Chapter 313
By the time the minstrels had begun their first song, Elain found herself by the edge of the garden, plate of tarts in her hand as she surveyed the rest of the area. The chocolate tarts were as good as she had been told and, as a result, her plate now contained five of them. When she had picked them up, her intention had been to return to the picnic blanket she had shared with her family, and share them. She had not yet made it back to that blanket.
The beautiful string music lifted and Elain smiled, noticing how the leaves in the tress seemed to dance in tune to the happy melody. She had been so preoccupied in watching the trees then that she hadn't noticed Lucien approaching her until she heard his heartbeat so close to her ear and felt his warmth just an instant before he slid one of his arms around her waist, drawing her back against himself. "Petal…" he breathed, bending to bring his lips to her ear, and Elain smiled widely, enjoying the feeling of his firm strength at her back. "Where did you go?"
"Nowhere." She replied, "I talked to some of the Courtiers…"
"I saw that."
"And then I thought you might like some of these…" She lifted the plate a little and Lucien's lips brushed against her cheek.
"You would have to actually bring them to me for me to be able to try…" he chuckled. "I think maybe you wanted to keep them all for yourself."
"No…" she breathed, "No… I just…" She turned to look up at him, "The garden is so lovely…" One of Lucien's warm hands lifted to her cheek and he smiled down at her. "I got a little distracted."
"I see that." His metallic eye clicked and whirred and she noticed that he was looking at the plate she held. Elain held it higher. "Why, thank you." He picked one of the tarts up and Elain watched him lift it to his lips and take a bite. His eyes lifted to hers then and she could see the small crinkles at the corners when he smiled. She knew both from his expression, and the feeling which washed over her down the bond, that he did indeed like it.
"Told you." She said, going up on her toes to try and press a kiss to his cheek. When he bent a little to allow her to do just that, Elain had to resist the urge to throw an arm around his neck and pull him down even further. This was not their private garden and she figured nobody else would want to see where that would inevitably lead.
After he had popped the rest of the tart into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed, Lucien gently stroked Elain's hair back from her face. "What did the Courtiers want?" he asked, and she could hear the concern in his voice.
"Why?" she asked "Do you know something about them?"
"Not really." He replied, "I haven't had anything to do with much of the Court yet. I've only really dealt with whatever duties the High Lord has seen fit to get me to do." He grinned at her, and she could feel his pride in the fact that Helion was trusting him with more and more, "Also when the other High Lords visited… We haven't really had many social things like this before…" His eyes, both russet and gold, flicked around the garden and she could hear that metallic eye whir. "I assume they are pleasant enough." He looked back down at her. "Helion wouldn't tolerate them otherwise."
"Remember Sorcha?" She asked, tilting her head and Lucien made a face.
"She was a Priestess." He replied, "He has no say in who is a Priestess and where they are placed. The Courtiers are another matter."
"So, when you are the High Lord." Elain began, "You will have complete control over who is living here and a part of your Court."
"Yes."
"What about Ambassadors from other Courts?" She asked, "Emissaries?"
"Things can be negotiated." He smiled at her, "Besides, with the current High Lords, I doubt we will have trouble with who they send."
Turning once more to look at the minstrels who were still playing, Elain supposed Lucien was right. They got on with all of the current High Lords well enough that it was unlikely they would be sent an emissary who would cause them grief. "Unless," she murmured, "Feyre tries stealing from someone else who doesn't like it and starts another war."
"Yes," Lucien agreed, his arm snaking around her waist again, "Unless that happens…"