WAIT FOR LOVE (Lovemark #4)

14. Olivander

14

Olivander

The women clearly knew where they were going. By the time I caught back up to them, they were only a block from the library and headed straight for it.

At least I think it was them. From my perspective, it looked like a man and woman up ahead, walking side by side. But then the woman—who had streaming, straight white hair—turned as if she’d heard me behind them and waved to me, beckoning me forward.

I blinked, shook my head, and then sighed. I don’t think I was ever going to get used to the effects of the glamour powder that Amara seemed so keen on using. I so rarely crossed paths with people who used the stuff. It made me suspicious why she seemed so fond of it, though.

Just what was she trying to hide?

Today, however, it was a good thing she had some on hand. The city was going crazy trying to find them now that the cry had gone out that a Graykey had been spotted loose on the streets. Who knew what fate would’ve become them if Amara hadn’t turned them incognito?

“Good disguises,” I congratulated with a nod as I slung my bow over my shoulder when I reached them, glad to find them both safe and unharmed. Then, with a roll of my hand, I motioned for the three of us to continue down the road together. We needed to get safely inside as soon as possible. “Which one of you is which?”

“Dori.” The man lifted his hand and waved as he spoke in Dori’s feminine voice.

I nodded, glad she had more coverage. Being a Graykey, she was by far the most vulnerable one here. Glancing toward the woman, I noticed she was nearly half a foot shorter than the blonde I had encountered last night.

I frowned, a bit disappointed. “Is this your true height, then?” I asked. I had kind of liked her being tall.

She shook her head, seemingly confused. “My true height?” And that cool, liquid voice of hers flowed over me anew, refreshing me in a way I don’t believe any voice had ever affected me before.

I nodded, studiously ignoring my reaction to her. “You’re considerably shorter now than you were last night.”

“Am I?” That seemed to surprise her. “How odd. I suppose my hair’s a different color too, isn’t it?” She plucked a colorless lock from her shoulder and brought it up to her face to see before she muttered, “White. Figures. I always thought a person had more control of the outcome whenever they applied a glamour, but maybe it’s just Nalini’s powder that works this way.”

“Nalini?” I repeated in alarm. Stopping in my tracks, I turned to gape at her.

Amara glanced up in surprise. “Oh, did I not mention last night that she was the mage who saved me from my k********g and transported me here to Elaina?”

“No.” I shook my head savagely. “You most certainly did not mention that. Christ above! She—”

“Stole Indy and his mate’s transference amulets when they left for Earth,” she finished for me. “And then she tasked you with the job of breaking the Graykey curse. And, oh, she’s actually Corandra Graykey in disguise. I know. I read it in your notes at the end of Indigo’s journal.”

I wasn’t sure how comfortable I was with the idea of her reading that journal. She knew way too much now. And I still wasn’t sure how much I could trust her with. There were too many questions about her.

“So…” I squinted, not sure how I could quite believe her claim. “Nalini sent you to me? Last night?” As she nodded, I shook my head. “Why?”

The white-headed woman shrugged. “Maybe she thought I would make you a great assistant in breaking the curse for her. And look…” She moved both hands Dori’s way as if to put her on display. “Did I or did I not do exactly what you hired me to do and kept your earthling safe today? You’re welcome.”

Dori bobbed her manly head in affirmation, causing the short, floppy mop of blond hair to bounce against her ears. “She really did save us. I thought we were going to die for a minute there, but she was so badass. She took those two guards down like it was nothing.”

“I saw,” I said dryly, returning my attention to the short woman.

She beamed at me engagingly. “See. I’m a great help.” Then her smile faltered and her brow puckered into a confused frown. “How were you able to find us out there on the streets, though?”

We’d just reached the library but had to wait for a woman driving a cart full of wooden crates to pass by first. After we crossed the road to the front entrance, I glanced both ways to make sure it seemed safe enough before I unlocked the door and answered. “You were gone so long, I began to worry. I went out looking, and it was only by happenstance that I was nearby when I heard the cry go out about a Graykey being spotted in the vicinity.”

“Oh. Hmm.” The white-headed woman eyed me strangely as she followed me inside. “And you went out looking for us with a bow and arrow?” Pausing, she let out a small gasp. “You didn’t believe I would return with her, did you? That weapon was for me.”

“I didn’t know what had happened,” I started sternly, though no, I hadn’t been entirely confident this stranger would return with Dori. And yes, I’d been prepared to fight her if the need for that had arisen.

“You don’t trust me.” Her voice was soft and full of pain.

I took a step closer to her. “How do you expect me to trust you when there are so many mysteries and questions and glamours surrounding you?”

Picking up a lock of her colorless hair between two fingers, I held it up to show it off to her, illustrating my point.

Her gaze strayed to the hair before she looked back at me. Then she nodded slowly. “I suppose I can understand such caution.” Her chin dipped in a respectful nod. “Very smart of you, my lord. But I assure you, I can be trusted. Completely.”

I wanted to trust her, I realized with a sudden clarity that caused my gut to clench with a strange longing. I wanted to know what she looked like under that glamour, and I wanted to know where she’d come from and what she was really doing here. And I wanted to believe every answer she gave me.

But mostly, I wanted to tell her—well—everything. I wanted to confide my entire life to this woman and keep all my hopes and dreams and fears safe inside her heart. Then I wanted to grip her hair between my hands, back her into the nearest wall, and tup her, right here in my library.

And I have no idea why I wanted all that. But it freaked me out enough to get me to drop the single lock of hair I was holding and take a cautious step back.

This might be the most dangerous woman I’d ever encountered.

“Where is this place, anyway?”

I jumped. And so did Amara.

Obviously, we’d forgotten Dori was with us.

“It’s my library,” I said, clearing my throat and then glancing around the great open space, trying to see it as a newcomer would.

The walls were a light stone and stretched high, three times as high as the highest shelf could reach. Dozens of shelves covered half the room while tables and study areas covered the other half.

“Is this not how libraries look on Earth?” I asked Dori curiously.

“No, strangely enough, this is almost exactly how old libraries look on Earth,” she said, wandering down one shelf and tracing her finger along the scrolls piled there. “Except we have more books. Fewer scrolls. Er, no scrolls, to be exact. Got rid of those about fifteen to seventeen hundred years ago.”

I nodded. “Indigo’s journal is the first true book I’ve ever actually seen.”

Amara had started down another aisle of shelves, slowly perusing the scrolls and stopping every few feet to read the titles. My gaze followed her as I continued to talk to Dori, who was on the opposite side of the room.

“But it’s much more efficient than a scroll,” I added. “So I’ll probably start making my own now that I’ve seen one.”

“That would be a great idea,” Amara called back, not even glancing my way. “Indigo’s is the only book I’ve ever seen, too. It was so much less of a hassle to read than a scroll.”

As she dropped her hand from the shelves and approached an enormous window in the sidewall that was filled with the clearest clear rock that could be imported from Donnelly, I held my breath, anxiously awaiting her reaction.

The window bulged out from the wall and had a shelf with cushions for a person to stretch out on, right there in the window, to read in the sunlight.

I’d had it built for Unity. When the library had been under construction, she’d requested a reading window just like this one. She’d written that she’d sit in it every day while I worked and studied my scholarly pursuits.

I had promised her that I would make sure she got that very window. And I’d kept my word.

Amara neared it slowly, reaching for the seat cushion first to test its softness. Then she carefully climbed into the nook and seated herself, pressing her back to the window casing and bending her knees up toward her chest before hugging her skirts and letting out a refreshed sigh.

“I love it,” she announced, sending me an adoring grin.

I should’ve been upset that she’d made herself at home in Unity’s window. I should’ve demanded she leave. But I just looked at her, my chest full with satisfaction because I was glad that she liked it.

She belonged there.

And that had to be the most traitorous thought I’d ever had.

I turned away, ashamed with myself, only to whirl back when Amara let out a yelp because something had begun to tap on the windowpane next to her.

Spotting a raven hovering outside, its wings flapping and a piece of parchment tucked between its beak, I marched forward, muttering, “What the hell?”

Amara scampered out of the window and hopped to the side so I could prop open the clear rock, letting the bird fly inside and scattering fall leaves in with it.

It promptly dropped the parchment on the window seat cushion in front of me and then darted further into the library.

I picked up the note, blinking in confusion and wondering why a raven would be carrying a message between its beak and not tied to its leg. And why the hell had it come here to the library? All my messages were received at the castle coop.

This was just bizarre.

Before I could read the note, however, Dori’s laughter across the room caused me to lift my face and glance over.

The raven was fluttering around the male version of the earthling, croaking out strange sounds, and Dori was eating up the attention, laughing and nodding as if she understood what it was going on about.

“Yes,” she told the bird. “You did very well, Marvin. I’m so proud of you. Here. Do you eat peanuts?” She picked up a peanut still in its shell that I had sitting in a basket on a table.

The raven croaked at her and plucked the peanut from her hand, then let her reach out and pet it.

Turning to look in amazement at Amara, who’d picked up a dead leaf and was studying the veins in its dried flesh, I asked, “Did she just call that bird Marvin?”

“Hmm?” She glanced up and smiled as she turned toward Dori as well. “Yeah. That must be his name.” Then she said to me, “We discovered what her Graykey magical gift was today, by the way. She can talk to birds.”

My mouth fell open as I returned my attention to Dori. I had not seen that coming.

“So was the note very important?” Amara asked, jarring me from my stare.

I glanced at her, still trying to process—Dori could communicate with birds—and I blinked. “What?”

“The message Marvin delivered,” she prompted, motioning toward the unrolled slip of parchment still in my hand before she tucked the leaf in her hair.

“Oh.” I opened the message and caught my breath.

Dear Ollie,

Royal guards bearing the king’s colors came for me last night in my bedchamber at the academy. But no worries. With the assistance of a friend, I have escaped and found a safe haven to reside at until which time you are able to come for me. Ergo, whatever dangers you have found yourself in to perpetuate an attack like this, please do not fret about my well-being, for I am perfectly fine. However, please take care. I have no wish for any harm to come to you.

With love always, Unity.

Damn. My father really was on high alert. He’d already sent men for her.

Cursing under my breath, I wadded the paper into my fist and pressed it against my mouth. That had been too close of a call.

Unity could’ve been captured by now.

Thank God to whoever had helped her.

But now I wanted to know more. Who had helped her? Where had he taken her? And why was this mysterious unknown person assisting my mate?

I guess it was enough to know that she was safe, however. Though I’d have to update Erick with this news. If the king suspected something from me to the point that he’d already sent for Unity, then we all needed to be very cautious right now.

“Is everything okay?”

“What?” I looked up. Amara was watching me closely, curious to know what I was reading. “Oh.” Clearing my throat, I nodded and tucked the note away in a pocket, protecting everything I did know about Unity. “It’s fine. You—”

I’m not even sure what I was going to say to her next. But all thought of words vacated my head when I noticed blood on the sleeve of her dress.

“You’re bleeding.” Grabbing her arm, I brought the wound closer for inspection.

“Am I?” Amara squinted as I shoved up her sleeve to expose a pale forearm where a shallow one-inch slice marred her skin. It was hardly fatal, but I sucked in a breath, anyway, not a fan of the worry that iced my skin at the sight of her blood.

“Huh. I guess I am,” she went on in surprise. “I must’ve gotten nicked when that one guard came at me with his sword.”

Hearing her even mention being threatened at blade point made my jaw harden.

“We should get this cleaned,” I announced, listening to myself as I spoke and knowing I was making a bigger deal out of something that wasn’t that dire of a situation. But I was unable to stop the concern that gnawed at my gut. “I have some healer’s rags in the water closet. Come.”

And not letting go of her forearm, I began to lead her from the main library toward a narrowed hallway that started at the other side of the room.

“Olivander, I’m fine,” she tried to say, laughing a little to downplay the situation.

Dori glanced up from her conversation with Marvin as we passed. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Amara told her, almost jogging to keep up with me. “I’ve got a little cut is all. But Olivander’s going to patch it up, and we’ll be right back.”

Dori’s eyebrows lifted in surprise before her lips curled into a sly smile as if she knew a secret. “Okay,” she called back. “I’ll make sure Marv here finds his way out again. You go take good care of her, Van.”

Amara shot her a warning glance before biting out, “I’m sure he will.”

Ignoring them both, I pulled Amara into the hall. She obediently followed, not speaking as we reached a door at the end. Inside, the water closet consisted of a chamber pot, table, and washbasin with a small shelf full of towels and cloths set against the wall. There was one window, but it was covered by a cloth so no one could see in, which made the room dimmer and more intimate than I was expecting.

Because it sure as hell hadn’t felt this intimate whenever I’d been in here before.

Clearing my throat and trying to ignore the fact that I was overwhelmingly aware of how alone I was with her, I motioned toward the chair at the table and instructed, “Go ahead and sit,” as I turned toward the table and hunted up some healer’s rags.

After finding one, I dipped it into the washbasin and turned back, only to pull up short, not expecting to find that she’d hopped onto the table and was sitting on that, not in the chair. Her feet that didn’t touch the ground were left swinging slowly, which made her suddenly look much younger than I’d initially assumed she was, especially with that leaf in her hair.

A burning ache bloomed in my throat. There was so much I didn’t know about her. Her age. Her real name. What she even looked like. And yet, there was something about her that felt like…

Like home.

“Let’s see what we have here.”

She held out her arm, and I was once again startled by how compliant she was suddenly being. She definitely hadn’t been so eager to follow instructions last night when she’d talked her way into staying in my room or this morning when she convinced me to let her take Dori out into the village alone.

I swallowed as I met her gaze and took her arm into my hand. She stared back into my eyes as I pressed the wet cloth to her wound, and then she sucked in a startled breath.

I immediately removed the cloth, worried. “Did that hurt?”

“No,” she said. “It was just cold.”

I huffed out an amused sound before whispering, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she whispered back, looking up into my eyes again. “It just startled me.”

When I pressed the cloth back to her cut, I did it much more gently, dabbing and just barely rubbing until all traces of dried blood were gone and a mere slit of red from the actual injury remained.

“There,” I murmured, running the cloth over her arm one last time before I relinquished my hold on her. “I think that’ll do.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Mm-hmm.” I looked up into her face, and my gaze roamed the features as curiosity ate at my gut. I wanted to know what she really looked like more than I wanted my next breath. When I realized I had a sopping wet cloth in my hand that would reveal her features in an instant, I glanced at the damp fibers before returning my attention to her face.

And as if she could sense just how tempted I was, she gathered her hair in her hands before tossing it all back behind her shoulders to move it further away from me.

I arched my eyebrows at that, and she arched hers right back, letting me know she was onto my thoughts.

“What is its true color?” I finally asked, hoping she’d simply tell me because I realized I didn’t want to force the truth from her; I wanted her to give it willingly.

Her smile turned mysterious, and it seduced a sweet yearning straight from my core as she murmured, “Maybe you’ll find out someday.”

Lust curled deep in my loins.

I could take this woman. With every molecule of my being, I knew I could push up her skirt, spread her knees, and step between her thighs right now, and she would welcome me there eagerly. Hell, from the way she was looking into my eyes, she was waiting for me to do just that.

Exhaling deeply through my nose, I took a step back and tossed the healer’s rag on the shelf among the other towels before I cleared my throat. “That white sure is a far cry from the blond it was last night and the black it was this morning.”

She grinned engagingly. “Isn’t it though?” Leaning closer, she lowered her voice confidentially quiet and admitted, “I’m kind of hoping for blue tomorrow.”

I chuckled.

And Amara sucked in a dazed breath. “There’s that dimple I love,” she announced with reverent awe as she reached out to touch it. “I hadn’t seen it since coming home.”

I caught her wrist, stopping her from touching me. Her gaze lifted to mine.

A sweet ache tore through my gut. Swallowing, I dropped her wrist and took a step back before clearing my throat and motioning awkwardly toward her.

“If you refuse to tell me what color your hair is, maybe you’ll at least reveal how tall you actually are.”

“Oh.” Seemingly surprised by the request, she hopped off the table and held a hand about five inches above her head. “Sure. I’m this tall.”

I frowned and reached out to where her hand was resting on what looked like pure air, but when I encountered hair in the nothingness, I jerked my fingers back.

Amara laughed. “It’s okay. My hair doesn’t bite.” And she took my hand, carefully leading it back to the top of her head.

After resting my palm gently on a warm crown of hair, I looked back into dark brown eyes, wishing I knew what color they were as well. “Am I even looking into your eyes right now?”

She shook her head no. “Feels like you’re looking more at my mouth. Kind of like you want to kiss me.”

I sucked in a breath because I did want to kiss her. Need roared through my system. I swayed toward her, and she swayed back, tipping up her chin as she did.

But just as I licked my lips, considering the possibility, I jumped nearly out of my skin when I heard Dori’s voice in the hallway. “Hey, Vander?”

Jerking my hand guiltily from the head of the woman in front of me, I spun toward the doorway just as Dori filled the entrance, holding a tomato plant between her hands.