Kalon was already at my door, waiting quietly and patiently, his hands behind his back. His face lit up at the sight of me, while my heart skipped a few beats, the temperature suddenly rising between us. Oh, I was definitely attracted to him, but I was also aware of the danger looming beneath the surface.
“Good morning,” he said, while I took a moment to fully take in the sight of him.
Nothing he wore would ever look bad, given his frame and toned muscles. His three-piece suit for the day was dark gray with a white shirt, the silk vest tightly fitted around his torso.
I bowed curtly. “Good morning to you, too, Lord Visentis.”
He raised an eyebrow, his cold blue eyes scanning me curiously. “Lord Visentis?” he replied. “Did something happen at dinner to push us back to such irksome formalities?” I shook my head, aware that this was the umpteenth time that I’d blushed in his presence. I needed to find a way to resist this effect he had on me, because I did not like any kind of vulnerability in front of someone to whom I was attracted. “Then please call me Kalon. Lord Visentis is such a stiff moniker, especially at this hour.”
I smiled as he offered me his arm and hooked mine into his. We walked down the hallway, and I gazed around, wondering where the rest of my crew was.
“Tristan and the others are on their way to the Blood Arena, as well,” he said, reading more from my expression than I would’ve thought. “They’ve got about twenty minutes on us.”
“Thank you for the opportunity, by the way. The tournaments do sound interesting, despite their brutality,” I replied, trying not to stare at him. Whenever he looked at me, I froze, my mind wandering in all the wrong places.
“Like I told you yesterday, Esme. The fights serve as an outlet. They’re one of the principal reasons why we don’t have wars and skirmishes with rebels or among the principates of Visio.”
Outside, I was pleased to realize that my hood was definitely doing a good job of shielding me from the soft sunlight, but I was downright ecstatic when a Rimian stable boy came to the bottom of the palace steps, leading two gorgeous Visio horses. I stilled, staring at them. These creatures looked even more beautiful from up close.
“We call them Visions,” Kalon said, noticing my awe. His eyes were smiling. I had a feeling he was pretty happy with the reaction he’d just elicited from me.
“Visions… Kalon, they’re gorgeous beasts,” I managed.
The stallion was slightly taller than the mare, a gorgeous white with a shimmering black mane and a black leather saddle. The contrast was delightful, to say the least. The female was a midnight black, her muscles twitching beneath the shiny coat. Her mane was white and much longer, with threads of black silk woven through the many braided locks. She’d been fitted with a white leather saddle, and she seemed to peer right into my soul with her strange, deep blue eyes.
I was breathless.
“The male is Lightning,” Kalon said, as the stable boy bowed and retreated, leaving us alone with the Visions. “He’s the fastest on this continent.”
“And the mare?”
“Midnight’s Dream,” Kalon replied. “Midnight, for short. She might look fierce, but she’s one of the gentlest Visions I’ve ever come across.”
The realization quickly rammed into me. “Whoa. Wait. We’re riding to the Blood Arena?!” And that was a stupid question. Of course we were riding to the Blood Arena, since they’d brought the Visions over. My mind was not the sharpest around this guy.
“Walking takes too long, since it’s on the edge of the city. I thought you’d be pleased,” Kalon said, suddenly looking concerned, as if I’d just forced him to recalculate everything.
“No, I am. Believe me, I am beyond pleased!” I said, my eyes basically sparkling. Pointing at my dress, I sighed. “But I’m not exactly dressed for riding. Not with the stiff underskirt.”
Kalon watched me for the better part of a minute, his eyes drilling into me. I knew the wheels were turning somewhere behind them, as he figured out a solution. I would’ve been utterly disappointed if I didn’t get to ride Midnight. She seemed to have been made for me. Her gentle gaze conquered me, almost instantly.
“Do you trust me?” Kalon asked.
I cleared my throat. “With what, specifically?”
A smile tried his lips. “With getting you up on that Vision, without the need of a riding outfit.”
At least he didn’t express offense at me not fully trusting him, in general. His honesty was refreshing, making me chuckle. “I trust you, then.”
“I apologize in advance, but it’s the best and fastest way,” he replied and knelt before me.
“What are you…”
My body stiffened as Kalon’s hands slipped under my skirt. I wasn’t sure whether I should scream or maybe just rip his head off, but part of me asked for a sliver of patience. My heart jumped in my throat as his fingers found the upper hem of the crinoline underskirt.
I briefly glanced over my shoulder, noticing the golden guards out by the main entrance. I couldn’t tell if they could see what was happening or not, but I decided I was better off not knowing.
“There we go,” Kalon muttered as he unsnapped something.
I was melting and dangerously close to burning as I felt the crinoline frame slip from beneath my waist. A second later, it fell on the marble tiles at the bottom of the stairs, and I stepped out of it. “Oh, this feels better,” I breathed, having regained most of my mobility.
“I never understood the purpose of these things, to be honest,” Kalon replied, his hands behind his back once more. “Again, I apologize, but you said you trust me.”
There was no point in telling him that my skin was still rippling, overcome with millions of tiny electrical shocks, as I’d felt his fingers brush up my thigh while he was removing the crinoline. It had been such a fleeting touch that it couldn’t be mentioned. It meant more to me than it probably did to him, anyway. Then again, he might’ve done it on purpose, which would’ve highlighted his masterful ability to steal a touch so swiftly that it made it impossible for the woman to determine whether it was accidental or premeditated. As the wheels turned in my head, I began to think I was dealing with an expert heartthrob. That made him dangerous.
“I… Yeah…” I couldn’t think of a better reply.
“Shall I help you mount Midnight?” Kalon asked, another smile stretching across his face. It hit me then that he was enjoying all this awkwardness, and I was feeding him material for decades to come.
In the blink of an eye, my composure came back, my ego unable to take another blow while Kalon was enjoying himself at my expense. With the crinoline off, I could do much more than just get up on a horse. But I decided to start with that, just to shut him up.
“I’m good, thanks,” I replied, approaching Midnight.
Kalon mounted Lightning quickly, holding the reins and watching me with devilishly handsome interest, while I gently stroked Midnight’s neck, allowing her to get to know me a little better. Like Lightning, she was bigger than Earth’s horses, and I was willing to bet, based on her muscular frame, that she could run as fast as a Dodge Challenger, if given the opportunity.
Midnight was a beast, despite her gracious, dark beauty, and she had to be handled with the utmost respect and reverence.
“Today, maybe?” Kalon sighed, looking amused.
