Page 7 of Tempting the Fae Lord
Through the keyhole, the Gatekeeper finishes his meal. He licks Chester’s bloodied wrist, and my gaze follows his tongue until it disappears back into his mouth.
His voice comes low and sated. “Apologies, Chester, dear, but I’ve an urgent matter to attend to. Do you mind if I leave you alone?”
“Not at all,” says Chester sleepily.
The Gatekeeper shoots me a piercing glare, and I gulp.
How did he know? I’ve been silent as a shadow this whole time.
He turns back to Chester. “You’re all right?”
Chester mutters an affirmative and clears his throat. “Right as rain. Go on, then.”
“Thank you.” He rises.
Oh, bugger. I flop aside—no reason to flee now that I’m caught—and wait for the inevitable lecture on privacy or respect or some such that my snooping has earned.
Slow, even steps clack closer, the hinges squeak as the door opens. A brief second of awkward quiet passes as I stare at the wall, half-mortified and half-turned on, then wholly mortified about the latter bit.
“Gale.”
“Erm, hi.”
“Get up. Come here.”
I obey. I wanted to see him tonight, and my wish is granted, though my means could surely have been improved upon.
“Let us leave Chester in peace.” He loops his arm around my elbow and leads us away. We walk in silence down the main hall, then turn left toward the old, unused Sandstone Wing. “Why were you watching me?”
“I was curious.”
“Aren’t you always.”
It’s not a question, so I don’t answer.
“It’s not polite to eavesdrop, but you know that.”
“I’m sorry.”
He chuckles. “No, you’re not.”
We continue aimlessly wandering the halls, arm in arm, while I feel a strange mixture of self-consciousness and delight at once.
“Is there something you need?” he asks, voice low. “Something I’ve failed to provide?”
The question catches me off guard, but the answer comes readily enough. “No.”
“Something you want, then?”
You. Your company. Your stories. Some excitement. A trip. The other side. My real family.“Erm, nothing that I can think of.” The lie rolls thick and heavy off my tongue.
He turns his head, studying me as our slow walk circles past empty bedroom suites. I keep mine forward and try not to fidget. These halls are dusty. They could use a good scrub.
“Nothing you need. Yet you creep from your game to eavesdrop.”
“Am I in trouble?”
“Pfft. As if I could punish you. No. Not trouble, but you oughtn’t do it again.”
