The Ivory Knight

Chapter 14

Damien looked ready to splutter and whip out his sword then and there, but Adeleina shot him a warning look out of the corning of her eye. His frown deepened. Nevertheless, he stepped back as Alecsander gave him a cool, sweeping glance. Damien glowered back.

"Don't call me that," Adeleina said to Alecsander through gritted teeth, though her heart was skipping beats. A silly urge to giggle bubbled up inside her chest, and she suddenly wished she hadn't allowed Damien to come along.

"My lady," Alecsander mocked gently. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Er," Adeleina said. Shelooked apologetically at Damien. "Could we...?" she gestured towards an empty table helplessly, not quite willing to say the offending words out loud. At first, she'd entertained the idea of asking for a private room, but upon realizing what kind of scandalous assumptions Damien would make of that choice, the best she could do was find a secluded and distant table. Alone. 

Damien's jaw, if possible, tightened. His eyes were like razor-sharp chips of brittle ice, and they looked ready to cut Alecsander through in a very painful way. 

"He doesn't think it's safe," Alecsander drawled. "How heroic." 

Adeleina was glad she hadn't properly introduced the two. She was certain that they'd be at eachother's throats, had Alecsander known that the scowling man standing behind her was her betrothed. It wasn't hard to tell that tension coiled as tightly as a snake in the air. She gave Alecsander a scathing look.

"Stop it," she said, then turned to Damien. He still hadn't said a word, so she took his silence as an affrimative. "Stay here. Buy a drink or something."

She turned and gestured for Alecsander to accompany her to a table in the corner. Behind her, Damien made an indignant noise at the back of his throat. To his credit, however, he did not follow her.

"Who's that?" Alecsander asked her, giving Damien a pointed look. Adeleina tugged uncomfortably at the dusty skirt of her gown. She wished, for the hundredth time, that she'd thought to change before riding out. 

"Just-- someone. My father's friend's son. It doesn't matter." Adeleina dodged the question and pressed on with her own before her nerves overwhelmed her. "I need to ask you something."

Had Alecsander's eyes taken on a venomous expression, or was the light playing tricks on her eyes?

"Fire away." He smiled at her easily and leaned back in his chair, his entire figure relaxed and without a trace of tension. Whatever turmoil had affected him a heartbeat ago had either fled, or had never been there in the first place. Adeleina steeled herself.

"Why are you here?" she asked as she struggled to keep her face at a cool blank.  Inside, however, her heart hammered, and Adeleina swore that it was pounding fast enough to create sparks.

To her utter surprise, Alecsander laughed. 

"I thought we'd get around to that someday," he said lightly. "If you must know, I'm supposed to be merely passing through. My father sent me to Hemingway as ambassador." He grimaced nastily, emphasizing his distaste for the dreary job. "He thinks I need practice in foreign policies. I'm in no hurry to arrive, and Corandell is a rather pleasant place to stop." He paused and cast a suggestive glance at Adeleina. "Especially with a certain princess here, wouldn't you say?"

Adeleina scowled half-heartedly.

"And your father?" she asked suspiciously.

"What about him?"

Adeleina glared at him.

"Alecsander, who is your father?"

He hesitated, and in that moment, Adeleina could feel her breath quickening with each sharp inhale.