Spellbinder (Moonshadow #2)

Sidonie dug the heel of her hand into her eyes. “I can never really relax when he’s around. I can’t forget what happened.”

“Nor should you.” He thought perhaps the puck regretted what he had done, but that did not lessen Robin’s accountability.

A sharp rap sounded on the door. Sidonie looked at him quickly as she called out, “Yes?”

A deep male voice said, “Castle guard, ma’am. The Queen requests your presence at your earliest convenience.”

Alarm flashed over her expression. Jumping off the bed, she ran to the door. Without opening it, she exclaimed, “I don’t have any clean clothes!”

“You don’t… have any clothes?” The guard sounded taken aback.

“Last night I gave them to Leisha, the inn owner, to have laundered, and I haven’t gotten them back yet. I don’t have that many outfits!” Turning, she rolled her eyes at Morgan and said telepathically, I can’t put off going shopping.

“Ma’am, I will check on your laundry,” the guard said.

She raised her voice again. “If they’re not ready, ask Leisha if she has an outfit I can borrow!”

“Yes, ma’am.” The sound of his footsteps faded.

While Sidonie talked with the guard, Morgan left the bed and dressed quickly. When she turned around to face him again, disappointment darkened her gaze.

Striding over, he kissed that soft, pouting mouth. She hooked an arm around his neck, kissing him back. The fire he felt for her was always present. At the touch of her body pressed against his, it burned hot and fierce.

With an immense act of will, he dragged his lips away. Taking care in case the guard was closer than he thought, he said telepathically, This is good news. Your hour will go quickly, and then you’ll have the rest of the day.

She grasped the front of his shirt in both hands. When will you be back?

Tonight, after sunset. Her bottom lip looked plump and still wet from their kiss. He rubbed it with a forefinger while his unruly cock stiffened. He added in a whisper, And I’ll stay all night, if you’ll have me.

She looked drugged, her elegant eyes dilated. God, yes.

Be careful. Don’t trust anything or anyone, especially her. Don’t believe anything she promises you. She lies more easily than breathing.

Don’t worry, I won’t.

But he did worry. The thought of Sidonie walking back into the castle was like watching her voluntarily step into a pit of snakes. With a final, scorching kiss and a nearly inaudible, frustrated growl, he tore himself away from her. Scooping up his sword and bag, he cloaked himself and slipped out onto the balcony.

Another knock sounded on her door, and he paused outside, listening.

“Yes?” Sidonie asked.

A familiar woman’s voice sounded on the other side. It was Leisha herself. “Musician, I apologize profusely, but your clothes have not had a chance to dry. I did not realize there was some urgency to your laundry, but when you told me last night that bundle was all you had, I should have.”

“Oh, great.” Sidonie thunked against the door.

“I do have a few spare outfits that patrons have left behind…. I think one or two of these dresses might work? They’re not new, but they’re decent, clean, and well cared for.”

“Let’s see them.” Sidonie unlocked the door. “You, guard. Wait for me downstairs.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

As Leisha stepped into the room with an armful of clothes, Morgan relaxed. Finding nothing further to keep him, he scaled the side of the wall to the roof.

He had almost the full day ahead of him, and he needed to use every minute of it to see if he could discover a way to summon a god.

He had a sense of time trickling away, important time he could never get back. With every moment he healed, he became stronger—and grew closer to the next wound, which would weaken him critically again.

Also his movements had become even more hampered now, and if the puck failed to bring back more of the hunter’s spray, Morgan didn’t have a backup plan.

And there were too many pieces at play in the game that were unpredictable.

Isabeau. Robin. The geas. Even Sidonie had managed to surprise him more than once.

And never, ever, did Morgan forget Modred.

*

Of the four dresses Leisha brought, only one fit well enough Sid could get by wearing it for an hour or two. It was a dull gold with yellow embroidered flowers, and given how short it was, the dress had probably been a Light Fae girl’s dress. When Sid told Leisha she would take the room for the foreseeable future, the innkeeper insisted she keep the dress as a gift.

After she left, Sid tore off the dress, hung it on a nearby hook, and raced to the bathing alcove. It was too late to worry about getting Morgan’s scent on the new dress. Hopefully she hadn’t worn it long enough for it to matter.

In the alcove, she discovered a pleasant surprise. There was a soft soap in a dish that smelled like patchouli. The bathing tub was small, and the water from the tap was cold. She had to either sit with her knees up or stand to sluice off.

However long she might end up trapped in Avalon, she would never get used to washing in cold water. She scrubbed thoroughly, washed her hair twice, and after haphazardly drying off, she dressed. When she had finger combed her hair as best she could, she pocketed her twenty-one worry stones.

Then she considered her small pile of coins and jewelry. She also had forgotten to give Morgan the diamond that had held his battle spell. What did people do here to keep their valuables safe? Should she wrap it up and take it with her, or should she hide it?

Surely an experienced thief would know all the hiding places better than she would.

She didn’t have time to dither over it. She tied the coins and jewels into a silk handkerchief someone had dropped into her performance hat and stuffed it into the pocket of her dress. Then she left, taking care to lock the door behind her.

And unlock it. And lock it again.

And again. And again. Agh!

Running down the stairs, she joined the waiting guard, who led the short way back to the castle and the waiting Queen.

They stopped by the music hall so she could collect the lute, and then the guard led her to the private garden with the travertine pillars and the fishpond.

Kallah met them at the doors. When she saw Sidonie, she exclaimed softly, “Where have you been?”

“I had to bathe, and I had nothing to wear!” Sidonie exclaimed back. “My clothes are being laundered. I need to go to the market to buy more.”

Kallah glanced down her figure. Her eyes widened with an expression of dismay, but she said grimly, “Well, it’s too late to do anything to rectify that now. When you buy more clothes, be sure not to choose anything quite so appealing.”

Right, Sid had forgotten. Wear only ugly clothes around the Queen. How old was Isabeau, several centuries going on seven?

Biting it back, she asked, “What do I do?”

“Slip over there, around the rosebushes.” Kallah pointed across the garden. “I’ve set out a wooden stool for you. Play soothing songs, don’t say anything, and don’t stop until I come for you. Understood?”