Best Friend For Hire Reprise, Entry 181

I nearly dropped my fork halfway to my mouth when I noticed a light out of my sister’s eyes. Hovering over James’ plate with a slice of his bacon bigger than her held aloft by tiny little hands was an actual, luminescent fairy. I quickly looked to verify with my own eyes as well.

“Man-slave! A fairy! A fairy is eating your bacon!” exclaimed Emma.

Luckily, the little creature ignored her.

“Is that some sort of magic?” asked Brandon.

“She’s so cute!” exclaimed Brenna right over him.

“I thought all of the fey were dead. She is one, isn’t she?” questioned Jarod at the same time.

Possibly to himself over the fuss, Marco said, “I’ll have to figure out what she likes to eat and order doll-sized dishes.”

:This is really happening.: stated my sister and I at once, still disbelieving what we were seeing.

:I’ll text Lady Pendreigh.: agreed Mai, understanding my thoughts on the matter.

If this really was what we thought it was, we were all in danger.

James raised his hands for silence, staring all of us down until the loudest noise was the fairy fighting with the bacon. I was impressed by how much she was eating and how quickly she was eating it.

“She lives in the woods on my estate and followed me home.” he announced.

“You are a man of many surprises, James.” replied nii-san in his thick Japanese accent.

If not for Lady Pendreigh, we would worry what he would tell mother about this discovery, but mother wouldn’t dare encroach as long as Lady Pendreigh was here.

As the little fairy wrestled a sausage, James smiled and said, “I don’t think you’ll have to try too hard to find something she’ll eat, Marco.”

Smiling and nodding, Marco seemed to agree.

“After my leg heals a bit more, would you allow me to stroll through your woods and see if there are any more like her, James?” inquired nii-san. “This is quite the discovery.”

James looked hesitant as he said, “Give me a few days to think on it. Oh. Wait. Weren’t you leaving after the auction?”

“Due to my injury, and now this discovery, I feel a need to extend my trip, as long as you don’t mind me taking advantage of your hospitality a while longer.” he replied.

“Oh. Of course. Stay as long as you like.” insisted James.

“James, don’t move.” ordered Lady Pendreigh the instant she arrived. She was staring intently at the fairy.

:Seems we were right…: mumbled Mai.

I was just as distracted as she was, having watched as the fairy glanced at Lady Pendreigh before diving into James’ shirt, still holding what remained of the sausage.

“She really does find you scary, doesn’t she.” commented James as he smirked at Lady Pendreigh.

He might as well have struck her with the brief moment of distress that showed on her face.

Then her emotions washed away, and she said, “Funny, considering she’s one of the most dangerous creatures my family ever encountered. She could kill most of you before I could react.”

Before she was finished speaking, my jaw dropped. Images were flooding through our minds. In them, we saw Lady Pendreigh wreathed in fire and pointing at James’ food. As the little fairy hid, Lady Pendreigh swept up the last piece of bacon, devouring it as she smiled down at the little creature. We continued watching as the image went through other possible ways that Lady Pendreigh might take the food away.

:That’s amazing!: exclaimed Mai.

:I know… Why didn’t we think to take James’ bacon in such a manner!: I teased, despite being equally awed at the fairy’s telepathic abilities.

“Apparently, she believes you’re here to steal her food.” explained Emma.

Nii-san and Lady pendreigh looked confused, so we told them “She has telepathy!”

The fairy’s thoughts suddenly changed, picturing James angrily waving his finger at Lady Pendreigh. Outside of her thoughts, she flew out of the pocket and up to Lady Pendreigh in a most defiant manner. Then she dove back down at James’ plate.

“Charming, but she’s dangerous, James. We need to find a place where she’ll be safe away from people.” stated Lady Pendreigh.

“She has a place. She lives in my forest.” insisted James, staring her down.

“But she… the forest. How many are there?” she asked, closing her eyes. “I always wondered why there wasn’t so much as a bird there. Who did this? How?” She was quiet for a moment, casting numerous spells, when suddenly she winced before sitting down. She rubbed her temple as she said, “I can’t advise anyone to study the enchantment around the forest. There are defenses I’ve never seen before.”

Mai and I glanced at one another. The forest was off limits, so we avoided it. We never considered what might be in it. The idea that there was an enchantment there beyond Lady Pendreigh was frightening. Who could have made such a thing?

The fairy suddenly darted off into the hall with another of the sausages, and we wondered what startled it. A moment later, we saw the fairy fluttering around Aaliyah as she entered the room.

“Marco, could I get another plate?” asked James.

“Me too!” exclaimed the diminutive girl, wearing her secretary glasses and munching on the stolen sausage. She finished chewing and then asked, “What?” Pointing the sausage at the fairy, she said, “She offered.”

The little fairy ignored the sausage pointed at her, already eating other things.

“Busy day today, everyone!” announced Aaliyah, crawling onto James’ lap. “Boss-man, sir, you’re going to be late for training if you don’t hurry. Alpy? What’s wrong?”

“Hmm? Nothing. James, will you let Ai and Mai handle training everyone today and take me into the woods?” inquired Lady Pendreigh.

We sighed, having intended to spend the morning with Jarod and nii-san.

“Why? What do you want to do?” asked James.

“I suppose we can make time, but as your tenant agreement states, you’ll have to sign a visitation form to enter the forest and be escorted by the boss-man.” muttered Aaliyah as she looked at James’ phone.

“Emma, will you join us as well?” offered Lady Pendreigh.

“Of course!” exclaimed Emma, grinning at her.

We could guess that Lady Pendreigh wanted Emma’s company because of the exceptionally strong fey blood running through her veins, but we still felt put out by being given work and left behind.

“I’m sure most of you want to see them after meeting this little one.” stated James as he motioned to the fairy. “I’ll see how we can manage after gauging how the fey react with these two.”

Jarod was obviously feeling disappointed as well, but at least he might join us. He obviously had much he could teach in the martial arts lessons.

Everyone finished their food quietly while watching Lady Pendreigh creating balls of light and sending them toward the fairy. Residual energy poured off the little creature as she caught the lights and sent them back. The entire time, images danced in our heads, showing us different ways to maneuver the light. There was a questioning tone to it.

“What’s her name?” asked Emma.

James paused with his fork halfway to his mouth as he said, “Apparently, they don’t use names.”

“You’ve gotta name her.” insisted Brenna. “We can’t just call her ‘fairy’ all the time.”

Smirking, Brandon said, “Unless that’s her name.”

Brenna hit him, but he kept grinning. We agreed with Brenna that a name was appropriate.

“We could name her ‘Lucia’.” suggested Mai.

Nodding, I said, “Or perhaps ‘Lucita’, since she’s so small.”

“I like ‘Glimmerwing’, because she glimmers and has wings.” offered Emma.

“Could just call her ‘Laser’, since that’s how she’ll kill you.” stated Lady Pendreigh, though she was still smiling at the fairy.

“That’s horrible! You can’t name a girl that.” protested Brenna.

Looking intrigued, Jarod asked “Can she really create lasers?”

“According to what I’ve read, which is admittedly one account, these little ones created ‘beams of divine light which burned through scores of men’. The author is credible though.” replied Lady Pendreigh.

Jarod was grinning instantly, probably considering wacky ways to make use of such magic.

:Wacky, but brilliant.: admitted Mai.

We could never argue against his brilliance. He really was remarkable.

“You can’t tame them or reason with them. There’s no trusting fey. They feel, and they react. If you’re going to give her a name and admire her like a pet, you should realize that she’ll probably outwit you and destroy you in a moment of anger. Though I feel my family went too far when they attempted genocide against these creatures, I’m not going to tell you I approve of keeping them in the house either.” explained Lady Pendreigh.

Despite her warning, the rest of us continued debating on what the best name would be, at least until the plates were taken away. Then we demanded everyone, at least those who were coming, to get to practice. If we were ordered to act as instructors, we wouldn’t let Lady Pendreigh down.

Best Friend For Hire Reprise, Entry 94

Marco certainly knew how to load a tray. By the time I reached the labyrinth, I was feeling a bit tired, but I adjusted my grip and pressed forward. There wasn’t that much farther to go. I could hear James and the girls at play long before I could see them again. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were all vying for his attention yet again. Girls never seemed to be able to help that around James. Unfortunately for them, James wouldn’t give in very easily. Regina was gorgeous, and he barely started giving her any of the attention she wanted after years together. On the other hand, I was really looking forward to seeing Ai and Mai again, and not just because they thought frilly lingerie was suitable for bathing. They were fun, and I was free. I still felt a bit guilty about Laura, but things couldn’t have worked out. I frowned, wondering why I needed to reassure myself that I did the right thing. As sweet as she was, Laura didn’t really get me.

I set the tray down, spread out the blanket I had over my shoulder, and repositioned the tray onto it. Seeing that James hadn’t noticed me yet, I snuck up on him and gave his arm a light slug. “Heya, boss. So how much of this is your work?” I asked, nodding toward the numerous floating bubbles of water the girls were swimming through.

“Just the one in which Aaliyah’s playing over there.” replied James as he pointed.

“I’m surprised that you’re not busy ‘hugging’ the girls some more.” I teased.

James looked disturbed for a moment, probably remembering how it had felt. Despite being a chick magnet, he really was a bit awkward with girls. I felt his parents might’ve gone a bit overboard instilling propriety into him.

“WEEEEE!!!” yelled Aaliyah as the bubble she was in collapsed, sending her falling into the pond below.

I smirked. James really was distracted. Noticing how the twins looked bending over the tray of food, I was a bit distracted as well. “Just look at those back bumpers.” I told James, not wanting him to miss such an amazing view.

“You know that referring to things as car parts doesn’t really disguise what you’re saying, right?” he asked, already knowing the answer.

Grinning, I said, “If they didn’t want you to look, they wouldn’t be dressed like that.” I had spent enough time around the twins to be sure of that now.

James sighed and told me “Well, I doubt Laura would appreciate you looking.”

Oh yeah. James didn’t know. “I’ve been meaning to tell you, but I broke up with Laura a couple weeks ago. She kept asking questions that I couldn’t answer, and I realized things couldn’t work. I know the timing wasn’t great at all, but what could I do? I don’t want her in danger.” I told him, practically whispering as the guilt came back.

James looked stricken as he said, “Jarod, I’m sorry. I um…”

Emma wolf-whistled as she walked toward the twins, interrupting what James was saying. “That food’s looking good!” she exclaimed, giving James and me a wink.

Emma really knew how to appreciate a nice body, but I didn’t know whether to be thankful or not for her timing. James and I hadn’t really found time to talk much lately.

“Hey, could you get me too?” asked Brenna as she gazed longingly at James.

Her assets were distracting as well, and James, like normal, didn’t even seem to be taking in the view.

“Sure.” replied James.

I watched in appreciation as the water slid off Brenna’s body. I even spent some time admiring the magic too. James really was learning some amazing stuff. I told him “I don’t know how you do it, man. You smile and girls melt all over you.”

“I um.. I don’t think it’s quite like that. I don’t know how you made it through the labyrinth. Regina, Emma, and I got lost my first time over here.” he claimed, attempting to change the subject.

I let him, glancing at the incredible statue of Regina. We really didn’t need to talk seriously about girls right now. James was finally back to the land of the living, and I didn’t want to see him getting depressed again.

I forced a smile and said, “When I saw where you were, I just asked Mila for the path. She showed me on the screen. I recognized the pattern when I started memorizing the turns. Ignoring the missing zero, it’s the Fibonacci sequence. First turn, first turn, second turn, third turn, fifth turn, etcetera. Follow that, and you find that all of the correct paths only have one possible turn.”

“I really need to take advantage of Mila’s database more. I mainly just use her for driving and finding people in the house.” confessed James.

I nodded and said, “Yeah. The tutorials truly are sweet, despite looking like someone drew them with crayon.”

“What’s wrong with crayon?” asked Aaliyah, having snuck up behind me.

Kneeling down to her eye level, I told her “Nothing, kiddo. I normally relate crayon to poorly colored pictures is all. The things you do look amaaazing. Did you see the food I brought over there?”

She nodded enthusiastically and smiled enormously. Then she gave me a big hug, soaking my shirt. “Thank you, Jarod! You even brought a blanket!” she exclaimed.

“Well, someone did say she wanted a picnic. You might want to dry off before sitting on it though.” I replied, giving James a look.

Lucky for me, he was actually paying enough attention to catch my meaning. The water flowed off Aaliyah and me, speeding back to the pond.

James walked with Aaliyah over to the food, so I followed, smirking as I watched him take in Marco’s work. Despite being wealthy, James’ parents didn’t usually bring out any of their more elaborate dishes. The stuff here was all top notch by my standards. The serving tray looked like silver. The pitcher, plates, and glasses had to be silver. Even the silverware.

I heard Marco exclaim something angrily in the distance, probably in Italian. Aaliyah immediately dashed into the labyrinth.

“Marco!” she called.

“Polo!” he replied with a chuckle.

I was smiling again as their game continued. Aaliyah made everything more fun, and she didn’t take any time to get Marco to us. Where I would probably get lost if I took too many wrong turns, I was betting Aaliyah had the entire labyrinth memorized. The tiny girl’s mind was incredible.

As Marco approached us, he said, “Scusi! I should have followed Jarod immediately. He wasn’t joking about you being in un labrinto. That thing is completely confusing. Thank you, little miss, for your rescue.”

“Sorry for troubling you. Had I thought things through, I wouldn’t have made you or Jarod carry so much this far.” explained James.

Marco brushed off his apology and said, “Is nothing. I hope you enjoy!” Then he gazed up at the floating water and commented “You truly do take swimming to a whole new level.”

“Care to join us?” asked James.

Smiling, Marco said, “Thank you, but not today. Is there anything else I can get anyone?”

Once everyone assured him we were fine, Marco excused himself and left back into the labyrinth. Aaliyah looked torn between her already half-eaten sandwich and the sounds of Marco getting lost again, but she darted out after him not even a minute after he left. She wasn’t gone too long.

The moment Aaliyah finished eating, the twins started asking her questions about crafting in Ancient Tribes of Earth, which led to Aaliyah sighing loudly and agreeing to go back inside.

“But one of you has to stay out here to keep the water floating for Jarod and Emma.” she insisted.

“James knows how now. Whey can’t he do it?” asked the twin on the left.

Aaliyah rolled her eyes and said, “The boss-man promised to help Brenna with magic. You should be glad I didn’t mean longer after lunch, since I didn’t give you a precise time. You wouldn’t really want to deprive Jarod of the bubbles, would you?”

Ai and Mai glanced at one another as they often did. I smiled when I caught their eyes just afterward. With how perfectly synchronized their shrug was, I found myself wondering again at how they pulled such things off.

Grabbing one of their hands, Aaliyah led the way into the labyrinth. Emma looped her arm around mine and the other twin’s, pulling us up with her when she stood. When we reached the pond, I stumbled backward as a plant shot up under Emma, lifting her high into the air. She did an amazing dive off it into the highest bubble.

“Show off.” mumbled the girl next to me.

“As if you can talk!” I laughed.

She smiled and said, “Race you to the top!” Then she started climbing the enormous plant, and I chased after her, despite knowing I could never keep up if she went all out. To my surprise, she didn’t. She barely beat me to the top and then pulled me up. We jumped off hand-in-hand, forcing Emma to dive to a different bubble.

Getting to swim with these two was amazing. After a while, James and Brenna joined us, splashing around and competing to do the most outlandish dives. Emma and Mai ― according to James ― were easily the best divers. When Brenna and James went back to doing magic, Emma offered to help them out, giving me a wink as she left. That girl really was amazing.

I surprised Mai, pulling her off the giant plant and playfully tossing her back into the pond, so I could get a head start climbing to the top again. A wave of water nearly knocked me off, but I managed to keep my grip. When Mai started to give chase, I knew she could easily catch me, but she actually let me win. I got to pull her up this time. At her insistence, I dove first, finding the bubble dropping away from me right after I jumped. I was still catching my breath when she dove in next to me.

“Aww… I was hoping you’d need CPR.” she teased.

“If you want to play doctor, you just have to let me when to show up.” I told her with a wink.

She laughed and said, “I’m sorry, but I’m not a medical doctor. I just wanted to see if my father’s company’s new taser could work as a defibrillator.”

“Your idea of CPR sounds completely shocking.” I claimed.

“You have no idea.” she said, puckering her lips as if kissing the air.

I moved a little closer to her and a wave suddenly splashed me from the side.

“Oh no. Ai must be getting jealous. I can’t believe she splashed you.” claimed Mai, feigning innocence. “Don’t I have a wonderful sister, protecting me no matter the distance?”

I flicked some water at her and said, “You sure do, but she must’ve missed how you suggested using a weapon on me. I’m sure Ai would never wish me harm.”

“Are you saying you like Ai better?” she inquired, looking surprisingly serious.

“No. I’m just saying Ai likes me better.” I teased. Not giving her a chance to reply, I dove down through the bubble, intending to jump out at another one. Unfortunately, I found myself hanging by my feet when the water suddenly sucked me backward.

Mai dove down below me. Then she smiled up at me and said, “Too bad Ai’s not here to save you.”

“I don’t mind hanging out, not when there’s such a wonderful view.” I claimed, already feeling my blood rushing to my head.

“Naughty.” she stated as she covered her chest with her arms.

The smile on her lips kept me from believing she was remotely embarrassed, even though her cheeks were slightly flushed. “Me? I’m just hanging out like I said. You’re the one who captured me and gave me something to look at.” I replied, giving her a thumbs up and a wink.

“Poor Ai can’t know how completely incorrigible you are. What will she do when I tell her?” asked Mai.

“No idea, but I might interest her in reacting a scene from Spider-Man if I’m like this.” I suggested, puckering my lips and pretending to hold someone.

I fell and was relieved to see the bubble Mai was in moving under me. The teasing continued. I somehow didn’t lose Mai’s interest even after James, Brenna, and Emma joined us again. I was so fortunate to have James for a best friend, or I never would have ended up here.

Best Friend For Hire Reprise, Entry 82

I smiled and hugged my pillow as I thought of my prince and the wonderful dreams I had. We had played together for far longer around the pond. My prince was a bit sulky for some reason at first. He chatted with me for a while, almost seeming to miss me, but I assured him I was there and cheered him up. Someone made huge spheres out of the pond’s water and made them float over it. We actually managed to jump between as we goofed off. There was so much laughter and fun. My prince’s smile was amazing to see. In my dreams, I managed not to get jealous when the other girls were flirting with my prince.

The more I thought about that notion, the more something about the dreams seemed really off. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what was bothering me though. I didn’t doubt James’ love for me even slightly, but…

“Regina! Are you awake!?” exclaimed Emma.

Mila hadn’t even asked if I wanted the call put through. She did that from time to time now. Oh well. This wasn’t the first time Emma had caught me hugging my pillow like this.

“Maybe. Should I be?” I asked, teasingly.

“Of course! Who would turn me down for breakfast!?” claimed Emma with a grin. “I’m planning on going to ask James next. He might turn me down if I called, but you know he won’t if I knock on his door!”

I rolled my eyes and said, “Obviously. Give me five minutes, and I’ll be ready.”

“Need any help?” she asked suggestively.

“Bye, Emma!” I told her.

Emma feigned shock just before Mila ended the call for me. That girl was far too flirty for her own good. With all of her talent and beauty, I would worry about her stealing James from me, but my prince tended to ignore flirting entirely. She was inadvertently weakening her position with him, but I feared warning her would depress her. Emma was somewhat fragile in her own way. I…

I sighed. I never had considered helping competition before. I really cared about Emma though, and she was so lonely. Behind the smiles, laughs, and endless flirting, there was a girl who never managed to fit anywhere before. Emma hung out with a few people from her high school, but they weren’t close really. I could tell when I had asked her about them. I could easily imagine the girls feeling uncomfortable with the blatant flirting and the guys being a bit intimidated by the energetic, talented girl. Emma had told me about dealing with a few guys that got a bit handsy with her. There had to have been rumors about the events.

I quickly changed clothes after telling myself that I would have plenty of time to help her later. Soon we would see my prince! I was almost done with my eyeliner when Emma knocked. Mila let her in for me, and she teased me as I finished up.

Then we were off to see my prince in his royal bedchambers. This place was large enough to be a palace and suited James far better than his parents’ home. He had never had any complaints about where he lived, realizing that his home was quite nice. I could tell on my first visit that he was too grand for the house though. He was the genie containing endless possibilities and forced to live in a plain, glass bottle.

“I feel like I’m losing to daydreams yet again.” complained Emma.

“I have no idea what you could mean.” I lied.

Emma stuck her tongue at me briefly before saying, “Liar! I wonder how I should punish you for being mean to me.”

“I’m not being mean, but I suppose I could join you for breakfast and promise that you won’t have to pay for a thing.” I suggested.

“Ha ha. Sooo funny.” replied Emma, sarcastically. She was smiling even as she said the words.

“I wonder what Marco is making. I swear he’s the most talented chef I’ve ever seen.” I admitted.

Emma shrugged and took on a snobbish air as she said, “Well, I dunno. With my extensive travels, I must say that I’ve tasted the best of the world, so comparing such cuisine with that of this humble abode hardly seems fair. Don’t you agree, Miss Regina? Quite right, aren’t I?”

I laughed and told her “You really shouldn’t ever do that again! That was horrible! What have you been watching to…” Noticing James in his doorway, I was taken aback. He looked dead on his feet. “Did you sleep at all, James?”

He shrugged and claimed “I slept enough.”

Emma was obviously just as shocked as she told him “Regina and I were heading for an early breakfast, man-slave. Are you sure you don’t want to try sleeping a bit more instead of joining us? We’ll tell the others that you needed some more shut-eye.”

He wrapped his arms around us both and started walking with us toward the stairs. Then he started laughing with a slightly crazy edge to his voice. Noticing me watching him, he laughed even harder.

“I was just imagining how lopsided we look with Emma being half a foot shorter than you.” explained James.

I saw Emma pull away and playfully punch him, but I was too worried to help her. James seemed off today, and he needed to be alert.

“What? Was I supposed to give you a few inches for awesome hair?” he teased.

I saw Emma rolling her eyes as she smiled at him. Even exhausted, my prince was charming. He continued to be somewhat playful all the way to the kitchen, which only caused me to worry more. I’d need to look out for him today.

“Don’t you think this is a tad much?” complained one of the twins.

The other had her arms crossed as she said, “You could feed a dozen people with all of this.”

“How was I to know that you wouldn’t want your normal breakfast simply because you two were joining the others?” asked Marco.

With the huge amount of food, I would think he was joking, but he didn’t seem to notice us until a moment after he spoke. Jarod shot me a worried look and motioned his head toward James. I shrugged slightly, not knowing what to say. I was worried too. To make matters worse, James didn’t seem to want breakfast, even with the incredible feast before him.

Ai, Mai, and Marco didn’t appear remotely fazed by James’ state. They continued to banter for a while, and Marco told another one of his outlandish stories as the twins became more engrossed in their food. Supposedly, he made a soup out of a chicken he stole and managed to convince the chicken’s owner that a taste of the soup was worth the loss of the chicken. Then Marco split the soup with the man and departed with his supper for the night.

“I don’t know about this chef of yours, James. He steals food, improves upon it, and wants you to thank him for giving a little back.” stated one of the twins.

Marco smiled impishly and shrugged, looking completely pleased with himself.

“I think Aaliyah covered that in his contract, so I actually profit off his theft.” replied James, finally smiling with sincerity.

Then, with a dramatic sigh, Marco said, “I would have noticed before signing it, but that contract could sink a ship.”

I was grateful that James did actually eat some before all of the food was gone, and I was a bit impressed that the six of us managed to consume that much food with James hardly eating his share. My prince’s brief happiness seemed to evaporate as we walked out to the car. With a glance, anyone could tell that James was doubting himself. He didn’t want to be here right now.

Still, my prince took the driver seat after Emma and I were in the back. Jarod was in the front passenger’s seat, obviously worrying about James as well with how he looked at him. I was surprised to see the twins riding motorcycles, but they seemed perfectly comfortable on them, parking easily when we arrived.

Instead of fancy gear from spy movies, we were just using headsets and our phones for communication. I was glad to see these headsets didn’t have any fancy lighting effects, but I still felt a bit disappointed. With a little debate, Jarod convinced the twins that he should have Mila connect to their phones, claiming he could overlay everyone’s position on a map to help coordinate our efforts. I didn’t doubt him. Jarod was brilliant.

Waiting had all of us on edge. Ai and Mai had told us that Luke promptly entered the factory at eleven each day. Without knowing why Luke came here, I was wondering if today might be an exception to his supposed routine.

Emma sudden reached around James and grabbed Jarod’s glasses off him. “I’m taking these, man-slave. Your expressions are too priceless to miss.” she claimed. “Whoa. I can see everything with these on! Don’t I look way cuter in them than James, Regina?”

I laughed, the tightness in my chest suddenly vanishing. I told her “Fine-fine.” Then, turning to James, I said, “Emma’s the cutest, but covering such a perfect face as yours can only detract from it.”

James blushed beautifully. Most probably would think he’d be fully accustomed to being complimented by now, but I knew James better. He ignored so many compliments that the few which really got through to him always caught him off-guard. I loved being the one who got through to him.

“He’s here, guys. It’s time.” stated one of the twins.

I wasn’t entirely sure how to feel, but I didn’t have time to think about it right now. My prince needed me at his side. The tiredness hadn’t left his eyes, and I knew he wouldn’t be at his best. I needed to be at mine, whether he noticed me or not.