The Pillars Of The World

stared at her. Was that a coy way of asking for a necklace of amber or citrine? Or gold? “Sunshine.”
    She nodded. “I have to work in the garden today. Sunshine would be nice.” She frowned. “But not too hot.”
    He brushed his lips against her cheek. “Sun that warms but doesn’t burn.” When she nodded again, he said, “What else?”
    “More?” After a long pause, she said, “A dragon.”
    Lucian sighed quietly. A dragon ? Even if such a creature existed and he could capture one, what did she think she could do with it? “A dragon,” he said heavily.
    She giggled. “A cloud dragon chasing fluffy cloud sheep.”
    For the first time, he wondered how old she was. It had been obvious that she was young, but it was a woman’s body that he had enjoyed last night, not a girl’s. No matter. Since he hadn’t been the first, she was surely old enough.
    He kissed her cheek again. “I have to go now, but I’ll be back tonight.”
    “Tonight,” she mumbled.
    Moving quietly, he left the bedroom. The saddlebags were on one of the dining chairs, but he still didn’t know where she had put the rest of his clothes—or his boots. He shrugged. He didn’t need them right now, and he’d be back tonight.
    It was a man who opened the kitchen door and stepped out of the cottage. But it was a black horse that galloped toward the shining road that led to Tir Alainn.
    Che-cheep che-cheep che-cheep.
    The birds were celebrating the day with enthusiasm.
    Too much enthusiasm, Ari thought as she turtled under the covers to avoid the light streaming in from her bedroom window.
    Light?
    She poked her head back out and reluctantly opened her eyes. The drapes were drawn back and the shutters were open. Two sparrows and a finch stared at her from the other side of the glass.
    Che-cheep che-cheep che-cheep.
    Wake up, wake up, wake up and greet the day.
    “All right, all right. I’m up,” Ari grumbled, making no further effort to greet the day. It was past time to get up, but once she started the tasks of the day, last night would become last night, and she wanted to savor those feelings a little while longer and think about the delightful dream she’d had early this morning.
    Lucian had offered to give her a present, and she’d named a silly thing that only a Fae Lord could give.
    It was all nonsense of course, just a bit of fun her mind had conjured to amuse itself while her body still slept. Because if he really had offered her a gift in exchange for sex, that would no longer make last night a joining of two people for their mutual pleasure; that would be like being bought.
    Not liking where those thoughts were going, Ari rolled out of bed. After stuffing her feet into slippers, she shuffled into the main room. As she opened the drapes and shutters, the sparrows and finch followed her from window to window.
    Che-cheep che-cheep che-cheep.
    “Shouldn’t you be out catching worms or some other crawly thing?” Ari asked.
    Che-cheep.
    “Well, just stay away from my lettuce. There are plenty of other things for you to eat without eating my greens.”
    Che-cheep!
    Smiling, Ari shook her head, then turned to study the hearth. The fire had burned out. No matter. She could tell that the slight chill in the cottage was left over from last night and would be gone once she opened a few of the windows and the top half of the kitchen door.
    As she started toward the kitchen, she saw the saddlebags still sitting on the chair where she’d left them.
    She knew Lucian was gone. She would have felt his presence if he was still nearby. So why had he left the saddlebags? What had he packed his extra clothing in?
    Fully awake now, she hurried down the narrow hallway off the kitchen that led to the pantry and the washroom.
    She’d collected the wet clothes and hung them up when she’d gotten up to use the chamber pot. His clothes were hanging in the washroom exactly as she’d left them.
    A little troubled, she opened the room’s small window to freshen the air, then went back to the kitchen to heat water for her morning tea.
    The hand pump felt a bit stiff and sounded squeaky as she pumped the water to fill the kettle. Probably needed to be greased. She couldn’t remember the last time it had been done. Ari sighed. Just one more thing to struggle with and fill the day. Just one more thing her mother or grandmother had taken care of when there had been the three of them to share the work.
    But she couldn’t remember either of them