Maric sat in a dark cell. He did not know how long he had been imprisoned. Was it only days? Or months? Certainly, not years, he thought wryly to himself, his smile hidden by the shadows. But, even he could not trust his own hopes.

He sat on a small rotted bench, his arms and legs shackled to the wall in metal chains. A goblin stood guard outside his cell, leering at him whenever he was awake. Maric tried his best to leer back, but he knew his efforts were futile. This only caused the goblin to cackle out loud, the sound like nails driving into Maric’s head.

In another few weeks, Maric thought, he would be thin enough to just slip through the bars. The chains that hung heavily from his wrists were much looser now than before. If he didn’t die first, he could have a chance of escape.

The sharp clicking of shoes resounding off the stone floor made its way down to Maric’s cell. He felt his stomach begin to churn and a cold sweat break out on his forehead.

She was back.

A sharp green face stepped out of the shadows. “Well, are you ready to talk?”Her hands stroked the bars of the cell. Maric felt a sick thrill shoot through his body. “Are you ready to tell me where the girl is?”

Maric said nothing. He had told this witch many times that he did not know this girl she so desired. He pitied whoever the girl was. As much as the witch looked on Maric with hatred, her eyes burned anew whenever she said the girl’s name.

Aurora.

***

Rose stood still for a moment unsure of what happened before rushing to Maric’s side. He convulsed wildly on the ground, his eyes clenched shut, and Rose threw her legs over his body and straddled him. She pushed down with her entire body until he began to still. Rose cradled his head between both of her hands.

“Maric! Maric!” Droplets from her wet hair hit his face, but his eyes were clenched shut. He slowly began to relax until his body was limp and Rose knew the moment of danger was over. Slowly, Maric opened his eyes and Rose saw that though they were clear, there was a spark of danger in them. His hands gripped her hips tightly, holding her down onto him, and it was then she realized something hard pressing against her. He was only wearing his trousers and she was wearing nothing at all. She blushed and sat up quickly, her arms covering her bare chest.

Maric took his time running his eyes up and down her naked body before breaking out into laughter. Rose looked at him as if he had gone crazy as she scrambled off him and began to dress.

“What is wrong with you?” she asked over his laughter. Maric was doubled over on the ground, the laughter leaving him prone.

“You are a… girl.” The laughter began to fade away and he sat up looking at her, the mirth still playful across his face. Rose inhaled sharply. When smiling, Maric looked years younger, almost youthful. He couldn’t be much older than her. He is handsome, she thought. Dangerously so. There was a glint of amusement in his eye. “It explains a lot. Namely, your looks, and the roundness of your behind and-” He stopped himself short and sat up. “The next town we reach-”

“No! You are not leaving me behind.”

“This changes everything.”

“How so? I am just as capable as when you thought I was a boy. I’m still the same person.”

“Yes, but now I don’t know if I can trust myself around you.” Maric stood and slowly walked over to Rose, his eyes were hooded. “Before, when you were Jacques, well, you were safe from me. Now…” His hand brushed back her wet hair and cupped her cheek. He dipped his head down and kissed her. His tongue probed against her lips until she yielded. Rose felt a shock of electricity shoot from her head down to her toes, which curled against the soft ground. She pressed forward, kissing him back, until he pulled away. Suddenly, the forest felt cold.

“Yes,” Maric whispered. “Next town, you’re gone.”

***

Maric had meant for the kiss to scare her, whoever she really was. He expected her to slap him in the face for his boldness, but when she pressed up against him, her arms thrown around his neck, and pushed deeper in for the kiss, Maric couldn’t help but feel the peaks of her nipples pressing against his bare chest. If he wasn’t hard before, he was rock solid after he pulled away.

The kiss was a mistake. She didn’t look frightened at all. If anything, her face was flushed as she looked up towards him, her lips swollen. If he hadn’t stopped, she wouldn’t have stopped him from pushing his advances. They could be naked on the ground now, him deep inside her. Maric swallowed a groan and put more distance between them.

“That was… pleasant,” she said. Maric laughed inwardly. Pleasant? His body was on fire. He beat a quick retreat back to his bedroll before turning to face her. She was still standing there frozen in place watching him with an odd expression on her face.

“What’s your name? Your real one.”

The girl hesitated for a moment before answering. “Rose.” Maric raised an eyebrow. She frowned. “Yes, Rose is my real name. I’m not lying to you now.”

“Then what else have you lied to me about?”

Rose frowned, but kept her mouth shut. Maric could see the anger rising inside her. This was much better. He didn’t want her to get the wrong impression of what just happened between them. Maric busied himself with starting a fire. The girl was still damp and she would catch a chill. Maric didn’t need the heat, his body was still on fire itself.

“Why are you disguised as a boy?” The fire lit and Rose sat down next to it. Maric sat across from her watching her through the flames. The flickering light bounced off of her red hair causing it to shine like gold. She watched him with her violet eyes and he felt a strange sense of familiarity.

“It was easier traveling the roads as Jacques than as a lone female.” Maric nodded. There was sense in that. It was dangerous traveling the roads alone, but as a male there were some advantages. Though, a male as beautiful as Rose would have been worse than if she was ugly. Even Maric noticed in Pine Hollow how people just turned to Jacques, their eyes drawn to him, against their will. He felt it himself.

“What happened to you just now?”

“What do you mean?”

“You collapsed suddenly and started convulsing.” Rose pointed to the ground where he fell.

Maric pressed his lips flat and frowned. “I suffer from nightmares.”

“What of?”

Maric gave her a flat stare. How much should he tell her? The nightmares themselves made him sound like a raving lunatic. He never remembered much when he woke, just scraps of pain and terror.

“I am imprisoned,” he started, poking at the fire. “I don’t know where, but the cell is old but sturdy. I am chained to the wall.” Rose gasped. “There is pain, blinding pain. And, then nothing. I cannot recall the rest.”

“Do you think the nightmares have to do with the scars on your back? That they are memories?”

Maric nodded, unsurprised that she leapt to the same conclusion as he had in the past. “Most likely, but I cannot remember much. The nightmares began again a couple of days ago. I haven’t experienced them in years before then. Not since, well… when I was found.”

“So these nightmares are the key to your past, to discovering who you really are,” Rose said excitedly. “There must be clues within them.”

“Perhaps, but I try not to dwell on them.” The more he thought of the nightmares, the more his head ached. Even now, as they talked, Maric could feel something needling into the back of his head- a short, sharp pain. He knew what Rose said was right, that the nightmares were a key to his past.

“I wonder why they started three days ago,” Rose said thoughtfully.

“We should sleep whatever is left of the night. We have a long ride ahead of us tomorrow. We will be entering Valenris.”

***

Rose and Maric rode for several hours until they reached the country’s border in the middle of the afternoon. The weather was nice, nicer still as they traveled farther south. The days would get a little warmer from here on out, Rose thought. She thought back to the cottage that she shared with Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. It wasn’t too far from where they were, maybe two days’ journey at most. As they approached the toll gate, Rose hesitated. This was Prince Philip’s kingdom, now King Philip, Rose corrected. Though, it was foolish to think that she would run into him on the road, Rose felt on edge.

“What is wrong with you today?” Maric asked, turning in his saddle. He leaned closer to Rose. “Are you not yet recovered from the attack?”

“I’m fine,” Rose replied. She felt sick to her stomach.

“You’re pale.”

“I’m fine,” Rose repeated as she dismounted. Maric followed. A soldier approached them both.

“Where are you heading?” the soldier asked. He was an older man, perhaps in his late fifties. His hair was all white and tufts of it stuck out from under his helmet. His armor was freshly polished so that Rose could see her reflection in it. Maric was right, she did look pale.

“To Beaumont,” Maric answered. It wasn’t until that moment that Rose learned where they were headed. Beaumont was the seat of the kingdom, where Philip resided. Rose swallowed hard.

“For the royal baptism? You must have heard the news. The king and queen had a baby boy named Tristan, Prince Tristan, not one month ago. He is to be baptized at the end of the week. If you hurry, you will arrive in time for the ceremony.”

Neither Maric or Rose replied. The soldier cleared his throat. “I will need to search your belongings.” He called two other soldiers over, one a young man, and the other a middle-aged woman. It appeared that the group were a family. The woman, who was stocky, with a light blond hair tied back in a plait, began searching through Rose’s saddlebags. She pulled out Rose’s daggers and laid them on the ground. The young man searched Maric’s.

“There’s nothing here,” the woman called out. She approached Rose. “I’ll need to search you as well.” Rose nodded and the woman ran her hands up and down Rose’s body. She opened Rose’s tunic and stilled when she saw Rose’s bandaged down breasts. She looked up inquiringly, but stayed silent. “Nothing here either.”

The old man grunted in consent as he began searching Maric. He set down a dagger besides Maric’s sword. Suddenly, Rose thought of her stiletto, the one given to her by Athena. Where was it? The last she remembered was that she tried to kill the basilisk with the weapon. Maybe it was lost in the woods. Rose swallowed, if it was discovered on either of them, they would be instantly imprisoned. The weapon was illegal as only assassins carried them. And, no guard in their right mind would let an assassin across their borders.

“You’re clear,” the soldier said to Maric. Maric leaned over and picked up his sword and dagger and placed them back in their scabbards. Rose did the same with her daggers. “You’re both free to go.”

Rose remounted Daffodil and followed Maric and Clover past the gates. She sighed in relief. Maybe the stiletto was gone after all. She felt a pang of sadness. It was a parting gift from Athena and it was the only thing she had of hers besides the memories of their time together.

Once they rounded the corner and the guard’s gate was no longer in sight, Maric leaned over and pulled a dagger out of his boot.

“I believe this is yours.”

Rose took the stiletto from him. “If you were caught with this…”

“I would have been thrown into the closest cell- something, you understand, I would like to avoid for the rest of my life.” Rose thought back to his nightmares.

“Why didn’t you give it back to me before?”

“I knew we would be passing through that guard’s gate. If you were caught with it-”

“But, it is mine, and if I get caught, well, more fool on me. You don’t need to take my punishments for me, Maric.”

“Suit yourself. But, I have to ask, where did you get that dagger? You, obviously, know that such an item is forbidden in most kingdoms.”

“Are you asking if I am an assassin?”

Maric paused for a moment, watching her closely as if trying to catch her in a lie, before continuing. “Yes. Travelling as a bard certainly provides you with a decent cover. No one questions musicians when they come through towns. And, they have access to places that no normal person does, such as the royal courts.”

He was astute, Rose thought. This was precisely why Athena disguised herself as the leader of a traveling troupe. Everyone invited a musician or actor into their homes, even the wealthy, elite, and the dangerous. Everyone can appreciate a good song or play.

Rose decided to err on the side of truth. “It was given to me by a friend. I am not an assassin.”

“But, your friend is,” Maric finished. He looked at her queerly. “You have strange friends.”

“Well, you’re a monster hunter, don’t you think that is strange too?”

“But, I am not your friend.”

***

The town of Perivin was too large to be considered a village but too small to be considered a town. It boasted of several markets, two bakeries, three inns, two taverns, and a brothel. After stabling the horses, where Rose paid the stableboy an extra copper coin for the best oats for Clover and Daffodil, Maric began walking off towards the closest inn.

“I bid you farewell,” Maric said with a wave of a hand.

“Wait,” Rose called out. “You really mean to leave me then?”

“Yes, what I am after is dangerous. Far too dangerous for an amateur, which is what I should have known even when you were disguised as Jacques. Go home, Rose. Go marry the boy you are running from.”

Rose stood and watched Maric walk away. She ground her teeth in frustration. Of course, he would assume she was running away from marriage. It was the most likely story a female runaway would have besides already being married and escaping an abusive husband. The fact that Maric was right irked her even more. Alas, Philip was already married, so she was safe from that.

Rose felt a stab of regret through her heart.

It was hard not to look closely at the land around them as she and Maric rode through the forests and fields past the scattered farm houses and mills. Everything was quiet, peaceful, and Rose thought, perfect. And, it all could have been hers.

Instead, Rose focused on how Maric would break their agreement the second that they came across a town and what she would do afterwards. And, she was right, she thought, as she watched his retreating back. He opened the door to the Lily Rose Inn, a decent looking establishment, and entered. The temptation of sleeping indoors may keep him around for the rest of the night, but it was no promise. She needed to enact her plan immediately.

Rose walked quickly to the center of town which was lined with different shops. As the sun was

setting and many were heading back home for supper, Rose ducked into the closest dress shop.

“We’re closed,” a gruff old man said behind the counter. He was busily wrapping the day’s wares. A shopgirl, most likely his daughter, bustled behind him, cleaning up her workstation.

“I need clothes…” The man looked up and eyed Rose in disbelief. “For my sister.”

“Come back in the morning.”

“I need them now, we are leaving immediately for Beaumont for the celebration.” Rose dropped several gold coins on the counter. “The price is no object.”

The man paused, taking in the number of coins on the counter. It was enough to cover the profits for a whole year. “Have her come so we can take her measurements. We will do what we can tonight.”

“No need,” Rose replied, looking at the ready made dresses hanging up against the wall. “I will take those two,” she said pointing to two serviceable dresses, one in dark green and the other in blue.

The dresses looked to be about the right size, though perhaps a little large around the waist. They could be easily altered. Rose spent years with Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather stitching and mending her own clothes, and those of her aunts. It didn’t strike her as strange that her aunts were completely clueless with most household chores until after they revealed themselves to her as fairies. Once she learned the truth, everything fell into place, like how the bacon was always burnt, the cottage always dusty, and how her dresses, until she took over, were always two sizes too big or too small with sleeves that either dragged on the ground and so large that she could have stuck her head through them. And, the fabrics, a mish mash of satins with calico with wool and cotton of all different colors stitched together into one dress. It wasn’t until Rose snuck out of the cottage as a child to the nearest village and saw how they dressed that she knew she looked ridiculous. As soon as her fingers were nimble enough, she took over her own sewing.

Rose took her parcels and tucked them under her arm. She turned down a dark alley and hid behind several empty wooden crates and barrels waiting to be picked up by a merchant in the morning. Quickly, she took off her tunic and trousers and changed into one of the dresses. She took a deep breath of relief as she undid the bandages on her breast and dumped them with her old clothes into the bag the shopkeep had given her. She said a quiet farewell to Jacques. She lived in his skin for five years and five years was enough. It was time to be Rose again.

It felt strange wearing a dress. Though she spent sixteen years of her life wearing one, the past five years of Jacques provided a freedom she never knew. Growing up under the watchful eyes of Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather, and then under the scrutiny of an entire kingdom as Princess Aurora, Jacques provided her anonymity. As Rose, she hoped for the same.

After she finished, she approached the Lily Rose Inn and pushed open the door. The innkeeper, a short man with a pair of glasses balancing on his sharp nose looked up from his book.

“Can you direct me to Maric Landry’s room?” she asked.

The man looked her up and down. “And who might you be?”

“I am his wife.” Rose looked the man squarely in the eye as if daring him to question her. The man stared back, undaunted.

“The man did not mention he had a wife.”

“He did not expect me to arrive today. I just arrived on the coach.” Rose had seen a coach full of people pull in front of one of the taverns on her way over to the inn. She hoped it was one that typically arrived on schedule, and it seemed to be when the man nodded.

“Thomas here will take you to the room,” the man said. A small blond boy jumped up from the stool he was sitting on. He took Rose’s packages from her and led her up the stairs. Rose followed the boy into a room at the end of the staircase and when he opened the door Rose knew immediately that it would not work. It was no bigger than a closet. If she stretched out her arms, she could just touch the walls on opposite sides. She saw a single cot with no mattress and Maric’s things at the foot of the cot.

“No, no, this won’t do at all,” she said, turning to Thomas. The boy stood warily just outside the door. “Tell the innkeeper I want the best room in the inn.” The boy looked at her skeptically until Rose sighed and reached into her purse and pressed a gold coin in the boy’s palm. The boy quickly turned and ran down the stairs only to return with the innkeeper himself.

The man was all wide-eyed with an oily smile plastered on his face as he bowed repeatedly and directed Rose to the staircase once again. They walked up another flight to a door that led to the only chamber on the third and top floor. When the innkeeper threw open the door, Rose was immediately satisfied by what she saw. In the center of the room was a large four-post bed. Though, the sheets were not as fine as silk or satin, they were white and clean, and the pillows were thick and soft. To the far side of the room was a large wardrobe and a set of drawers made of thick dark oak. Next to it, to Rose’s delight, was an empty tub half hidden behind a fold out screen.

On the other side of the bed was a small dining table surrounded by four chairs made of the same oak as the wardrobe and cabinet. On closer inspection, she could see fine roses carved into the backs of chairs and along the outer ring of the table.

“This will do nicely,” Rose said as she handed the innkeeper enough coins for the room. “When Mr. Landry returns, I would like you to bring up whatever is best on the menu tonight in the tavern.”

“The best we have in house is a meat pie,” the innkeeper said. Rose frowned, meat pies were nice when you were on the road, but tonight she wanted to luxuriate. “But,” he continued, “there is a restaurant next door that does a lovely roasted pheasant in mushroom with a butter sauce.”

“Yes, please send for it, including a nice bottle of red wine, cheese, and bread, and well, anything you can think of. Mr. Landry will be quite famished when he returns. We married this morning, and he was called off in a hurry.” Rose hadn’t realized how easy it was to lie after doing it for so long. “And, send a maid up to fill the tub. I will be taking a bath in the meanwhile and it will need to be refilled when Mr. Landry returns.”

The innkeeper and Thomas hurried from the room and Rose collapsed onto the bed. She sank deep into the mattress, sighing in pleasure, and was nearly asleep when there came a soft knocking on the door. She opened to find a young girl, about the same age and look as Thomas, with a bucket of hot water. She curtsied awkwardly to Rose before rushing to the tub and filling it. Thomas stood behind her with another bucket and between the two children, the tub was filled in minutes. Rose thanked them both and pressed coins in their awaiting palms. Their faces broke out into gap-toothed grins.

When the door closed, Rose began to disrobe. She sighed in relief and pleasure and she sank into the hot water. No more bathing in streams, not tonight at least. Hot baths were one the only things she missed about living in the castle. There she was able to bathe any time her heart desired, unlike in the cottage where she was the one boiling the water for the tub and sharing the water with Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. As Rose was the youngest, she bathed last, and by then, no matter how close the tub was to the stove, the water was cold.

Rose brought the thick piece of soap to her nose and to her delight it smelled sweet of her namesake. She lathered it up between her hands and began to wash every part of her body while her thoughts drifted to Maric. She smiled wickedly. She could already see the look of shock on his face when the innkeeper told him that his wife had arrived early and that she moved his belongings out of that closet of a room. But, that wasn’t all that she had planned for him. Rose blushed as she thought of how she was going to convince Maric to let her stay. She saw how he looked at her, especially now that he knew she was a girl. She touched her lips. And, she remembered how he kissed her that night in the woods. Her body felt hot, hotter than the water in the bath.

She hoped she knew what she was doing.

***

Maric spent the next hour nursing a mug of beer at The Wrong Turn tavern. He stopped because the sign made him laugh out loud, but stayed because of the three taverns in town, it served the cheapest beer. He spent the last of his coin on the mug before him and he wasn’t looking forward to spending the night in the broom closet the Lily Rose innkeeper set up for him. It was all he could afford.

Damn Rose, he thought as he took a small sip. He was about five more sips away from finishing and it didn’t help that his stomach was grumbling loudly. He should leave that night, immediately. At least that would give him a chance to hunt or fish before bed, but the thought of sleeping under a warm roof, sparse as it was, had its appeal. Also, he already paid and he was sure the innkeeper wouldn’t give him a refund. The man gave Maric the most detestable look when he walked through the door earlier that afternoon. Maric couldn’t blame the man, he did look a mess even when cleaned up. The scars and the broken nose plus the sword swung over his back made him look more like a criminal than any normal patron of that establishment. He had passed a merchant and his wife as he walked in and they both fell silent at the sight of him. He could have also sworn he heard a baby begin to cry.

“Will that be all?” asked the barkeep, a dark man with large imposing arms. He eyed Maric warily. No one liked it when someone dallied over one beer with no intention of purchasing more. Well, intent wasn’t the problem. No one wanted someone who couldn’t pay either.

Maric shook his head and stood. It was already past supper time.

As he pushed his way out of the tavern and walked back towards the inn, Maric looked over his shoulder cautiously in case Rose was waiting to ambush him. To his surprised disappointment, he didn’t catch one glimpse of her bright red hair. Maybe she listened to him after all, maybe she was gone.

He felt guilty about leaving Rose. He made a deal with her, one that, as his stomach grumbled again, was as beneficial to him as to her. Even if she was a girl, Maric knew that Rose had proven herself with the fight with the basilisks. She performed better than most men that he met in the past couple of years. She didn’t swoon away with fright. She stood her ground. And, she saved his life.

And, that should have counted for something, right? Maybe he was too hasty and maybe promises should be kept, he thought. If he could find her before he left tomorrow morning, he will allow her to accompany him. The trick, of course, was to make it seem like he wasn’t at fault. That he hadn’t changed his mind. Or, he would never hear the end of it from her.

Maric frowned as he walked into the front door of the inn. The innkeeper looked up from his

books to Maric’s surprise, smiled broadly at him with his hands outstretched.

“Good evening, Mr. Landry. I was waiting for you. Delayed my own supper to wait for your return.” Before Maric could ask why, the innkeeper rushed ahead of him to the staircase. “Your wife is waiting upstairs for you.”

Maric was about to ask which damn wife he was talking about when he tensed. The innkeeper led him to the upper floor and knocked gently. The door opened and Maric saw her standing there, her face flushed and her hair damp, the steam rising from her body, which was wrapped in a towel.

And, the room smelled of roses.

***

Maric stepped into the room and shut the door on the innkeeper without taking his eyes off of Rose. He could hear the innkeeper blustering on the other side of the door.

“What are you doing?”

“I was taking a bath. I had them bring up another tub for you.” Maric followed Rose’s finger and there was indeed another wooden tub filled with hot, steaming water, hidden behind the screen. She wrinkled her nose. “You could use one.”

“What are you doing here?” Maric clarified, turning his eyes back onto Rose. She had the decency to look uncertain.

“We had an agreement, but, let’s not talk about it now. Let’s just enjoy a night warm and indoors.”

Maric felt the anger rise inside him, but he realized that it would take too much effort to fight her now. And, the bath did look very tempting. He began stripping off his clothes, his eyes holding hers, and saw her face flush a deep red. He walked across the room and sank down into the tub, a grunt of pleasure escaping his lips. She smiled at him from across the room.

“Dinner will be here shortly.” She disappeared behind the other screen herself and emerged a minute later wearing a light robe tied at the middle. Her waist was tiny, he could probably circle it entirely with the span of hands. And, her breasts, he could tell, would fit nicely cupped in each of his palms. He wondered how he ever believed Rose was a boy. The more he looked at her now, the way the robe clung around her shapely bum and thighs, he felt a burning in him.

She must have gone shopping, Maric thought, as he sank lower. There was a bar of soap on the ledge of the tub and he used it vigorously as Rose watched.

“Here, lean forward,” Rose said, as she took the soap from him. She lathered up a damp towel and began washing his back in wide circles. He sighed contentedly. He could get used to this. Maybe, he should keep her around. She did have deft fingers.

Her hands moved to the front of his chest and continued washing in wide circles. He leaned back into her and knew he was getting her wet again, but didn’t care. Slowly, her hands moved lower and lower until Maric snatched her hand.

“What are you up to?” He narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

Before she could answer, there was a tentative knock on the door. Rose stood, draping the towel along the rim of the tub, and opened the door. A young woman stood at the threshold with a tray of food in her arms. She glanced over at Maric and flushed deeply before Rose directed her to the table in the corner. The woman was followed by a young girl and boy, who carried in a basket of bread and a bottle of wine.

The room filled with the rich scent of cooked meat and spices that smelled familiar but Maric couldn’t remember what they were.

“My lady,” the woman curtsied. “We have a roasted pheasant on butter sauce with mashed potatoes and fresh picked peas. My husband has added on two meat pies made of lamb and carrots and potatoes from our own garden. And, we brought two slices of pie baked from the blueberries we picked this morning.”

Rose thanked the woman before pressing something into her hands and into the hands of the children. They quickly left, with the woman casting one longing glance at Maric before the door closed.

***

Maric sank a little lower in the tub. He could feel his anger towards Rose dissipating with the steam. When the water began to cool, he regrettably, stood and dried himself with the towel left for him.

“Where are my clothes?”

Rose scrunched her nose. “I gave it to the maid to be washed. It’s covered in grime and blood.”

The anger instantly returned. “You have no right.”

“Maric, I have every right. They were filthy. They could stand on their own with how much dried sweat and blood that encased them. Do not worry, she will have them returned, fresh, clean, and mended by the morning.”

“And what am I supposed to wear until then?” The clothes Maric wore on his back were also his only set of clothes.

Rose’s eyes flickered down to the towel wrapped around Maric’s waist. “You are wearing as much as you will need tonight.”

***

Rose flushed at the boldness of her words. She was really out of her element now.

“Whatever game you are playing, know that you cannot win.”

“No game. I just want to spend a nice night with you.”

“Nice? There will be no niceties, Rose. No, we are beyond that. If you want to play with fire, then so be it.”

Rose let out of a small squeal as Maric dropped his towel and scooped her up from her seat and dumped her on the bed. He followed, his body coming on top of hers and his mouth on hers. Rose succumbed to his kiss, this tongue pressing against her closed lips until she yielded and she kissed him back. The room was suddenly too hot and she felt relief when Maric sat up and began to remove her robe. When he saw what she wore underneath, a thin white silk nightgown with fine lace sewn along the ends, he inhaled sharply. The fabric was so fine that it was nearly translucent.

“You witch,” he said in a harsh whisper, his right hand reaching down between them and cupped her breast. His thumb brushed lightly across the tip of her nipple and she arched up against him and groaned. The tingling sensation between her legs deepened.

Maric lowered his head.

“What are you doing?” Rose asked, suddenly alarmed when she felt his hand disappear and his lips take its place. He gently suckled at her nipple through her nightgown, licking it with the tip of his tongue before taking it all in his mouth. His other hand caressed her other breast until Rose cried out in pleasure.

“Do you want me to stop?” Maric asked, his face buried in her chest.

“No, please don’t.” He smiled wickedly up at her and sat up on the side of the bed and adjusted the towel to his waist.

“I’m famished, how about you?” he said as he walked back to the table ladened with food. Rose laid there flushed and bewildered and suddenly cold. He was right, she was playing with fire, and she didn’t know the rules of the game.

***

He was playing with fire, Maric thought as he forced himself away from Rose. He clutched the towel around his waist and felt particularly vulnerable in his naked state. He brandished the towel like it was a suit of armor. It didn’t help much even when he had half the room and a table between them.

Rose rose slowly from the bed, her face bewildered. Maric suspected that she didn’t truly understand what she was doing. The moment he walked into the room, he knew instantly that she would try to seduce him as a way for him to allow her to stay with him for the rest of his journey, what she called the “adventure.”

But, this was no game. Maric spent the latter part of the day interrogating the barkeep at The Wrong Turn tavern. He was chilled when the man told him that there had been more monster attacks in the south, mostly goblins. From what the man heard, they were terrorizing some farmers near the border of the wildlands, mostly stealing livestock and crops, burning the fields, but, as of yet, no outright attack. The kingdom had sent a company of soldiers not two weeks ago. The barkeep figured that they settled the matter.

Maric felt uneasy. Goblins never acted alone. Never without orders.

Maric settled down in his seat. Rose joined him and sat across from him. It was quite dark now and only the candles lit on the table provided enough illumination to see the food laid out before them. He watched as Rose lifted the silver cloche revealing the food beneath. They both gasped out loud when they saw the pheasant dripping in a butter sauce with small button mushrooms and tiny onions floating in it. Under the next cloche was the meat pies the maid had promised. They were thick with a flaky crust. Rose quickly uncovered the rest to find a bowl of mashed potatoes, a platter of roasted vegetables, and two slices of blueberry pie topped with fresh cream.

“My god,” Rose whispered. Maric looked up to see her face as stunned as his and they both broke out in laughter.

Maric grabbed the closest plate and scooped himself a hearty serving of mashed potatoes followed by one of the meat pies. Rose went for the pheasant first and a roll of bread, which she promptly slathered with butter.

“What did you tell them to get this?” Maric asked, his mouth full. The crust of the meat pie melted in his mouth and he was pleased to find thick pieces of lamb inside.

Rose smiled through a mouthful of food herself. One hand held her fork while the other the roll and she was eating from them interchangeably. Though they ate decently on the road, it was nice to not have to eat something cooked over a campfire. And, in Maric’s case, it was nice to eat something that he had no hand in. Typically, he ate for survival not pleasure. Tonight, he would indulge.

“I told them that tonight was our wedding night.”

The food turned to ash in Maric’s mouth.

***

Rose watched as Maric’s face went pale. “Of course it was a lie. I needed to tell them something to let me into your room.”

“Yes, I suspected as much when the innkeeper told me my wife had arrived.” There was a slight pause. “You are relentless.” Rose was relieved to see that Maric continued to eat. There was a moment of fear that shot through her that Maric would get up and leave despite only a towel covering his nakedness.

Maric began chewing slower, a frown forming and growing deep. “I cannot prevent you from following me. I cannot even prevent you from interfering in my life.”

“Does this mean I can join you?” Rose asked hopefully.

“Yes, but only because I do not believe I can prevent you from doing so. I shudder to imagine what else you have planned.”

Rose was relieved that she didn’t have to go through with the rest of her plan either. Though, to her surprise, the relief was intermingled with disappointment. She had seen Maric naked twice now and appreciated the sight. He was sitting across from her now nearly naked and the valley between her legs throbbed with the memory of when just a short time before the weight of his body pressed down against hers.

It was only then that she discovered that she was truly disappointed that she could not enact the rest of her plan.

Maric handed her a slice of blueberry pie and took the other for himself. He dipped a finger into the cream and licked it and sighed deep in pleasure. “It has been a long time since I had dessert.” Rose’s body felt hot as Maric licked his other fingers before turning his attention to the pie in front of him. He had caught her eye and winked while doing so. Was he trying to seduce her? Rose quickly glanced at the bed beside her. Presumably, they would both be sleeping in it tonight. It was wide enough to fit three across comfortably.

Rose picked at her pie. She was stuffed full from the supper provided and based on her experience, it was excellent. Not even the cooks at the palace could compete with the food they had tonight.

“It has been a while since I ate this well,” Rose said.

“Nor, sleep so well,” Maric said, indicating to the bed. “The last night I slept in a bed-”

“Was at Fabienne’s,” Rose finished for him. Maric had the decency to snap his mouth shut, though why Rose didn’t know. It wasn’t as if she had some kind of claim over him.

“Yes,” Maric began again cautiously.

“Did you know that she invited me to her bed the first night I was in Pine Hollow?”

Maric’s eyes opened wide. “Of course, she didn’t know you were a woman.” He paused. “Did she?”

Rose laughed. “No, I suspect not. She is a bold woman. I like her. She knows what she wants and she reaches out and takes it. It’s not so common in this world.”

Maric joined in Rose’s laughter. “Yes, Fabienne is a rare one.”

“Lucky too. She has no husband to mind her.”

“Is that why you were disguised as Jacques? Did you run away from a bad marriage?”

“No, not quite like that,” Rose said quietly. “I was engaged to be married. But, I didn’t run away because of the man I was to marry. He was a kind man, and he would have been a loving husband. I know that,” she said, holding her hand to her heart. Maric’s eyes softened.

“Did you love him?”

“Yes, I think I did. But, the funny thing was that I don’t know if I loved him or if I was fated to fall in love with him.”

Maric smiled widely at her. “And, what is that supposed to mean?”

“That I didn’t have any choice in the matter. That my destiny was decided for me long before. All woven in a tale to tell for generations.”

Maric looked at her strangely. “How would you know if it wasn’t destiny?”

“The only way was to run away. To see if our love for one another could be tested.”

“And was it?”

“Yes. And, it failed.”