Chapter 301

Not having been able to remember an evening that had been this fulfilling in a while, Elain found herself unable to wipe the smile from her face. It wasn't that she had in any way been denied company of those she loved, because she got to be with her mate every day, and she saw her sisters more frequently than she could have hoped for. Elain had not been denied love and affection. But tonight…

Biting her lip as she thought about it, Elain eyed the lights of the city. She felt happier and more hopeful than she had in a while. She felt settled, and she wondered if it might be because she and Lucien had decided that the Day Court would be their home. They had chosen this place, and now they were taking steps to make it feel that way. Working on the garden attached to their suite was a big deal to Elain. She had always had say over what her gardens look like and what she would grow. She had always had the freedom to change what she liked and work in the dirt as she pleased. At first it had seemed that she would not have had that choice here, as everything had been in place for them when they suit had been given to them for their use. Knowing that she was able to do as she wished to it, however, felt wonderful, and did a lot to make this place feel like hers.

It also had something to do with Sheera. Elain knew that, and smiled a little when she turned to watch her friend collect a glass of water from the nearby table. Having her own friend, one with similar interests, was an enormous part of making this feel like her home. It had been a long time since Elain had had a friend who was hers. She had always had her sisters, but that was different. For a long time, too, any friend that she had was always friends with Nesta or Feyre as well. Sheera had never even met her sisters and, while Sheera seemed friendly enough with Lucien, it was not her mate that the other female was interested in befriending. Throughout dinner, Sheera had spoken to others who had directed questions her way, but it was Elain she had always turned back to, continuing their conversations about the garden and where they could source plants of which they had spoken.

Sheera had taken a sip from her glass when the door to the room opened once more and Elain almost laughed when her friend just about choked on her water when Ashk came in from the hallway. Striding across to Sheera, Elain tried to help pat her friend on the back, taking the glass from her hand as Sheera spluttered.

"Are you alright?" she tried even harder not to laugh as Sheera turned slightly red, noticeable even with her dark skin.

"Y-yes…" Sheera nodded, tucking her black hair behind her pointed ears. "Yes, thank you. I… must have tried to swallow and breathe at the same time."

Elain handed her friend the glass once more, and Sheera hurriedly took another sip, clearly trying to look unaffected. Still rubbing her friend's back, Elain smiled brightly. She glanced across to where Ashk was now sinking down onto the couch beside Lucien who had recently sat down with his father. It was clear that Sheera was also watching this very same thing, and Elain turned her eyes on her friend, slowly stepping around in front of the other female as she tried very hard to stop her grin from spreading.

"Would I be correct…" Elain began, her voice barely more than a whisper as she tried to keep anyone else from overhearing what she was about to ask, "…in assuming that you seem to find Ashk… much more appealing than Helion?"

Golden eyes met Elain's instantly, and Sheera was silent as she held Elain's gaze. One of those dark eyebrows lifted then and Sheera tilted her head. Elain said nothing, just waiting for whatever reply her friend was about to give her.

"There is no denying that the High Lord is…" white teeth flashed in a smile. "very attractive."

"No denying." Elain agreed.

"She is…" Sheera's eyes moved past Elain, and Elain knew that they had returned to Lucien's mother across the room. "She is something else, however…" A look Elain could not read moved across her friend's face then, but she judged that it was somewhere between appreciation and awe.

"She is lovely."

"I…" Sheera looked at Elain again, "I've never seen anyone like her."

Elain tilted her own head, then. She was so used to Lucien and his vibrant hair and bright colouring that she hadn't considered that those features were probably not common in the Day Court. Indeed looking at Helion and Sheera herself, Elain had to admit that Ashk probably did rather stand out more than usual here. "You didn't seem that impressed by Lucien." She said, grinning at her friend.

"He's nice…" Sheera said, grinning back, "But I doubt expressing too much appreciation to a newly mated couple is a good idea."

"Oh, you thought I may throw myself at you in a fit of jealousy?"

"I don't think that's entirely impossible…"

Elain's smile grew pointy. She knew that her face had turned a little feral, but she couldn't do anything about it. She had never felt threatened by Sheera, but she couldn't say that she'd never had that urge when wanting to defend her mate from unwanted attention from other females. "Indeed."

"He's not my type, anyway." Sheera said, her eyes on Elain once more. Recalling then that her friend had said the same thing about Helion, Elain took a small step forward.

"Do you… prefer…?" she broke off, her eyes on her friend's face. Sheera's smile twitched, and then her friend gave a one shouldered shrug.

"The company of females?"

"…yes." Elain held her friend's eyes.

"I do."

"Oh." Elain nodded, looking over her shoulder at Ashk again. "That makes sense."