Page 74 of The Lost Art of Seducing a Mage Warrior

He turned to look at her.

“If you do harm my baby girl, I will lock you in the darkest dungeon and throw away the key.”

Brannal’s eyes went wide with alarm, but Perian smiled at the Queen.

“I would expect nothing less, Your Majesty. Thank you for the tea.”

She smiled at him, and Brannal whisked him out of the room. The two remaining Warriors—it appeared Perian wasn’t going to have an escort forevermore, thank goodness—inclined their heads to Brannal, and he acknowledged them with a brisk nod, but he really was pulling Perian away like the more distance he had from the Queen, the safer he was.

“Everything all right?” Perian finally asked.

Brannal eyed him. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

“I’m fine,” Perian assured him. “I mean, it was more than a little panic-inducing, but the actual meeting went way better than I was worried it would. I can see a lot of Renny in her, actually.” Perian made a face. “If I’m allowed to make such an observation.”

Brannal smiled at him. “I’m pretty sure she likes you, so you’re fine.”

Perian would err on the side of caution. “Do you really think so?”

“Absolutely,” Brannal said without hesitation. “I don’t see a lot of people having casual chats with her on their first encounter.”

It was probably a good thing he hadn’t known that going in. He would have been more nervous.

“I managed not to spill my tea or choke on a biscuit, so I am definitely considering it a success.”

Brannal laughed. “Well, that’s good.”

“Right?” Perian paused for a moment, then hurriedly asked, “Really, you think it was fine?”

He’d definitely felt much better after they’d finished talking, but that didn’t mean for sure thatthe Queenfelt that way.

“I might have shown up to rescue you, but it was entirely clear you didn’t need it,” Brannal assured him.

This made Perian grin. “Overreacting again, were you?”

Brannal shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed but largely unrepentant. “Maybe a little.”

“I appreciate it,” Perian told him.

Since his father had died, Perian hadn’t had anyone to care about him like this.

“Still want to go for that ride?” Brannal asked.

“Yes, please,” Perian said hopefully.

So, they went back to Brannal’s rooms to drop off the basket and blanket. Only Perian changed into riding gear—apparently, Warrior garb was multi-purpose—and then Brannal escorted Perian outside to the stables.

Perian had never left the castle from the north side. It had its own guarded drawbridge, but this one led to the stable yard, with a further moat and final drawbridge separating the stable yard from the grounds beyond.

They were past the city here, abutting the cliffs to the west, with the forested areas and plains of the royal park to the north. They walked into the stables and Perian breathed in the smells of horse, hay, straw, and manure. He smiled.

“It smells like home.”

Brannal’s lips tipped up. “I take that to mean you’d like to pick your own mount.”

Perian eyed him. “You were going to pick for me?”

Brannal laughed. “Not anymore, I assure you. You said you could ride, but there were no qualifiers.”

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