Curse the Dawn (55 page)

“I am afraid I am not following your reasoning,
dulceaƫă
,” Mircea said gently. “You want closer relationships, yet you push me away?”

“I’m not putting this very well,” I said, frustrated. “What I’m trying to say is that the
geis
we were under gave us feelings for each other. But they were feelings we might never have had otherwise. I need to find out if what I feel is based on something more permanent than a spell gone awry. I want to get to know you. I want you to get to know me.”

“You wish to be courted?”

“If that’s what you want to call it. Yeah, I guess.” He looked thoughtful. I took a breath and almost did it—almost asked about the mysterious brunette. But then I let it out again without saying anything. Screw it. I’d had an awful week; I deserved a break. Besides, if I was going to his court, I’d have plenty of time to ask around. And if he did have a mistress . . .

“Is there a reason you are looking at me like that,
dulceaƫă
?”

“Like what?”

“The last time I recall seeing something similar was on the battlefield—from an adversary.”

“I’m not your adversary, Mircea. I just want to know you better.”

“And you cannot get to know me as we’ve been?”

“Not and keep a clear head, no!”

He smiled at that, and then his gaze shifted to a spot over my shoulder and it faded. “These doubts wouldn’t have anything to do with the company you’re keeping of late, would they?”

I didn’t get a chance to answer before the shop door was thrown open and a furious war mage stomped in. Pritkin spotted me and his eyes narrowed.

“You shaved my legs?!”

Mircea looked at me and folded his arms across his chest. I looked from one unhappy face to the other and suddenly remembered that I had somewhere else to be. “You know, Jonas said something about lessons,” I said quickly. And shifted.