Page 54 of The Fae King's Labyrinth

I shot an exasperated glare at the pooka. “Of course I am. He’s in pain.”

“Take his hand.” The pooka moved to the side so I could kneel next to Azulin. “Secure the door, dragon. We don’t want to be disturbed.” He ordered Ghost in a commanding voice sodifferent from his usual jocular demeanor that I stared at him in surprise. He frowned at me. “His hand?”

I scrambled to manage my skirts, inching as close as possible to Azulin’s side as I knelt next to his chair. Reaching for the nearest of his hands, his right, I remembered his comment about placing the protection ring on my right hand.

“We need a ring.” Holding up my right hand, I asked, “Will this one work? Or will the spell on it cause issues?”

The pooka strode over and peered at the ring coiled around my finger and then grinned. “It will be perfect. The protection spell will get a boost and will probably help both of you. May I?”

I nodded and held out my right hand.

The pooka spoke a word, and the ring uncoiled, permitting me to slide it from my finger.

Azulin protested with a groan. His glare at the pooka spoke clearly of his annoyance.

“Join your marked hands.” The pooka bent over the ring for a moment. The flare of his magic washed over me in a wave of prickles. I sneezed as I took Azulin’s left hand in my right. The moment our skin touched, the vines flared with a golden glow. Warmth flooded through me, easing the anxiety in my gut and the tension in Azulin’s body.

“No sneezing during the vows,” the pooka instructed without looking up from whatever he was doing with the ring.

“Are you tampering with the spell?” Azulin demanded hoarsely, glaring at the pooka.

“Just making sure the magic of the protection spell doesn’t cause difficulties with the bonding.” The pooka shot Azulin a look of amusement. “Besides, I couldn’t harm either of you even if I wanted to. We swore a pact, remember?”

Azulin let his head fall back against his chair. Rolling it to the side, he studied my face from beneath lowered lids—his eyes pools of darkness beneath his caramel lashes.

“Sorry,” he whispered.

“For what?” I asked. “None of this is your fault.”

“For pulling you into this mess.” His strong, lean fingers tightened around my hand. “Thank you for your sacrifice.”

I frowned up at him, tracing the handsome lines of his face with my eyes. Pain still tightened his mouth and creased fine lines around his eyes, but even those were subtle. If I hadn’t spent so much time with him, I wouldn’t have been able to see the signs of emotion behind his mask. How long had he been so isolated? Hiding behind cool indifference and supporting a façade of cold invulnerability, he held everyone at a distance. Somehow I had gotten past that mask.

“I am glad I can help.” I lifted my free hand and brushed my fingers across his cheek. He flinched beneath my fingertips before leaning ever so slightly into my touch. Tears welled up in my eyes. I blinked them back. He trusted me, and I trusted him. It was a beginning.

“Enough of that.” The pooka strode back to us after speaking with Ghost. “Everything is secured, and we have two witnesses.” He nodded toward Grim and his brother, who now flanked Ghost. “We best begin before someone attempts to open the barred doors.” The pooka offered the ring to Azulin. “Who would you prefer to coach her through her part of the ceremony, you or me?”

Azulin took the ring with a glare. “I will.”

∞∞∞

Azulin

The curse broke the moment the ring slipped on her finger andthe last vow dropped from her lips. One moment, the curse was clawing at me, seeking any opportunity to sink in and disrupt my magic. And then it was gone.

My magic welled up and flooded through me, taking my breath with it. The sensation of power, control, and my magic’s eager willingness to be commanded brought on a relief I hadn’t experienced in years. It was as though a fresh breeze blew away a fog from my senses.

I had a heady urge to open a portal to Eldarlan and appear on Illeron’s front lawn to tell him the news. I resisted the impulse, though. I had more important things to tend to first.

“Thank you,” I whispered to my new wife. Kneeling next to me, her expression was earnest and sweetly concerned.

“Are you going to kiss your bride?” the pooka asked with a note of amusement.

I eyed him gravely. “Perhaps later…in private. But first, I have a question.”

The pooka eyed me right back, amusement lingering in his green eyes. “Might it have to do with my identity?”

“You are not just any pooka, are you?”

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