"It will only take a mont," Danag insisted.
Jael's vision blurred as he watched Louis's palm close around Mauve's hand. He turned to Danag. "It can wait," he said, trying to take Mauve back.
"Jael, please," she urged softly.
"Fine," he stated.
Mauve smiled brightly at him, looking proud. Her smile was bright enough to blind him. "Thank you," she said.
"I won't let her out of my sight," Louis said, pulling her through the doors, which shut almost imdiately. Jael didn't look away until Danag cleared his throat.
"What's so important it couldn't wait until after my al?"
"A letter," Damon said.
Jael frowned. "From?"
"Lord Levaton," Danag explained.
Jael's frown deepened. "No need to stall. From your expression, I can tell you already went through the letter. What did it say?" he asked.
Danag glanced at Damon, who kept his gaze straight ahead. Danag cleared his throat. "It's best if you read it yourself, Sire." He bent his head, offering the letter.
Jael snatched it and noticed the seal was already broken. This was expected; he allowed them to go through the letters before him, and he preferred it this way. He opened it, and the letter seed pretty short. As soon as his eyes scanned through the details, his countenance changed.
My liege,
I hope this letter finds you well. I heard you have gotten a mate. I will be at the castle to confirm the news myself.
Lord Levaton.
Jael crushed the letter before he realized what he was doing. He expected the news to have gotten out but not that fast to get a letter this soon. He expected to still have a few more nights, but now he doubted he even had one. Sohow, he could tell Lord Levaton would be at the castle by sundown tomorrow.
"When did this arrive?" he asked, placing the crushed ball in Danag's palm.
"Just now. Damon received it."
"It seems word leaves this castle's walls faster than an arrow loosed from a bow."
"I—" Danag paused and cleared his throat. "We have several guests staying in the castle. It's no surprise word has reached out."
"Don't say it like we should accept such behavior. Burn it. Since Lord Levaton will be on his way, prepare to receive him. Hopefully, I only have to deal with one lord this ti."
"Yes, Sire," they said simultaneously, and Jael turned his gaze to the guards. They didn't need him to speak to take the hint.
Jael couldn't help the look on his face as he strutted into the dining hall with Danag and Damon close behind him. He almost wished he had insisted on seeing the letter after his al. There was no way the food wouldn't taste off with the news he had just heard.
Mauve was smiling as she saw Jael walk in, but all she needed was to look at his face to know sothing was wrong. Her smile fell, and she watched him take the seat next to her.
"Are you okay?" she heard herself ask.
"Yeah," he said absentmindedly. "It's a minor situation."
Mauve wanted to say he didn't look like it was a minor situation, but she knew this wasn't the ti or place to discuss it, so she ate her al in silence and almost didn't say anything else until the end of the al. Not that conversations arose often; everyone could tell Jael was in a foul mood, so the air was pretty tense.
"I will lead you to your room," Jael said at the end of the second al.
Mauve wanted to say that wasn't where she was headed, but she simply smiled and stretched out her palm to him. He helped her off her feet and out of the dining hall.
"Are you sure it was a minor issue?" she asked as they went up the staircase, unable to bear the silence anymore.
Jael paused and looked at her. "It is minor. I am just a little irritated. I thought I had more ti, but I didn't. Don't worry about it," he said, poking her nose.
She yelped and grabbed her nose, surprised she didn't fall backward on the staircase. "I worry, Jael," she said as she went up with him. "I want to ask more questions, but I fear you won't tell ."
Jael paused as they stood in front of the stairs, then slowly turned around to look at her. "I will," he said, then took a deep breath. "There is a lot on my mind right now, but I promise I will explain it all to you."
Mauve bead at him. "Okay," she said. "Take as long as you need."
He gave her a sad smile and grabbed her wrist. "Rest as long as you need. Mill will keep an eye on you."
"Jael," she cried. "I have rested enough."
"Rest so more; there isn't any harm in that," he said.
She groaned but didn't argue. If doing what he wanted would ease his worry just a little, she would do as he asked. She knew the situation was stressful for everyone, and even more so for Jael. She couldn't feel any impact of the new situation in their lives because he was taking the brunt of it, and she was sure that was taking a toll on him.
"If that's what you want," she replied with a bright smile.
Jael turned to her and lightly touched her cheek, then brought his face down and kissed her square on the lips. Mauve blushed hard as she pulled away from him and nodded at him before walking through the open door of her room.
Mauve leaned on the closed door just as a voice said, "My lady, you're back."
Mauve almost jumped out of her skin. She hadn't expected anyone to be in the room. "Mill," she called. "You didn't leave."
"I didn't see any reason to," Mill said as she walked toward her. "I knew Sire would drop you back here, so I decided to wait."
"I see," Mauve said with her hand on her chest.
"Did sothing happen?" Mill asked with concern.
"No," Mauve shook her head and pushed herself off the door. "You just scared a little. I didn't expect you to be here."
"I'm so sorry."
"No, it's fine," Mauve replied as she walked toward the bed.
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