Page 64 of Bound to the Elvin Prince

She glanced at her hand wryly before looking at him. “Definitely not this.”

“I would hope not.”

Jealous, was he? Consider it payback for Cianve. She smirked internally before tackling his question. “Hmm, here it’s early afternoon. Probably studying or in a practice.”

“Practice?”

Cal realized how little they’d actually talked since the language barrier had been overcome. She still didn’t know much about his life and vice versa. Since she was on his home turf, she had the benefit of inference. She could watch him interact with his people and surroundings to gain a better understanding of his life. Relian didn’t have that luxury, as everything was new to her. He might learn about how she handled new stressors in her life, but that didn’t tell specifically about what had come before.

She shot him a smile. “Rehearsals and recitals.” Her smile faded. “I attend...attended college to study music. Well, music education.” Lines formed between his brows, so she hastened to explain. “Music education is for those who want to teach music to children.”

“College? This is an English word?”

“I don’t know if there’s an equivalent term for it in Elvish. It’s basically a place of higher learning.”

“Ah, like studying with the masters of an art?” He closed his eyes and sighed.

Cal looked at her hand, wondering how it could bring the often-austere male to such a state. He popped open an eyelid quizzically and looked at her before glancing down at her hand, which rested on his shoulder.

Oh, she’d forgotten to respond. “Sort of. A college or university is a place where people can choose from many different careers or arts, as you call them. Music education was one of many available majors at the college I attended.”

His eyelids came down to cover that too perceptive gaze from her sight. The feeling of his hair between her fingers created a hypnotic effect and had a mesmerizing pull on her eyes. His state of relaxation was starting to reel her in. Did she even want to escape?

When he turned his head and nuzzled her hand, he startled her out of her complacent stupor. Why was he being so affectionate? Not that she was complaining. Maybe heavy-duty elvin courtship consisted of demonstrations such as these. Elves seemed, as a culture, quite gallant in their everyday mannerisms with the opposite sex, and finding a spouse was a high priority to many. So was it any surprise he acted this way? If he didn’t, that’d probably give her more cause for concern.

Back home, a guy usually only showed such affection when wanting more—that something “more” meaning sex. The preprogrammed glasses she’d used to view other men often didn’t apply here, though.

“So tell me more about this music education major you undertook.”

As she told him, she found herself referring to everything in the past tense, and her heart sank. If he noticed her phrasing, he didn’t comment on it. But then, what could he say? Her future was anything but settled.

“You like to sing? You shall have to perform for us.” Even though it came out in the form of a command, he sounded hopeful. “Music is a favored pastime here.”

Cal froze, balking at the idea. She didn’t have to ask whom he meant by “us.” The music of the elves was in a class of its own. His people often gathered in the great hall for performances that comprised musicians, singers, and dancers. Some of the musicians could draw out one’s emotions and desires as if they were painting a masterpiece of great beauty and agony. She could become lost in it if she wasn’t careful. While she’d performed in front of large audiences, it’d been for human ears, not elvin ones. So how would she feel standing before a crowd of elves who had time to perfect everything through time and magic?

She decided not to respond with an offer. Maybe he’d forget if she answered only part of his query. “I have a passable voice.” As she shrugged, she fidgeted with his hair. “It’s better than some, worse than others.”

“If I ever have cause to hear your voice raised in song, I’m sure I would find it lovely, like the rest of you.” He opened his eyes to a slit and gave her a heated glance.

Cal swallowed. “Umm...right.”

He chuckled. Was it her imagination, or was he always laughing at her? Well, Relian did say she made him laugh. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing. Did he find her enchanting or just amusing, like a simple child? Maybe both?

“You’re shy now?” He lifted a brow. “One moment you’re demonstrative and the next you’re hiding away.”

He didn’t sound judgmental, so she didn’t think he criticized her. She managed to give a small smile in return. “I can’t help it. That’s the way I am, especially around you.” Her mind screamed for her to close her blubbering mouth. He already knew he made her flustered. Confirmation wasn’t needed to make it all the more glaring.

“I find it charming, and it’s somewhat expected. I sometimes forget how young you are and how new you are to this world.”

There was that word “young” again. Dread rose up. Did he think of her as barely out of childhood? “You’re always referring to how young I am. Everyone here does, in some form or another. You don’t treat me as a child, but I don’t feel as if I’m viewed like a full-grown adult, either. Yet if I stay, I’ll soon look older than every elf here.” Which was a major problem she didn’t know how they were going to tackle.

Relian sobered. “You are young in years compared to an adult elf. Elf children grow very slowly. If I remember my studies correctly, the years you’ve lived would equate roughly to that of a two-year-old elfling.”

“A two-year-old?” Her voice squeaked. She was nothing but a two-year-old to them? It was a wonder they didn’t coddle her more. He also hadn’t answered her observation about aging. She’d all too soon look older than the whole land of Eria put together. Her mind couldn’t continue to shy away from that fact.

Relian took one of her hands in his. “Yes, two. For every year that a human child grows, it takes elvin children ten to match that same growth, physically and mentally. Our years don’t hold true to yours or yours to ours. You are human, so we have to judge you by those standards. I’ll admit, though, this presents a conundrum of sorts for us. We’ve long been removed from your kindred and have forgotten how to view you. I don’t see you as a child and doubt many here see you as one. But everyone does keep the youth of your years in mind, a youth that seems both young and old to us.”

He added a teasing smile. “No two-year elf could handle what you and Maggie are facing with such fortitude. Your years are young but still beyond what any elf could hope to achieve without a few centuries standing behind him or her. However, you’re new to this world and don’t have the knowledge a child would’ve gained by living here.”

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