Page 59 of The Lost Art of Seducing a Mage Warrior

“She can’t just be a little girl when she’s the heir to an entire country,” Brannal said a bit sharply.

“Or maybe if she got the chance to be a little girl, she’d have the chance to grieve in peace and grow up to rule the country when she’s ready!” Perian snapped back. “She was sneaking away during nap time tosit alone in a garden. I think you allshouldbe worried but not about what seems to be worrying you.”

Brannal blew out a breath and admitted quietly, “I don’t want anything to happen to her.”

Perian sighed. Here was a man who had been instrumental in driving off a wraith attack that had killed Renny’s brother and multiple people they both knew and cared for. They were still feeling the repercussions of that attack to this day. Even Cormal, though it pissed Perian off to have the thought, had lost someone important to him, and though he had expressed himself in the worst possible way, maybe Perian had the smallest smidgen of understanding about where he had been coming from.

More gently, he said, “I imagine that you’ve all been working ceaselessly to make sure that she’s physically safe, but I think the rest of her well-being may have been negatively impacted. She really seemed to enjoy those picnics. And didn’t you say her mother—the Queen, I mean—thought she seemed a bit better?”

He had been thinking about going and scolding Renny’s mother, hadn’t he? Ha. He could only imagine how well that would have gone.

Brannal nodded. “The Princess still tires easily, and she’s not terribly strong.”

“Tell that to Cormal’s balls.”

The words were out before Perian could censor them. There was a moment of dead silence, and then Brannal laughed, and Perian could have cried with relief, but instead he laughed too, probably a little more uproariously than was really warranted by his sassy comment. Not that Brannal laughing at something he said meant everything was fixed, but it definitely brought down the level of tension between them.

Still smiling but looking as though he was trying to get his amusement under control, Brannal said, “I heard about it from both parties. The Queen wasnotpleased Cormal upset the Princess to such a degree, though she did also scold Princess Larenia for sneaking away. Cormal wasn’t wrong that the Princess could have been in real trouble if she collapsed while she sneaked away. Especially in a hidden location.”

“How did you know where to find us?”

Brannal’s eyes clouded. “The Prince used to hide there. He showed it to me once. It was a long time ago.” He cleared his throat. “I tried a few more prosaic locations in the castle before I remembered that one, especially once Cormal made some rather vitriolic comments about a picnic basket and blankets.”

“I didn’t hit him with the blankets,” Perian offered immediately.

Brannal shot him a look.

“I scarcely remember throwing the basket. I was just so worried about Renny. I ran after her immediately.”

“The Princess was very clear that you found her and took care of her. And that she had not, in fact, been alone since you got to the castle but was under your supervision.”

Perian made a face, since he wouldn’t exactly have said that anything he did was so formal assupervising, especially since he hadn’t even known she was the Princess.

The expression on Brannal’s face said he knew exactly what Perian was thinking.

“Fortunately, the Queen was pleased Larenia hadn’t been alone, and Molun and I were both there to attest to your character.”

It went without saying that Cormal had not been complimentary.

Brannal continued, “The upshot is that as long as the Princess’s health does not deteriorate, the Queen will permit the excursions if Larenia is accompanied.”

Perian eyed Brannal suspiciously, because that didn’t sound anything like the excursions they’d had up until this point.

“You are still permitted to have picnics with her,” Brannal clarified, and Perian breathed a sigh of relief, until Brannal continued. “But she can’t come alone. She’ll need to have a Warrior or Mage Warrior with her.”

Perian huffed a breath. “You’re insisting she be guarded in the middle of the garden in the middle of the quadrangle in the middle of an entirely secure castle.”

“You were able to get her alone without any trouble at all,” Brannal snapped.

Hurt and anger swamped him, and Perian erupted out of his chair. “I’m not—”

Brannal rose hurriedly, hands outstretched. “That came out wrong! Perian, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Perian glared mutinously.

Brannal explained, “I meant only that you are not a member of the royal household and you were able to spend time with her without anyone being the wiser. If someone with ill-intent had done the same, we might be having a very different discussion right now. I know you would never mean her any harm.”

“Not ever,” Perian said, wrapping his arms around himself.

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