. “When I have flashes of when you first became one of my guards, the one thing I noticed was how I always made advances toward you. Didn’t you realize I was flirting with you?”
He finished chewing a bite of his food before answering. “I knew there was a possibility you could have feelings for me, but I always told myself I was crazy. It just didn’t seem possible the queen I was supposed to protect could want me in that way.”
“I practically ordered you to kiss me. Did you really need me to be any more obvious?”
“It was different back then. Everyone but you lived and died by the rules of society.”
“And how did I live?”
“You lived to help others and be happy.”
“I should have lived to make you happy.”
“You do make me happy,” he said, setting his hand on my leg. We continued eating the rest of our meal in silence as I thought about what he said. I should try harder to make him happy, especially
after everything he’d endured, and how happy he’s made me. When we finished eating, I cleared the plates from the bed and sat at Conrad’s side.
“But the cost,” I said. “You’ve had to pay such a high price to be happy and I know it’s my doing.”
He took my chin in his hand, his thumb barely grazing my bottom lip. “You’ve had to pay the same price. Besides, the best things in life all cost something, and I’d pay any price to be with you.”
I kissed the palm of his hand. “Can we have dessert now?” I wore a wide grin as he set the towering sundae in front of us. The mounds of vanilla ice cream were drenched in chocolate syrup and chocolate chips, and a dollop of whipped cream rested on top. The only pop of color was the glistening cherry, perched upon the pinnacle of the dessert. We each took a spoon and started working on the mountain of sugar in front of us. I took a bite, savoring the decadence of it. “This is so good!” We kept eating the sundae, but it didn’t even look like we’d made a dent in it. I scooped up a spoonful of ice cream and chocolate as I watched Conrad take a bite from his side of the sundae. “Oh,” I laughed. “You have a little chocolate on your cheek.” I leaned over the sundae to wipe the chocolate from his face. As he waited for me to clean his cheek, I took my spoonful of ice cream and spread it over his face. For a second, he was completely stunned.
“Oh now you’re gonna get it!” He loaded up his spoon and lunged for me. I jumped off the bed and ran toward the door screaming. For just a moment I thought I escaped him. However, I was met with a face-full of ice-cream as I turned around. He ran back to the bed and grabbed the bowl. “I hope you wanted to wear this tonight,” he taunted.
“No, please don’t,” I laughed.
“I think it’s only fitting,” he said. “Especially since you started it.”
“No!” I struggled against him, trying to keep the dessert as far away from me as I could, but it was no use. In the span of a few seconds Conrad overpowered me and was smearing a handful of chocolate over my face and chest. Every inch of my skin above my waist was drenched in vanilla ice cream and chocolate. I waited for him to set down the dessert before moving. I stepped to him and licked some chocolate off his neck. “I don’t know if I’ve ever told you this, but you taste delicious,” I grinned.
He picked me up from the floor and I wrapped my legs around his waist. I started kissing every inch of his face I could set my mouth on, as his lips made contact with my shoulder. I could feel his hands and arms holding me to him. To our surprise, the door to the room flung open, leaving us exposed to the world outside the room.
“I’m not even going to ask,” Noah said.
“He started it,” I said innocently.
“Do the two of you do anything else?” I could tell he was exasperated with us. Not to mention the room looked like a tornado had torn through it.
“Would you rather us answer that question or would you rather find out what Caroline looks like covered in chocolate syrup?”
He thought about what I said for a second. “Bye,” he said, running back to the other side of the hall. The door to the room slammed shut behind him and the two of us were alone again. Conrad erupted in laughter as he carried me to the bathroom.
“I guess we should get cleaned up.” Conrad set me on the counter next to the sink and set to work cleaning up the room. He piled the empty dishes back on the tray, folded up the stained bedspread, and set it in the corner of the room. He turned his back as I removed my clothes and stepped inside the shower.
“I don’t care if you see me,” I said.
“You don’t? And why is that?”
“Because we were married for like 400 years. If that’s not commitment then I don’t know what is.”
I finished showering and as I stepped out, he wrapped a towel around me. “I used to be one of your knights, commitment comes with the territory.” He took his shirt off and threw it on the floor. “I set some clothes on the sink for you.” I watched him in the mirror as he removed the rest of his clothes and disappeared behind the shower curtain. I dressed in the white t-shirt and pair of red boxers he set out for me. I combed through my hair and watched him dry off before throwing on a pair of shorts. “You look good in my clothes.”
“You look good without them,” I grinned.
Now that both us, and the room were clean, we headed back to his bed. Conrad took the bedspread off Noah’s and laid it over us. His body felt warm next to mine. I’d never felt more safe or loved than when I was in his arms. I also realized I never wanted to get out of this bed. His hand slid underneath my shirt, resting against my stomach, and it wasn’t long till my eyes were sealed shut.
We slept late the following da
y, never stirring once throughout the night. It was two in the afternoon by the time we finally rolled out of bed.
“Where are you going?” Conrad was sitting up in bed, as he watched me open the door.
“I have a date to get ready for,” I said with a smile. I shut the door behind me and opened the one that led to my and Caroline’s room. The room was still dark as I walked inside. I could see Caroline and Noah cuddled together in the large king size bed. Caroline roused from her sleep at the sound of the closing door.
“Morning.” She stretched out her arms and yawned.
“Looks like you got a good night’s sleep,” I said with a smile.
“Absolutely.” She smiled as she looked down at Noah. “What are you wearing?”
“Some of Conrad’s clothes; we had an ice cream fight.”
“I heard about that,” she laughed.
Noah sat up with a start, looking between Caroline and me. “Noah, you have a little bit of chocolate on your chin.”
He rubbed his chin vigorously before realizing my joke. “I see you got all the ice cream out of your hair,” he replied.
Caroline jumped up from the bed, retrieving a brush from the bathroom. Noah watched her every move as she combed it through her long hair. “What are you and Conrad doing today, Evey?”
“We’re going to have a picnic on the terrace.” I grabbed my bag from the floor and pulled out a black skirt and white shirt with black roses embroidered on it.
“That sounds nice.”
“There’s a great diner down on 57th street. Would you let me take you to breakfast?” Noah stood up from bed and smoothed out his gray t-shirt.
“I’d love to,” Caroline smiled. “Just give me a few minutes to change.”
“Of course.” Noah walked over to her and took her hand in his. “Just knock on my door when you’re ready,” he said, kissing her hand.
“Ok.” We both watched as he exited the room.
“So, did anything happen between the two of you?”
Caroline laughed at me, as she changed into a red dress and a pair of brown cowboy boots. “Unfortunately, Noah was an absolute gentleman, as always. I’m not saying I’m always the perfect lady but I wouldn’t mind if he made a move, or two, or three.” I couldn’t help but laugh at her. If she ever made a move on Noah, he wouldn’t know what hit him. “We just ate dinner together and then fell asleep while watching a movie.”