Crown of Beauty and Vengeance

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

"You know, you still being unconscious really puts a dent in my days," Lyv said to Jai, unmoving and on the same cot he'd been on for the last two weeks. "Posy, try poking him again."

The pixie, who sat on the crown prince's chest, hopped up, poked at his cheek and then pulled his lips apart to peer inside his mouth. She jumped onto his forehead next and leaned forward, pulling his eyelid up so that sapphire blue showed for a fraction of a second before it snapped closed. With a defeated sigh, the pixie landed on his chest once more, turned to Lyv, and shook her head.

"Good try, though," Lyv told her. "We'll stick something in his ear later to see if we get any reaction."

"Did I really just hear what I think I did," a grinning Destan asked from the doorway of the infirmary.

Lyv smiled sweetly at him. "Never. And at least you didn't walk in when I was performing acupuncture with my knife on him earlier."

The prince raised a brow.

"I'm kidding. Geez."

Destan had come with a fresh pair of clothes to change Jai into after giving him a cloth bath. Lyv didn't want to do this for not so obvious reasons. She was playing the innocent Audry who's flirtation with Prince Destan was starting to lead to something more. She shouldn't have been looking at Prince Jai and all his naked glory, even though she was a healer.

Besides, when Destan did this for her, it gave her enough time to clean herself up, which is what she did then.

"I'll be back in half an hour," she told him, giving Destan's hand a grateful squeeze before she was off to her rooms.

Gideon was already gone for the day. He'd promised to take Eamon riding and to train while their horses rested.

I took her only slightly longer than she thought to get cleaned up, mostly because the hot water in the shower felt so good on her aching back. The day before had been her off day, but she spent it with Thia, Erly, and Roshan in the fields behind the Branvon estate.

Because her baby dragon wasn't such a baby anymore. He was even bigger, just over half the size of Erly. And now could fly on his own.

Lyv imagined seeing him accomplish flying for the first time similar that that of seeing your own child walking. She was so excited when Roshan lifted into the air after Erly that she couldn't help cheering with tears in her eyes. He was a magnificent sight, red and black against the blue sky. He'd yet to gain his ability to breathe fire, which Thia said would be around the time he completely matured, but his triumphant roar as he lifted higher into the air was accompanied by a puff of smoke.

Now, Roshan more than often visited the palace, landing in the only courtyard by the stables that was big enough. The staff had gotten used to it, though the horses...not so much. Lyv was surprised she hadn't gotten in trouble with it with the king and queen, but they had yet to say anything. She didn't need to be worried, though. Roshan had won them over when Lyv first introduced them.

King Emmeric was in the infirmary when she came back, sitting in a chair on the opposite side of Destan. He'd brought an enormous stack of letters to go through in the time he would spend watching over Jai, just as he, Queen Alexea, Destan, and Laurel did every day. It gave her time to go check on other patients throughout the city, to go buy more supplies, and to spend time with Roshan.

Jai's clothes were changed, his hair was still damp against the pillow, and his dark beard had grown out a little more than from the day before. That was the only thing showing the passage of time for the crown prince. Destan claimed to be no use with a straight razor, having his barber do it for him on himself...and both Lyv and Thia snorted out laughs.