Chapter 7

Swallowing hard, I turned my head left and met the dark-haired cutie's eyes. With a racing heart, I observed him leave the table and slowly approach the two of us, evidently taking his time.

He was absolutely gorgeous. Tall and muscular, Rhysand and Feyre's eldest son was truly the most handsome man I had ever met in my whole life. His whole body was moving gracefully and confidently, giving the impression of dancing instead of simply walking. I caught myself staring not only at his wonderful shredded arms that Captain America wouldn't feel ashamed of, but also at his remarkably muscled legs visible through his dark trousers. Good God, how would he look like without all of these darkish clothes…?, I thought and blushed, realising the inappropriateness of the idea. Lexi, for God's sake!

As he came closer, I noticed that his eyes were strikingly blue and his black hair was a bit too long yet it didn't take away his charm. As a matter of fact, I knew men who looked really sexy in longer hair and those who always failed in looking okay, no matter how hard they tried to do so. Luckily, the black-haired sex god fell into the first group.

The heir to the Night Court finally reached me and Meleri and fell on one knee in front of his younger sister. Immediately, an incredible smell of something sweet and fresh flooded my nostrils, making me think of those hot summer evenings in July where you sit in the summerhouse and inhale deeply the amazing night air. I sighted quite loudly but the smell was still there.

With his left arm resting on the other knee, the cutie studied Meleri for a while and said with a strikingly perfect British accent, "Melly, sweetheart, you can't bring people to our court just because something told you they are perfect for me." Gently, he lifted Meleri's chin and made her look at him. "Though I'm flattered you wanted to save my pretty face from marrying Eirwen, promise me you'll never do this again."

"I promise," she whispered. "I'd never intended to cause trouble or make all of you angry. I was worried about you. I know now that bringing Lexi to Prythian was a very bad idea but it was the only one I had."

"I completely understand, sweetheart," he cut in and tucked Meleri's hair behind her ear. "And that's why we're going to send this lovely young lady back to her family as soon as possible." He flashed his sister a reassuring smile and then stood up.

Poring over me and making me blush for the hundredth time today, which I absolutely hated, he said in that sexy husky voice, "Welcome to the Night Court, lovely Alexandra."

"Hi," I breathed, feeling nervous about him standing so near me.

The dark-haired cutie smiled to me wickedly, evidently aware of what I felt, and added, "By the way, I'm Rian, honey."

"Rian. A sexy name for a sexy guy." Immediately, after saying that, I covered my mouth with a hand. Good God, I said that aloud. I really said that aloud. "Sorry."

"Oh, you think I'm sexy," Rian said with amusement. "But, honey, you're not my type. Even though my sister and Bryaxis believe otherwise."

His words really stabbed me. Avoiding eye contact, I looked at my own hands and I started regretting saying that sentence aloud. And to think I was wondering about seeing this muppet without his clothes…

"Alright, Meleri." I raised my head and saw Rian taking his sister's hand. "We'll go today to Bryaxis and solve that problem together."

"Will we take Lexi with us?" she asked, glimpsing at me.

"We will. But first, we have to find her something decent to wear. She can't just walk around in her underwear, can she?"

"That's not my underwear," I protested, feeling angry. "I'm wearing my pyjamas. As I was kidnapped in the middle of the night."

Both Meleri and Rian looked at me closely. The girl peered at my clothes but after a while seemed uninterested in them and fixed her eyes on her parents. Rian's eyes, on the other hand, were wandering over me, examining me and my red skimpy pyjamas from top to toe. If I hadn't known better, I would have said that he was undressing me with them. But he said himself that I wasn't his type so I was just making the whole thing up. Yet, it didn't change the fact that for the first time in my life I had regretted buying a bloody piece of clothing.

"Your pyjamas," he repeated, staring at me. "So you've got a peculiar taste in clothes in your land, lovely Alexandra."

"You have no idea, mate." I spat the last word.

Rian regarded me for a while, yet his only answer was a quiet, "Hmm."

Suddenly, Meleri appeared in front of me and grabbed my hand. "Come with me, Lexi."

I heard Rian said something about her being unbelievable but I didn't pay much attention to that. I was too shocked by her unexpected arrival to notice anything else. "Please, don't do that again. You scared me to death," I said, looking at her.

"I'm really sorry, Lexi. I didn't mean to." Meleri shot me an apologetic look.

"Okay. Where are we going anyway?"

"To the study to talk and then I will show you around, if I may."

"Yeah, sure. Why not? I've never been here before."

Letting her lead me out of the room, I looked around. The room I arrived in was huge and made of bright stone and its stark walls were high. There was no furniture but a big dark table and several matching chairs, now occupied by book characters that were talking quietly and probably discussing the problem called 'me.'

It was odd to realise that everything around me was made up. That even though every wall, every floor tile, and every damn object seemed so realistic, I knew they didn't exist. The same was with the people I had encountered and the whole world of Prythian I was now in – they were all created by someone. And that someone was now living in the States, busying herself with writing novels.

Good God, I thought, observing Meleri who was walking next to me and still holding my hand. I hope there is a way to bring me back home, regardless of what Rhysand said. Otherwise, I would be utterly screwed for good.

When we finally left the room, I noticed we entered a wide and long corridor lit only by some magical lamps that were floating above the floor. The walls were also made of the same stone I saw in the room but weren't that high.

"So you're the youngest," I said, trying to engage in idle chit chat with her.

"Yes. Are you?" she asked and looked at me.

"No, I'm the eldest."

"As is Rian." Meleri smirked and I was sure like hell that it wasn't a good thing. I really hoped she had given up the ridiculous thought of playing Cupid for me and that muppet, considering he wasn't even interested in me. Too bad. "Cerys and Ciaran are also older than me."

"Who?"

"My other siblings. You've seen them in the main chamber."

"Sorry, I didn't pay much attention to other people, except you and your old folks." And that handsome muppet.

"Oh, that's a shame." Her smile faded but suddenly she added happily, "I know! I will introduce you to them. You'll love them. They are really incredible. You will love Rin, too, but–" Her voice trailed off. "I don't know why he was behaving so strangely today. Usually, he is very sweet and funny and spends a lot of time with me, but–" She bit her lip. "He didn't behave like the Rin I know."

"Well, maybe your big bro has a bad day." I said, not knowing why I was giving a damn about him. "You know, his hair isn't as perfect as always. Or his muscular arms and legs are less impressive than they used to be." Shut up! "People can have such big problems."

The corridor soon ended, forking to left and right. Without hesitation, Meleri chose right and led me into a much smaller room than the main chamber. It had to be the study as I could see a massive dark desk, a long table with lots of chairs, and several big cabinets, perfect for keeping books and papers.

"Why do you call us people?" she asked, stopping in the middle of the room and fixing her eyes on me. "You've used that word at least twice. We're not people, Lexi. We're High Fae, we're females or males." She motioned me to take place at the table.

"Well, sorry, but you do look like people to me." I sat on a chair and waited for Meleri to join me. When she did, I said, "Though you're more beautiful than ordinary humans. That's for sure."

"Ah, I'm flattered, lovely Alexandra," Rian bragged, appearing on a chair next to me.

"Shit!" I squeaked and jumped a bit. "Stop doing that!"

Rian laughed loudly but then propped his head on a fist and said, "I've never thought people were so fearful. Or are you an exception?"

I snorted, crossing my arms on my chest. "I've never thought fairies were so self-obsessed. Or are you an exception?"

"Said by someone dressed in their underwear," he said in that husky voice and extended his hand towards my chest.

"That's not my–"

Alert, I watched him wind slowly a strand of my hair around his finger and leave it then on my shoulder. Feeling goose bumps all over my body, I sighed. Good God, I was as turned on as earlier in the huge chamber. My whole body was more than eager to invite his hands and gorgeous lips to touch and taste me in every possible way. I didn't know if I had ever felt such hunger for somebody because what I felt for Henry was beyond compare.

Suddenly, Rian pointed a finger at Meleri, or at least it looked like that, and snapped me out of drooling over him. A white shirt appeared hanging from his finger. "Take it. You seem to be cold," he said, flashing me a smile.

I frowned. "No, thanks, I'm fine." Eyeing the shirt, I found myself asking, "Are you as powerful as Rhysand?"

"In what way? In bed?" Rian whispered and slung his arm across the back of my chair.

"What? Good God, no. Why would I even want to know that?" I protested, feeling uneasy. I knew my cheeks were burning and the temperature around me suddenly rose by a few degrees. "In general… I suppose."

"Well, for such an ordinary mortal like you," Rian looked at me with malicious satisfaction as he got closer, "I may seem like a god."

I winced.

Each and every one of us had experienced a moment in their lives which made their heart break in two. That moment might have been so powerful that some were even left sobbing on the floor, begging that heart to stop beating forever. If you were lucky enough, the pain died in a blink of an eye and never returned. But if you weren't that fortunate, it haunted you for the rest of your life, causing distress and chaos in everything you touched.

I wasn't the lucky one. Heartbroken and devastated, I had been going through hell for several months, reliving and regretting every freaking minute spent with him. The torment clouded my whole life and prevented me from seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I had gone out of my way to get rid of everything that was precious to me by starting freezing my family and friends out, almost giving uni a miss, putting on some flesh, and wasting time on reading red-tops. Yet somehow I made it through and was free. Until now.

Now, looking at Rian, I felt like my old wound had reopened. Like every heart pang I endured struck me again, leaving me breathless for a second time. It dawned on me that I was stupid enough to think my glued together heart would never be nicked or broken again. No such luck. The dark-eyed guy sitting next to me was a perfect evidence for it. Or should I say his extraordinary words.

I didn't know why he was acting so weird. He was changing his behaviour so quickly that it was too difficult for me to follow. One minute he was sexy and flirty, flashing smiles and touching my hair, the next cold and mean, insulting me and treating like something inferior to him. I was too exhausted to play such games.

"Not again." I heard a melodious female voice with a strong Scottish accent. Turning my head, I saw a slender young woman with long dark hair who entered the study with her male version walking behind her. Twins. "Rin, grow up and leave that girl alone, will you?"

"Cerys, sweetheart, you do know how I enjoy talking to girls," Rian said and vanished. After a heartbeat, he appeared on a chair opposite mine, sitting sprawled and holding a glass of some reddish liquid in one hand. He wasn't looking at me. Good.

"Exactly, talking, not yanking them around." Cerys approached the table and sat next to her elder brother. "You're setting a bad example." She sniffed and leant across him, asking, "What is it? What are you sipping?"

"Something far too special for you."

"So I suppose it's the usual stuff." Cerys's twin brother took a seat next to Meleri and me, patting her on the arm and completely ignoring me. He had a Scottish accent as well, though not as distinctive as his sister. A glass of a similar reddish liquid appeared in his hand and he took a sip. Sighing, the twin brother lifted his glass and toasted Rian.

Cerys glimpsed at me. "You're rather pretty. But don't be fooled," she said. "All my brother wants is to get laid with you. That's all he's after."

Rian rolled his eyes. "You're insulting me, sister. I would never stick my cock into her."

The first thing I felt was a sudden and uncontrollable urge to kill that bastard. I would have gladly emptied his glass onto him and then bumped his empty head hard against the table. But all I could do was use my words. "Well," I hissed and flashed Rian a cocky smile, "providing there is a cock to stick into me."

The room went silent.

Come on, mate.

Pronunciation guide

Cerys = [ke - ris] - just like "care + is" (meaning: love)

Ciaran = [keer - uhn] (meaning: little dark one)

Eirwen = [air - wyn] (meaning: white snow)