Page 59 of The Forbidden Fae King

A rumbling laughter rolls behind me and I turn to Aldrin. My heart skips a beat as he walks toward me, and I try to ignore the fact. His fingers brush mine as he takes the plate from me, wraps the bread into a cylinder with one side tucked in, then hands it back to me.

“I see humans have forgotten more than our history. It’s your loss. Our food is bloody amazing.” Aldrin’s amber eyes dance as they hold mine.

I take a bite of the roll and flavor bursts within my mouth, the meaty juices popping with the tang of spices and a hint of chili.

Aldrin clicks his fingers at Drake and gestures toward the food then a plate.

Drake spreads out his arms with feigned confusion on his face.

Aldrin grunts. “Bread and meat. Pass it. Extra sambelini.”

“Manners, Aldrin, manners. You don’t need to be a brute because we are in the wildlands.” Drake baits the man.

“Please, oh protector of the Spring Court, commander of the special forces, pass me some dinner so I can get on with my pressing duties.” Aldrin half bows at him.

Triumph flicks across Drake’s face as he prepares another open wrap for Aldrin and hands the leaf plate over. My gaze flicks from him to Aldrin and back. Why is Drake not the leader of this band, when he had such a title? How in the darkest realm did they get exiled?

Aldrin turns to me. “Would you like to see the view from the top of The Tower?”

“That’s your pressing business?” Drake asks, his voice pitched high.

“Very pressing,” Aldrin says around a mouthful of food, then swallows. “Keira wants to prove that I should let her come tonight.”

Drake raises his eyebrows and looks at me, as though he sees me through a different light. “Good luck.” He tips his head.

There is no condescension in his tone. No comments on howunladylike it would be or how a human woman should do as she is told. I could be friends with this man.

Aldrin flicks his head at me and starts walking toward the staircases that run in a zigzag up the wall of the tree, broken up every so often by platforms. Something about the teasing glint in his eye as he glances at me over his shoulder forces me to follow like a puppy, even though those stairs fill me with apprehension. It could take a lifetime to climb to the top of them.

I am curious. That is all. It has nothing to do with the fact that I can’t drag my eyes away from the rippling of his muscles as he moves, or the way his fitted pants hug his perfectly sculpted ass. Damn. This man is dangerous. He is going to make me lose my mind if I don’t get away from him soon enough.

I have to half-run to catch up to his long stride. “We aren’t going to climbthat, are we?”

Aldrin glances at the stairs. “Gods no. There is a lift. I hope you’re not afraid of heights, because it is a little…airy.”

He brings me to a small platform of interwoven branches against the wall, and as we step on it, wooden limbs grow swiftly around the perimeter, forming a cage that completely closes us in. Taut vines extend up from the two far sides, reaching way above us in a loop, and they suddenly tug the entire enclosure upwards.

I stagger, and grab onto Aldrin, the most stable thing in the lift.

That railing looks as though I could easily fall straight through it.

I ignore the low chuckle reverberating through him. My entire body is rigid as my fingers curl into the hard panels of his leather armor, and after a heartbeat, he wraps a tight arm around my shoulders.

My breaths come in hard, sharp gasps.

Our rushing ascent sets a breeze blowing my hair away from my face and my stomach does somersaults. The sense of weightlessness fills me as the ground drags away, turning everything miniature before me. I try to ignore the fact I can see right through the many small holes in the basket.

This is exhilarating and terrifying.

My head spins as we stop at solid ground, but I find I cannot move. I struggle not to vomit. It takes a long moment for the fear to ease from my nerves.

“Are you okay?” Aldrin says gently, peering down into my face.

I am practically wrapped around him, my arms encircling his waist and my head buried against his chest. His strong arm pins me to his side. I drag in a long breath that only fills my nose with his scent and remove myself from him. I take a shaky step from the basket to the ground beyond. Aldrin doesn’t let go of me, but instead guides me by the elbow.

“Sorry.” He finally lets go of me. “I probably should have warned you.”

I hit him in the chest, then hit him again. It is like striking a stone wall. “Yes, you should have warned me! I wasn’t expectingthat. It took us a minute for to rise so high.”

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