Summoned and Stolen (Summoned Series Romances) (10 page)

Lily opened her mouth to explain and thought better of it. They didn’t have time for explanations right now. She needed to get back to Kel.

***

CHAPTER 1
2

Kel sat with his back to their small fire, listening to the sounds of the night. He could hear better when he held still, so he had finally forsaken pacing around the camp to sit in silence. As the hours had crawled past, his thoughts turned time and again to Lily. Since she’d tumbled into his hand that night in Camford’s tent, his entire world had been turned upside down. He had lost the support of his shield-brothers, been forced to skulk across the realm like a criminal, and had a price on his damned head. Worst of all, he had been forced to turn to his father for help. The old man was likely laughing his ass off as he listened to Lily tell their tale.

If she’d made it. If she hadn’t be captured or injured or lost…

He cursed under his breath and snatched a rock off the ground, hurling against the trunk of a nearby tree. There was a satisfying
thwack
as it hit, and before he knew it Kel had a handful of rocks and was tossing them one after another.
Crack.
Tock
.
Thwack.
He emptied the area around him of stones in the next few minutes, feeling marginally better when it was done.

Before he could contemplate looking for more rocks to continue his new pastime, a soft, silvery glow suffused the clearing. Lily’s musical laughter drifted down from somewhere above, and Kel lifted his head just in time to watch her descend. The moment she was within his reach he seized her, hauling her into his arms so he could reassure himself that she was safe and unhurt.

Not until this moment had he truly understood how deeply he cared for her.

Lily found herself swept into Kel’s embrace before she could utter a word. The news that her mission had been a success, and that his father was only a few feet behind her would all have to wait. Kel’s mouth crashed down on hers and he cradled the back of her head with one large hand, holding her still as he caressed every inch of her with his free hand. There was hunger in his kiss, but more than that, there was a hint of frantic energy.

Her stoic warrior had been worried.

His concern pleased her as much as his earlier claim that she belonged to him. She wanted him to worry about her. She needed him to care. He was the only man she completely trusted in this world. More than that, he was the man she loved. That much had become clear to her in the long flight to Wulfshaven. Now it was up to him. If he asked her to go with him, she would. She’d follow him to the far reaches of the planes if he wanted her to. If he didn’t ask her to join him, then she already had the King’s word that he would free her and return her home.

“You are unhurt, little one?” he asked between kisses.

“I’m fine, Kel. But we are not alone.”

“I don’t care if the King himself is here, I need you. I need to know you are not injured.”

“She’s fine. Do you really think I would let her go flitting around the forest if she were hurt? I even found her something to wear, which is a far sight more than you managed to do, son.”

Until it was mentioned, Kel hadn’t really registered the fact that Lily was now clad in a gown of flowing silk. He let his hands slide up her back and discovered that they had gotten around the matter of her wings by simply slicing the entire back of the dress open. It was easier to focus on her than to face his father after all these years.

“Kel, you really should say hello. He did come all this way to see you,” Lily reminded him and Kel chuckled as he caught the look she was giving him. It was very like the one his mother used when he was being deliberately difficult.

He called out without looking up, “Hello, Sire. Thank you for leaving your warm bed and coming all the way out here. You’ll not be pleased to know the Duke of Southmoor was plotting to take your throne, which is the real reason I killed him.”

The King of Wulfhaven snorted with laughter. “Still the master of diplomacy, I see. If you could put the lady down, I’d like to get a good look at you. It’s been far too long since last we spoke. You can tell me all about this plot against me on the way back to the palace.”

Kel turned around and whatever witty retort he had planned died away unspoken. He had expected to see the hale and hearty warrior-king he had walked out on so long ago. Instead, he was faced with a grey haired, aging man who seemed somehow smaller than Kel’s recollections. Time and the weight of the crown had not been kind to the man whose blood ran through Kel’s veins. “It’s good to see you again, father.”

Lily watched as father and son struggled to find their way. When Bern dismounted from his horse, Kel took a single step toward him and then stopped. The King stepped away from his mount and both men stood, facing each other. Neither of them moved until Lily twitched in wings in irritation.

Men! It didn’t matter what race they were, they’ll all the same.

She slipped her hand into Kel’s and led him over to the King, filling the silence with her own cheerful babbling. “Kel, your father’s brought a carriage for us so that we can travel without being seen. He tells me that once the priests have used their magic to verify your statements, we’ll be free to go.” When they were but a few feet apart, Lily stepped back and gave Kel an unsubtle push toward his father.

It worked.

The two men met in a back-thumping embrace that brought a lump to her throat. Neither of them spoke. There was no need. Not even the guards who ringed the clearing made so much as a peep as father and son reunited. Lily hoped that this would be a new beginning for all of them. She hoped even harder that this wasn’t the end for her and Kel. She wasn’t ready to let him go.

She Lily knew now that she would
never
be ready.

“You got taller, boy.” His father’s words were thick with emotions that neither of them would ever acknowledge feeling.

“And you’re still calling me, boy. I’ve not been one for a long, long time.” Kel released his father and stepped back so they could see other again.

“You will always be my boy. If I had known all it would take to get you to come home again was to frame you for murder, I’d of arranged for it years ago.”

Kel just snorted with laughter and shook his head. “I’m not coming home because of that. It’s Lily. She needs your protection, sire.”

His father glanced over at Lily and nodded once. “She has it. And so do you. Whether you want it or not.”

Kel breathed a sigh of relief. His father might be a bullheaded, arrogant pain in the ass, but he was a man of his word. If Lily was under his protection, then she was truly safe. No matter what might happen to him, she would have her life back. Keeping her safe and free was the one purpose that would have ever brought him back to Wulfshaven. Now he was home, though. Kel was glad he had come. As he stood looking at his aging father, Kel felt the full weight of the years that had passed. If he hadn’t come back now, this reunion might never have taken place.

Lily had given him this chance to speak with his father again. Not as an angry youth to his father, but man to man.

One of the king’s guards cleared his throat, drawing the attention of both men. “Majesty? We should get you back to the palace. We’re not alone in these woods.”

“And no doubt some of the other residents are looking for a certain mercenary with a very large bounty on his head,” Bern commented drily and looked to Kel. “Are you ready to come home, boy?”

“I am.”

It took a few short minutes to douse the fire, collect their few things and make their way to the carriage, and a few minutes more to secure both Kel and the king’s horses to the back. Kel found himself irritated at the admiring stares that Lily was garnering from every man present, and when he caught Lily blushing in response to one of them winking at her, he took the initiative. Without waiting for his father to enter first, Kel scooped Lily into his arms and carried her inside.

“Subtle,” was his father’s only comment as the regent joined them inside.

Lily glanced up at Kel with a tired smile. “I kept my promise, didn’t I?”

“Aye, little one. You did.” In the lamplight Kel finally saw the true toll the night’s adventures had taken on his little temptress. Her milk-white skin had gone even paler, and there were dark shadows beneath her eyes. She snuggled into his arms and closed her eyes, and within a few minutes she was sleeping quietly. Kel knew that a few days of rest and food would heal her of the fatigue and stress of the last few days. The tiny woman sleeping in his arms had courage enough to match any man in his army, and any debt she felt she owed him when he freed her from Camford had now been paid in full.

He and his father talked the entire journey, and by the time it was done, his father knew everything that Kel had seen and done in his months of service to Camford. Kel presented everything he could recall, knowing that there would be details of what he had seen that would mean more to a statesman like his father. It would take days to get all the information properly recorded, and days more for the priests to intone their prayers and weave enchantments that would verify that everything Kel and Lily had said was the truth. They would be guests of the King until it was done, carefully guarded, but still, it was far better than being imprisoned until their story was confirmed.

Kel and his father began the long process of getting to know each other again, man to man. It felt like a good start toward…something. It was too soon to know what would come of his return home in the long run, but it was a good beginning.

****

When she woke, Lily could hardly accept that she wasn’t still dreaming. She was curled up in a soft bed, covered with linens and blankets that were scented lightly with lavender. Sunshine filled the room with cheerful light, and Kel was sleeping behind her. He had one arm curved protectively around her waist, and his slow, sonorous breathing tickled the back of her neck. She had drawn her wings in close to her back and willed them to soften, a trick that allowed her snuggle into Kel’s embrace. The mattress beneath them was decadence itself, soft and plush enough she was tempted to snuggle back into it and sleep again. She would have too, but then the mouthwatering aroma of fresh fruit tickled her nose and her stomach growled in response. It had been days since she’d eaten a proper meal, and longer still since she had some of the fruits she could smell somewhere nearby.

The problem of how to get out of bed without disturbing Kel was easily solved. Lily simply shrank down to her smaller form and flew away, leaving him fast asleep. She saw to her personal
needs quickly then indulged herself in a brief washing up, smiling as she noticed that the soap was scented with rose petals.

She found the trays of food without difficulty. A servant must have slipped in while they were both asleep and left them near the door of their rooms. Lily’s stomach was growling loudly enough now she was surprised Kel hadn’t woken to tease her about it. Fruits, cool water and sweet honey took up one tray, and the other was clearly for Kel. It was piled high with fresh baked bread, cold meats and a bowl of porridge half drowned in fresh cream. It was still warm, so the food had not arrived long ago. Perhaps that had been what woke her up.

Lily carried his tray back first and was greeted by Kel’s smiling face as he sat up. “I thought I smelled food.”

“You did. Here, this one is yours.” She handed him the well laden tray and went back for hers. They spread the feast out on the bed and began to eat, both of them ravenous.

Kel waved a hand around their well-appointed room. “I had forgotten how good it is to have servants seeing to every need. Fresh, hot food delivered to my door, clean sheets, warm clothes and everything a man could need. Just you watch, someone will arrive the moment we have finished and clear all this away while informing us that hot baths are being drawn and fresh clothing will be delivered shortly. You must have missed this, when you were roughing it out there with me.”

Lily shook her head. “I was never treated like this. I slept by the hearth in my master’s room, and the only time I had servants attend me was when I was to be prepared for viewing by one of Rockland’s guests. Most of the time I was left by myself, waiting for my master to summon me. I spent a lot of time at the window, watching the world pass me by.”

“I’m sorry, little one. I didn’t know.” Kel’s stomach curdled as he considered her words. She’d been so matter of fact about it, as if those things had been done to someone else. A distant tragedy, not the reality she had lived with for years. Yet again he vowed to himself that she would never suffer like that again.

“That’s over now,” she smiled at him and the sunshine paled by comparison to the radiant joy on her face. “You saved me and your father has promised to find someone to free me from this cursed collar. Soon I will be truly free.”

“Aye, you’ll be free to go anywhere you wish.” He found himself reluctant to ask the one question he needed to know the answer to more than any other. He had faced death a thousand times on the battlefield, made life altering decisions in the blink of an eye, but now that he was faced with asking Lily if she would consider staying with him, his courage wavered.

“What is it, Kel?” she asked, stroking soft fingers down his scarred jaw.

“When you are free, what will you do? Will you try and make your way home again? Would you consider staying and make a life here?”