Ruben’s jaw tightened. The half-naked man tapped Willow on the shoulder. She turned and as she realized he had on almost nothing, she blanched. Sidestepping him neatly, she moved to the other side of her horse, her face flaming.
“Enough,” Ruben roared. “Eric, get dressed and then help take down the tent. We leave in ten minutes.”
Eric waved, smiling broadly. As he strolled past the soldiers, one man eyed him in exactly the same way as his buddies had eyed Tatiana.
Scratching his head, Ruben went back to taking down his tent. Had the two of them really thought he and Willow were so foolish to fall for that? And even if they had, then what? Had Tatiana planned to knock him out in the middle of lovemaking, with Eric doing the same to Willow?
His stomach churned as he realized he hated the idea of Willow with anyone but him. He felt possessive, like a wolf would toward his mate.
Hellhounds. There it was again, that disturbing truth. Yet while he couldn’t deny the fact, what about her? Did she feel the same way? Did her people—the Sidhe—even believe in mating for life?
Her parents had sought a match with Chad. This brought another stomach-churning thought. Being royal, he knew how many intricacies were involved in a match. Of course, his own family was no obstacle. They’d be happy with any woman he chose.
Willow’s parents were another matter entirely. King Puck didn’t seem like a bad sort. He appeared relatively easygoing. Queen Millicent was not.
Ruben closed his eyes. Was he seriously considering asking for Willow’s hand in marriage? Of course he would, provided she was willing. The attraction between them was powerful and she’d demonstrated numerous times her uncanny ability to read his thoughts. He ached for her constantly, and being with her briefly only made him want her more.
He hoped—no, he prayed—she felt the same way.
Chapter 19
Pushing the thought from his mind for now, Ruben finished packing and mounted his horse. Already seated on hers, Willow waved, her dark hair looking almost blue in the morning sunlight.
Again, yearning swept through him. He supposed he should be glad she appeared to be trying to keep distance between them. He sighed. He couldn’t exactly blame her. She probably thought he’d stood her up last night. In fact, he’d simply been a coward, unable to deal with all the emotions she aroused in him.
He’d tell her later that he hadn’t stood her up, but he didn’t need the distraction right now. Not with both Eric and Tatiana proving they were completely loose cannons.
Finally, with the camp disassembled, they rode again. At the designated place, King Drem’s guards took their leave. As they rode off, their black-clad backs straight, Ruben didn’t miss the way Tatiana and Eric exchanged covert glances. He nearly groaned out loud. They rode their horses alongside each other, speaking in voices too low to carry.
“Well, there’s one good thing about all this,” Willow said drily, riding up alongside him. “Maybe the two of them will finally get close enough to marry.”
Ignoring the way his heart skipped a beat, he allowed himself a moment to drown in her smile.
“Maybe.” He smiled and glanced back at the others. “But have you noticed the way your sister looks at Chad? I really think she fancies herself in love with him.”
“She does,” Willow sighed. “Even when they first arrived in SouthWard, she decided she wanted him instead of Eric. I’m not sure why. She and Eric are exactly alike.”
“Maybe that’s the reason. They’re so similar, they’d despise each other in a matter of months.”
“That’s one possibility,” she said. “But I’d like to think they’d learn from seeing their own flaws mirrored so clearly.”
“Those kind of people rarely do.” Shaking his head, he tightened his hands on the reins to keep from touching her. “You were asleep when I came last night,” he murmured. “I didn’t want to disturb your rest, so I left.”
As she opened her mouth to speak, one of the horses whinnied, then screamed, a blood-curdling sound. Willow’s mount reared up, as Tatiana’s horse went down, pinning her under it. Blood pooled scarlet into the dirt.
Once Willow had her horse under control, she jumped down. Ruben also vaulted to the ground, handing her his reins. He rushed over, arriving at the same time as Eric.
One look at the Bright prince’s face and Ruben knew this hadn’t been staged. Appearing truly panicked, Eric tried frantically to free his fiancée from underneath the