by Elise Kova
Music soars through the air. People are in the streets, dancing, laughing, and drinking. Sparks of magic are flung about and I see paper beasts and birds come to life and rejoice among the revelers. I smell the cakes Rinni and I tasted. I see acrobats spinning on hoops suspended impossibly midair over the lake.
I see a city in celebration—as if they somehow knew I was about to return. The world I first saw as dead and gray is now in full bloom. It’s magical, and looks like something I could call home.
Hook’s warm muzzle presses into my hand and I crouch down to scratch him behind the ears. “Thank you for leading me through the Fade. Go off and play, I don’t want attention right now.” He whines. “I’ll whistle for you again,” I promise.
Hook sits, insistent.
“Oh, fine. Come along then.” I laugh, part nerves and part a joy I didn’t expect to know again.
I start running down the staircase, nearly tripping over myself. Luckily, I changed into my trousers so that when I do nearly tumble face-first at the bottom, I don’t end up with my skirts around my ears in front of nearby revelers.
“Wait—” an elf woman says “—you just—”
I don’t wait for her to finish. I begin sprinting. Hook knows, like always, where I am running toward. He charges through the crowd, barking and howling people out of the way, and I try hopelessly to keep up.
We make it to the tunnel entrance of the castle, blocked off by a row of knights. I skid to a stop before them. Hook rounds my back, keeping the encroaching crowds at bay.
“I…I need…” I wheeze and reach into my satchel. I didn’t leave the shop unprepared. I take a swig of fortifying drought I brought and stand straighter, breath caught. “I need to see the king.”
“You’re—”
“But you’re a—”
“Aren’t you?”
All the guards seem to talk amongst themselves at once. They’re silenced by a familiar voice.
“Let me through!” Rinni barks, pushing her way forward. She stops, blinking at me until a sly grin works its way across her cheeks. “You’re almost late.”
“Sorry to keep you waiting.” I smile. “I lost track of time on the other side of the Fade. Did I miss the coronation?”
“Not yet.” Rinni guides me into the tunnel. I hear the rumbling of a mass of people on the other side of the castle doors. Rinni opens them with a flash of her eyes.
I step into the castle and, for the first time, I see color. Tapestries of bright blues and vibrant greens stretch from ceiling to floor, hung along the wide columns that support the large entryway. More garlands of flowers are hung from the railings of the mezzanine.
Vases of flowers line the great hall behind the gathered crowd. Men and women of all colors and shapes are here and all their eyes swing from where the Elf King stands on the stairs—presumably having just been giving a speech—to land on me.
But his eyes are the only ones I focus on. His mouth is slightly agape. Shock has shattered his usual mask and he stares in a stunned silence.
I know there are important people here—lords and ladies. People of his kingdom, our kingdom, if he’ll let me share it with him. I know I’ve come before them with dirty knees and in what they’d consider pauper’s clothing. I know that I had one chance to make this first impression count and I ruined it. I have ruined Eldas’s years of planning, sacrifice, and suffering leading up to this moment. None of this has gone according to plan.
I didn’t even think of what I was going to say. So I open my mouth and say the first thing that comes to mind. I let my words echo to the top of the hall.
“King Eldas, I love you!”
Chapter 39
The silence is deafening. I could hear a cherry blossom petal land it’s so quiet. I don’t know what everyone’s reactions are. The only person I’m focused on is Eldas. The only person whose opinion even remotely matters to me here is him.
His shock fades into something I’d dare say is warm. After the initial horror at my outburst—at how none of this is in line with his traditions—fades away. There are the eyes I recognize. Eyes I fell in love with and have been longing to see while back in the Natural World.
“And I love you,” he says, finally.
Four words, and things click into place. I have a lot I need to figure out here. There are a lot of unknowns surrounding what I will be to this world now that a Human Queen is no longer needed to make the seasons turn. But I’ll figure everything out, because the man standing before me is every possibility I want to embrace.
“If—” Eldas clears his throat “—if you will all excuse the queen and I for a moment.” Eldas holds out his hand and I cross the room to him, trying my best to glide and hold my head high.
I might not look like the queens they know. But maybe in time they’ll embrace the different sort of queen I already am. I slowly ascend the stairs and Eldas’s fingers curl around mine. My magic calls out to his and invisible sparks fly between our skin, leaving me breathless.
He escorts me up the stairs and into a side room, closing the door quickly behind us.
Eldas rounds on me. I might have expected him to be slightly cross for how I handled things, but there’s a fire in his eyes that isn’t angry in the slightest. His hands are on my face, cupping my cheeks. “Say it again,” he whispers like a sigh of relief he’s been holding ever since I left.
“I love you,” I repeat from earlier, but this time only for him. “I’ve loved you since the cottage. Since…I don’t know when. Somewhere along the way I fell in love with you. You and I…these circumstances we met under have been a bit of a mess. But I love you despite them all.”
“Then why did you stay away?” he whispers. “Why didn’t you tell me before you left?”
“Because I was a coward,” I admit aloud for my sake and his. “I was afraid that I only thought I loved you because I had little other option. I thought the love was fabricated for my own survival, since I thought there was no other way out—that I would be stuck here forever. I was afraid of a love that came from a lack of choice. I was afraid I didn’t even know what love was because I don’t think I’ve ever felt it before.”
“But when you had your way out…when you had the choice you desired…you came back.” Eldas trails his eyes over me now and I tingle with delight. A look has never been more intimate. I’m stripped with a gaze alone.
“I had to come back. I found my answer while I was in Capton—I love you for all you are and all we are together. It is not my imagination; it isn’t survival. Yes, Eldas, I had freedom and choice and I choose you. I know none of this came about in a conventional way, but it’s genuine. And I thought that, maybe, we could give this another try.”
“A try?” He arches his dark eyebrows and I laugh softly.
“We went about this backwards, you know. We got married, tumbled into bed, fell in love. Usually it’s the other way around.”
“I liked how we went about this,” Eldas says. His voice is auditory silk. It brushes over my skin and my body tenses. “Because it led me to you.”
“I think I can agree with that,” I breathe.
He crushes his lips against mine with a restless kiss of pent-up desire and longing caresses. He presses me against the door, groping at my rear, pulling at my hair. For the first time in my life, I hate that I wore trousers.
I kiss him with equal fervor. I run my fingers through his raven hair, shamelessly spilling it over his shoulders and curtaining it around our faces. I caress his cheek as his mouth moves against mine. I taste his tongue over and over and hope it is merely the first taste of many I get of him today.
And when he pulls away, I am weak in the knees and relying on the door behind me for support. I am ready to tumble on the floor with him naked. I am ready for that whole room to hear my cries of ecstasy so long as it means I would have him moving within me once more.
“So what now?” I breathe, glancing between him, the floor, and the door behind me.
“Now,” he growls over my lips. His fingers have slipped into my hair and I tilt my head back to give him full access. “Now, my queen, my wife, I will take you to bed.”
“But the people—”
“Let them wait. We are the king and queen, after all. Our coronation will occur when it is meant to.”
Two days slip through my fingers like the ease of Eldas’s fingers through my hair when we’re in bed. The outburst has been the talk of the town and speculation has been firing left and right about why the Human Queen came rushing in, what it had to do with Eldas’s announcement about the seasons, and why the Human Queen was wearing such plain clothing. There’s even been some speculation that our love itself was what broke the cycle of the Human Queens.
That is a history I will be certain to rewrite. Love is powerful, but so is the hard work Eldas and I have put in. The hard work we will continue to do to be good rulers for this land.
If it were up to me, we would’ve stayed in his chambers for eternity. But duty calls eventually. Sooner rather than later the coronation must happen. We could stall for a day or two, but any more would blow past scandalous into lewd behavior.
We stand before the main entry to the throne room. I have Eldas’s hand in mine with a white-knuckled grip.
“Don’t be nervous,” he whispers.
“Easy for you to say,” I reply and try to smooth out invisible wrinkles in my skirts. The gown the seamstress made for me is breathtaking. Layers of chiffon shaped like leaves almost have a scale-like appearance when I’m stationary. But when I move, it looks like leaves departing late summer trees on a gale. It would’ve been such a shame to see this wearable art go to waste if I hadn’t returned.
“All you have to do is sit.”
“You know that’s one of the first things you said to me, more or less.” I grin up at him and he chuckles. But worry quickly gnaws at my levity. “We should have tried the throne beforehand just to be sure it won’t try to siphon from me.”
“We were occupied.” Eldas smirks. I give a yank on his hand and steal the expression with a kiss. My husband can’t look that handsome without ending up with my lips on his.
“After this, let’s be less occupied. I want to know what’s going on.”
“Going on? About what?”
“Everything,” I say. “I’m here to rule alongside you, after all. I’m more than just a pretty face now that the seasons are fine without me.”
He gives me a small smile and is about to say something when Harrow and Sevenna enter. Harrow still looks thin, and a little paler than I’d like. But his eyes are bright and sharp. His movements are strong.
My hand falls from Eldas’s and, ignoring Sevenna entirely, I cross to Harrow and sweep him up in my arms.
“Good gods, she’s hugging me,” I hear Harrow murmur. But he’s relaxed in my arms. A hand even pats my shoulder lightly.
“I was so worried about you.” I release him and pull away. Eldas had sneaked in an update on Harrow’s condition between sessions under the sheets—we had to eat sometime—but this is the first time I’ve seen him.
“It seems I worried everyone.” He looks guiltily between Eldas and Sevenna. I can tell there are still some discussions to be had about Harrow’s tangle with glimmer and Aria. But there’s time for that. And I’m here now. So I can at least make sure Eldas doesn’t come down too heavily with punishment on the young man’s shoulders.
“We’re just glad you’re all right.” I confidently speak for everyone in the room.
“Harrow, go and speak with your brother,” Sevenna commands icily. “I’d like a word with the Human Queen.”
He obliges, glancing between his mother and me before leaving. Even though Eldas and Harrow quietly talk between themselves, they glance back over regularly. Sevenna ignores her sons.
“Harrow told me what you did for him,” she begrudgingly admits. Her hands are folded before her—white knuckled. “And I think half the kingdom knows about your declaration for my eldest boy.”
“I know it’s not traditional—”
“Oh I think you made tradition with that,” she says curtly. I can’t tell if she’s pleased, proud, cross, or upset, so I try and keep my face blank. Sevenna sighs. “However, Eldas wrote and gave me context. He informed me of your choice.”
“My choice?”
“That you had freedom, and you came back. You chose my son and your oath to him as a wife.” I watch her throat constrict as she swallows hard. Sevenna forces the next two words out almost violently. “Thank you.”
I barely resist asking her how hard that was to say. But I’m too floored that she said it at all. Plus, this is the mother of my husband and the man I love. It’s time to begin smoothing over the rough edges in our relationship for everyone’s sake.
“You’re welcome.” Even though this woman makes me more nervous than anyone, I can speak calmly and plainly when it comes to my feelings for Eldas. “I love your son. And I want to love Harrow like a brother, if he’ll let me. Same with Drestin and Carcina.” I glance over my shoulder and see Harrow looking our way. He no doubt heard his name.
Sevenna snorts softly. “Good luck with that. My youngest is wild.”
“Don’t I know it?”
We share a smile that almost seems like camaraderie. There’s more work to be done here and more layers to Sevenna. But I’ll have time to peel them back.
I’ll have the rest of my life in Midscape.
My husband’s hand slips into my own as the doors open. Trumpets blare and a rain of petals cascades down from the ceiling magically at our entry. Eldas’s walk is as rigid as his crown, his face severe. But I can’t help smiling in wonder as I take in the room.
The same mass of people is here as before. Earlier, they had arrived for an announcement. But now they are here for a coronation—the last coronation of a Human Queen. The room is filled with wild magic and all the creatures who wield it. In it, I see my home—a place where I belong and nothing is missing. It’s the home I have chosen.
Eldas escorts me to my throne and then faces the room.
“The Human Queen has returned.” His voice echoes to the highest beams of the ceiling. “The cycle begins anew. But this cycle we begin now shall be eternal.” He accepts a crown of gold-gilded redwood leaves off a pillow held by Willow. The young man’s eyes shine with tears of joy. “All hail Queen Luella. The last queen of spring.”
“All hail Queen Luella,” the room echoes as Eldas settles the crown on my brow.
Together, Eldas and I sit on our thrones and the room erupts in cheers. I finally relax in my seat. There’s nothing more than the quiet whisper of magic on my skin, humming from across the Fade—a magic that reminds me of where I’ve come from, as I look out on where I am.
I can finally relax here. I hold out my hand and Eldas takes it with a smile. Everything is in balance, and all is right with the world.
Not ready to say goodbye to Luella and Eldas? Want a glimpse of the elves spring celebrations? A bit of marital bliss? Head over to my website to learn how you can get a special bonus scene that takes place over a year after the end of the book. It will also give you a hint to what you can expect from A DANCE WITH THE FAE ROGUE.
Learn how you can get the bonus scene for FREE at:
http://elisekova.com/a-deal-with-the-elf-king/
A Dance with the Fae Rogue: A Married to Magic Novel
Married to Magic is not a series, but a world. Each stand alone novel set in this universe will be championed by its own heroine who encounters magic, romance, and marriage before reaching her ultimate happy ending. If you enjoyed A Deal with the Elf King and want more, then check out the next Married to Magic novel...
A DANCE WITH THE FAE ROGUE
Pre-order and see all available information at:
http://elisekova.com/a-dance-with-the-fae-rogue/
Discover more from Elise
Kova
A DANCE WITH THE FAE ROGUE
The next stand alone fantasy romance in the Married to Magic world centers on a young woman taken captive by a disarmingly handsome fae rogue after she witnesses a ritual not meant for human eyes in the dead of night.
Pre-order and learn more at: https://elisekova.com/a-dance-with-the-fae-rogue/
AIR AWAKENS
The debut fantasy series from USA Today bestselling author Elise Kova. For fans of elemental magic and slow burn romance.
Get your copy: https://elisekova.com/air-awakens-book-one/
A library apprentice, a sorcerer prince, and an unbreakable magic bond…
The Solaris Empire is one conquest away from uniting the continent, and the rare elemental magic sleeping in seventeen-year-old library apprentice Vhalla Yarl could shift the tides of war.
Vhalla has always been taught to fear the Tower of Sorcerers, a mysterious magic society, and has been happy in her quiet world of books. But after she unknowingly saves the life of one of the most powerful sorcerers of them all–the Crown Prince Aldrik–she finds herself enticed into his world. Now she must decide her future: Embrace her sorcery and leave the life she’s known, or eradicate her magic and remain as she’s always been. And with powerful forces lurking in the shadows, Vhalla’s indecision could cost her more than she ever imagined.
A TRIAL OF SORCERERS
Get your copy: https://elisekova.com/a-trial-of-sorcerers/
Ice is in her blood.
Eighteen-year-old Waterrunner Eira Landan lives her life in the shadows — the shadow of her older brother, of her magic’s whispers, and of the person she accidentally killed. She’s the most unwanted apprentice in the Tower of Sorcerers until the day she decides to step out and compete for a spot in the Tournament of Five Kingdoms.