Chapter 2

TWO

Cassia

I'm lying at the sandy edge of a big, beautiful lake filled with crystal clear water. There are woods all around me, thick and tall, and the scent of pine leaves seems to surround me. Sliding one foot into the lake, I groan and roll back my head. It's so warm. The water and the sun are just the right temperature on my skin. It's a perfect day.

"I thought you were only supposed to make those kinds of sounds for me."

My eyes snap open, and I see Forrest standing over me. Silhouetted against the bright afternoon sun, it takes a minute for my eyes to adjust before I can take him in. He's wearing nothing but a pair of tight fitted pants, and my hungry gaze slides over him. The big Fall Fae certainly has an impressive form. Not just his muscled body, but the clear outline of an impressive cock.

Watching sweat drip down his chest is more than a little distracting, especially given the six-pack the liquid trickles down. And then there's that cock… it should be criminal to conceal something like that.

"You just can't help yourself, can you?" he asks, his voice low and husky.

My gaze shoots back up, and I realize he'd seen me checking him out. It's more than a little embarrassing. But then, how often do I hang out by a lake in a skimpy white dress? Never, that's the answer. Not a single time.

"Want to take a dip?" he asks with a grin.

I shake my head. "I'm good here."

Suddenly, he's scooping me up.

I shriek, and my arms go around his neck. "Prince Forrest, no! Prince Forrest!"

He's in the water up to his waist, and the water hits my ass. It's warm, but I scream again. "Put me back! Put me back!" We keep going deeper until it's at my chest. "I can't swim!" I say, the words tearing from my lips.

Every muscle in his body stiffens, and he stops. Those brilliant green eyes of his lock onto mine. "You can't swim ?"

I shake my head, and realize I'm trembling a little too. "No."

"How is that possible?"

My grip tightens around his neck. "Not all of us had time to learn to flop around in the water. Some of us had to work."

His expression softens. "I always forget how different we've grown up."

"Because he's an idiot."

My head snaps around, and I spot Prince Cobar on the shore. His blonde locks look extra luscious, and he's grinning, wearing what looks like a small towel around his waist. The Spring Fae rocks the look though, as confident as I've ever seen him, and that's saying something considering he's the cockiest bastard I've ever met.

"Sure, I'm the idiot, and yet you're wearing that," Prince Forrest says, followed by a snort, and then his focus is back on me. "Are you okay? Want me to bring you back to shore?"

Somehow the sight of Prince Cobar in a washcloth makes me wonder when "something" might pop out from under that tiny piece of material, and it's distracted me from the fact that I'm in a lake with a crazy fae prince and I can't swim. I instantly feel my muscles tensing back up, and I look around, trying to decide just how much danger I'm in.

"Are you going to drop me?"

"Only if you want me to," he says, in a very serious voice.

I eye him. "No, the girl who can't swim does not want to be dropped in a lake. I just want to make that clear."

His arms tighten around me. "Absolutely. I'll never put you down."

There's the sound of splashing, and then Prince Cobar is in the lake beside us, grinning like a fool. "But should he drop you, I'll be sure to catch you."

"I feel so much safer," I say, shaking my head. But the thing is, I kind of do.

A second later, something comes exploding from the water. Prince Zane emerges in all his glory. He's pale, his beautiful white hair running down his back, and his chest is bare. He wipes the water from his face and hair like some kind of dirty fantasy and then levels his pale gaze on me .

" Whoa ," slips from my lips.

"Old Frosty isn't that impressive," Prince Forrest mutters.

Prince Zane, his gaze never leaving mine, speaks, his voice soft. "Beautiful day, isn't it?"

For a minute, I'm tongue tied, glancing from him to the other two men around me. Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I manage, "Yeah, it's pretty okay."

"Come swim with me," he says.

"We covered the fact that she can't swim," Prince Forrest says, eyeing him competitively.

"I can make it feel like you're swimming," Prince Zane responds, then offers me his hand.

It's completely insane, but I reach out and place my hand in his. He pulls me from Prince Forrest's grip until his hands are at my waist. "Trust me, okay?"

The idea is foreign and strange to me. Trusting my father and grandmother makes sense. Trusting a fae, people who have shown me time and time again that they can't be trusted, hardly seems like a good idea. Especially knowing that their kind see us humans as little more than poorly paid labor. Still, I'm in his arms, in a lake, so I guess I better trust him.

I nod.

He smiles. That small smile of his somehow feels like the biggest smile on anyone else. And then, he's on his back, slipping through the water, and I'm lying on top of him. I gasp, clutching his shoulders, but I don't slip into the water. Instead, it feels like I'm swimming, sliding through the waves like a fish.

I laugh. His smile widens. Then he spreads his hands out and ice begins to form on the water on our sides. With one hand still firmly around him, I let the other hand stretch out and touch the ice before it disappears into the water. The mixture of warm and cold is strangely amazing. Hell, the longer we stay like this the more I can feel his cold body beneath me.

His very hard body beneath me, pressing solidly between my thighs. Mr. Ice is liking this little swimming adventure more than he seems to be willing to admit. And I like knowing I'm turning him on. It makes me feel strangely in control in a world where I have so little control.

I wiggle on him a little. The man gasps, and for a minute, I think we might sink. But then, he goes back to gliding through the water, his gaze fixed on me. No smile dons his lips, just an expression of interest that I like a little too much.

Then we stop. I gasp, my arms around his neck, but, apparently, he can stand at this place in the lake. I'm pressed against him, not sure if I should pull away, when our gazes meet and hold again. He glances down, leaning, drawing closer.

"So, you figured out a way to get her alone?" Prince Sulien is in the water. Where he came from, I have no idea. His long black hair is wet, and his auburn eyes are fixed on me with amusement. "You know, you shouldn't trust her. She'll break your heart."

I glare in his direction. "I will not."

He comes closer. "A woman like you will break a man's heart to pieces over and over again."

My nipples harden in response to the low timber of his voice. "Is that from experience?" It's meant to be a joke, but the way his eyes darken… I don't think he takes it that way.

"Remember when we were kids, I would find the rarest seeds for you, sprout the flowers for you, and give you the blossoms, and all you did was laugh. Once you even accepted a flower and went to show it to that Peter boy." He sounds angry. No, jealous. Of a stableboy.

" Peter ?" I ask, not sure if I even believe the whole thing.

He moves even closer. "Yes, Peter with the bright blue eyes. The one who always made you laugh. Who let you feed the horses."

I laugh. "You sound jealous."

He shrugs. "Maybe I was. But would it even matter? You had lessons with me because you had to. You laughed and played with him because you wanted to."

I scoff. "I laughed and played with you too, all the time!"

"But would you have done so if I wasn't the prince?"

"No!"

"Ha!"

I roll my eyes. "But only because you're a royal fae, and you wouldn't play with someone like me ."

"An easy out," he grumbles.

"I'm right!" I exclaim, laughing.

He shifts closer, and his hand digs into the back of my hair. "I could accept all that. I really could. If only you didn't keep breaking my heart." Before I can respond, his lips find mine, and it's the strangest thing to feel Prince Zane's erection pressed between my thighs, and Prince Sulien's hot mouth on mine.

Thoughts tumble in my mind. That I haven't broken his heart, that I've never broken his heart, but the heat between my thighs and the hot mouth on my lips steals my words .

"Lady Cassia." The words floats to me as if from far away.

I kiss Prince Sulien harder, and one of his hands reaches out to grasp my breast. In seconds, he's plucking my nipple through the thin fabric, and I'm wet and ready for him. Wondering what it would be like to be sandwiched between these two men in this lake.

"Lady Cassia." The voice is feminine. Harsh. And unwanted.

Rubbing against Prince Zane, I hear him gasp and drink in the sound. Letting one hand drop down, I reach to touch him, and find him naked.

"Lady Cassia!"

The image of the two men shatters, leaving darkness, and then a bright light. I reach for them again, but they're gone. Nothing more than a figment of my imagination that I can no longer hold onto.

"Get your sorry ass out of bed!"

Ugh. No. It's my dream , I tell myself and roll over, pulling the covers up over my head. The warmth of the bed lulls me back to sleep, and who am I to resist? Especially when I haven't yet slid my hand along Prince Zane's cock. Or encouraged Prince Cobar and Forrest to come join us.

"Have you heard about what's going on? Do you know anything?" The voice keeps talking.

I grumble. This sucks. Take me back to the dream with my four hot princes.

"Lady Cassia!" Loud. Shrill. Angry. The words jerks me awake in a way that's both uncomfortable and irritating.

I open my eyes and find Lady Nova standing over me, her bright green eyes peering into mine, but I just stare in disbelief. What the hell is she doing in my room, shouting at me? And who the hell told her she could ruin my perfect dream?

The fae from the House of War has her pale white hair loosely braided down her back, and a crown of green rests on her head, drawing attention to the slight point of her ears. She's dressed in greens and browns, pants and a shirt that look hardy rather than elegant like most fae clothes. Her sword rests at her side, as does a dagger, and for some reason, she seems dressed for war as she stands over my bed.

"Is this a dream?"

Her eyes narrow. "No."

"If it's a dream, you're about to watch four princes do some very dirty things to me."

Or watch my princes in a dark room being tortured by a shadowy woman with the power to mess with their minds and make the pain worse. But I don't tell her that, because as much as I'm embarrassed by the sexy dreams of my men, I'm terrified by my nightmares of them.

This time, her brow lifts. "I'm glad I won't be watching that. Now, pull yourself together and focus."

Focus? On what? I just barely got back from all the "fun" of being kidnapped and running for my life. I feel like the least I deserve to do is sleep in. But… maybe this is some weird war fae thing. If it is, I hate it.

"Lady Cassia!" she snaps, yanking me from my thoughts.

I groan "what?" before sitting up.

Her mouth curls into an almost-sneer. "Do you know what happened while you were getting your beauty rest the last few days? "

I stretch my arms above my head, yawning. My wrists still hurt from the damn iron cuffs, even though I let the healers do a little work on them. The wounds have scabbed over, but pain still radiates and throbs through them as I drop them back into my lap. I guess it was too much to ask that I escape from the pain through sleep for a little longer.

"Did the fae learn to fart glitter?"

Now, she's definitely sneering. "No, the world kept going, even though you were needed."

Something inside of me boils over. It's not that I'm not used to being woken up. It's not that I'm not used to functioning on little sleep after hard days. It's that I've hit my fucking limit.

"Did you know that I was just rescued from being kidnapped? Maybe I don't need to be woken up at the asscrack of dawn for whatever insane fae reason you have!"

Lady Nova puts her hands on her hips and cocks her head, staring at me thoughtfully like she's trying to find the right words. I want to tell her there are no right words when shouting at a person until they wake up. I want to tell her that if I wasn't so sure she could beat my ass within an inch of my life, I'd be chasing her out of my room even now.

"Where are the princes?" She crosses her arms over her chest and continues her stare down.

I roll my neck from side to side, trying to think. My neck hasn't felt right in days, but that's not the focus here. When had I seen the princes last?

Memories come slowly back to me of when I last saw them, shortly after we'd almost had sex. It was not long after I refused to marry them, a memory that feels like a knife twisting in my chest to remember. I rub my chest, wishing I could rub away the feeling, but stop when I see Lady Nova watching me.

"They left on horseback a few days ago, didn't they? I think that's what I saw before I went to bed."

Although ‘going to bed' doesn't seem like the right words for the vivid dream-filled days and nights I'd endured after the fae healers came to my room that night, stood over my bed, and started chanting. Basically, after the healers had done their thing, I'd pretty much slept for three days straight, getting up to use the bathroom and drink occasionally before crashing once more.

Oh, and then there were the visits from my dad and grandmother that felt like a blur. The healers called what I did a "healing sleep," which I guess is pretty self-explanatory. Even if it was also weird. And still is. This is the first time I've been awake where I feel like myself again. Where I'm aware of things around me, even if I still feel a bit slow.

"You saw them riding away and that's it? That's what you're telling me?" she asks, shaking me from my thoughts.

I stare at Lady Nova, wondering why she's bothering me about four fae princes who can defend themselves against just about anyone or anything when having a little early morning ride. Is it supposed to be my job to babysit them now? No one had really gone over my duties, except that I was expected to enthusiastically get married and go to Pound Town as fast as possible.

Her expression is one of disappointment. "I keep asking myself if you're cut out for this or not." Then she turns away from me and stares out the window .

Okay , that's a lot of judgment this early in the morning.

"What? Not cut out for what?" I have no idea what the hell she's talking about.

"To be the queen of all the courts. If you can't even be bothered to wake up to receive information, how are you going to be able to help them rule?" She's frustrated, but, hell, so am I. Who knew snapping to attention to receive information was such an important quality for a queen?

"Fuck you! You don't know anything about me!" My voice rises in anger.

"I'm learning about you right now." Anger…no, disappointment is on her face.

She's really standing here judging me . How dare she! "And I'm learning about you! You, like all fae, sit on your high horse all day long looking down on everyone else like it's your favorite fucking hobby. Yet, I guess, my big crime is sleeping in order to heal!" I clench my jaw so hard my teeth hurt.

Lady Nova shifts on her feet. "Ok, let me be clearer. Do you know where the princes are right now ?"

Why is she asking me this? Why is this important? Yes, it's bothered me that the princes haven't visited me since our tough conversation, but I just figured they needed some space. I haven't heard anything to suggest they're in trouble in any way, so it seems likely they're just sulking.

Lady Nova appears to have a different idea though. They might be royal fae, but that doesn't make them as useless as children. My gods, they're adult men!

"Sorry, but I don't keep tabs on them." Then I give her a look. "But if keeping tabs on them is so important, might I suggest you do it yourself. "

That seems to surprise her. "Do you feel anything from them?"

" Feel anything ?"

Is this a mate thing? Does she think I should be feeling something with them far away because she doesn't know the truth? Maybe. I need to tread carefully here.

"Is there even a small part of you that feels off right now?" Her eyes are laser-focused on me. It makes me uncomfortable.

"Off, how?" I don't know what she's talking about.

I might feel a little bit off-kilter right now, but I've felt that way since being kidnapped. Wouldn't anyone feel strange in that kind of situation? She's acting like that's not normal when it's perfectly normal.

"Just off. Like something's missing. Or maybe your chest hurts."

Of course I feel that way, but my life is in ruins. "I feel all of the above. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Her expression doesn't change. "Yes and no. Now, do you know where they are?"

I shuffle through the day I saw them last as if something in it could explain where they are right now. That eventful day takes a while to get through, but the memory of their saddened faces appears in my mind. I told them I didn't want to marry them right now, and, apparently, broke all of their hearts. Did that have something to do with them leaving that morning?

I turn my attention back to Lady Nova, upset that the weight of those events weighs on my shoulders. "I don't know where they are. Sorry. But they're probably just taking some space, right?"

Lady Nova gives me another funny look I can't read. "Get cleaned up and eat. We need to talk. "

She doesn't say another word, just marches back out of the room. I glare after her and jump a little when the door closes, even though she doesn't close it hard.

I rub my face, desperately wanting to go back to sleep and continue recovering, but I'm up now, and I'm thinking about the princes. No, I'm worrying about the princes. I rub my chest where it hurts and climb out of bed, slipping on a white robe and slippers. Standing, I know what I need to get a better start on my day– a long, hot bath– but I don't have a chance to do much before there's a knock at my door.

"Come in!"

A second later, the door opens and in walks my grandmother… and dad. My heart drops. My dad makes his way inside with a limp and a cane, but he makes his way inside! I don't think before I race to him and hold him tight. I've seen him regularly since I got back, but every time I feel the same sense of gratitude and happiness at how well he's doing.

The best of the royal fae healers have been working on him, and they've been doing a good job. I have to personally thank them when I get a chance.

"Whoa!" he groans as I hug him tighter. "Easy there, Cassia, I don't need any broken ribs."

It takes everything in me to let him go, and then we're staring at each other. My dad looks good. Healthy and happy. His hair and beard have been trimmed up nicely, and the gray weaved in with the black gives a refined air to him. He's wearing fine clothes: a black silk shirt and white pants, both of which fit his thin frame well.

"You look so good. Are you good?" My words are such a mess, I'm not even sure if he can make them out.

But he grins. "I'm good, Cassia. Better than good. The healers are working on me every day, and I'm getting better."

"He might never be one hundred percent, but he's so much better," my grandmother says.

I pull away from the hug and turn to her. She's wearing a dress covered in blue flowers, her favorite color. It's silk too, probably because she might not be able to see the flowers, but she can feel the fabric. Her long gray hair has been expertly braided, and it falls over her shoulder.

She looks beautiful.

I hug her as she continues talking. "The healers have never worked with someone who has had such powerful magic–"

"Magic not help them for so long. You know, an injury that has been left without the help of magic for so many years," my father interrupts, and I sense him giving my grandmother a look she can feel even if she can't see. I know, because I can feel it too. "Most of the people they heal are wealthy fae who are worked on with magic right away when they have a problem, not years later. It's a different experience for them."

Pulling back from the hug, I glance between them, my curiosity rising. My grandmother has her lip curled and her nose wrinkled, like she's silently having an argument with my father, before the look fades away, and she's smiling once more. What was that all about?

But they both seem happy, so I just smile, figuring that I'm probably reading too much into it. "I can't believe we're really here. It's like a dream."

"Especially when you consider those sweet husbands of yours." They're not my husbands yet, but I don't correct her. "The whole time you were missing they swung between caring for us and searching for you. If I had any doubts about them before, they're gone."

"Really?" The princes never mentioned taking care of my family while I was gone.

"Oh, yes, Prince Sulien and Prince Frost were on your father's healers like flies on honey. They wanted updates on his care at all times, and put the fear of the gods into them. Prince Cobar and Prince Forrest came to visit us both often. They read to us. They whittled with your father. They even made sure to share as many meals with us as possible."

My father leans in. "Most fae are, well, as useless as shit on a horse's tail, but those four… I like them, Cassia."

It's weird how proud I feel, but also how surprised I am. Finding a man who would understand my loyalty for my family always seemed like an impossibility. But now, I have four men who care for my family without me even asking. And here I was worried that they were going to toss my family out when I was gone.

Damn it, they are good ones. I need to stop being such an ass.

"Dear," my grandmother says, and I give her my hand to squeeze. "We're headed to your father's healers again. Do you mind if we check back in later?"

"Not at all!"

They both hug me again, and my father says, "We're so glad you're okay. We were terrified the whole time you were gone. Your grandmother just kept saying that you were tough, and you'd be okay, but I hated being away from you. You know that you're the best thing that ever happened to me. I'd give anything for you. I'd give my life for you. "

I kiss his cheek. "I know, but you don't have to. I'm not going anywhere."

He gives me yet another hug, laughing in my ear. "You are truly your father's child."

We say our goodbyes, and I watch them leave, my heart feeling full. They're happy. They're doing better. And the four princes were good to them. I'm going to get ready and handle Lady Nova, and then I'm going to figure out my life.