The Vampire & Her Witch

Morwen Thorne had visited Lothian City several times before, accompanying her parents to grand tournaments or gatherings of the Lothian Court. More often than not, there had been an honor guard present to receive her father when they entered the city, even if it was only a dozen common soldiers and a sergeant from Lothian Manor who came to meet noblemen arriving at the docks.

This time, the honor guard had assembled for the boat that carried Lord Loghlan Dunn, her father, and the other knights and ladies of the baron’s retinue. Meanwhile, Morwhen found herself all but sneaking off the cog she shared with Lady Ashlynn.

Many of the young ladies she’d met in Lothian City would have considered it a significant slight to arrive at the grandest city of the march in such a state, but Morwen was barely aware of her feet touching the wobbly boards of the icy gangplank as she held tightly to Sir Ollie’s strong, muscular forearm.

Standing this close to him, Morwen felt safe and secure in a way that went far beyond the support of his arm, and she found herself leaning closer to him as his unique scent, like fresh cut wood, filled her nose.

”There you are,” Ollie said lightly, patting her hand as he stepped back from her. ”Safe and secure. Mind the stones, though,” he added as he swept his gaze over the docks. ”It’s still wet and icy in places.”

”O-of course,” Morwen said, stammering slightly as her face turned a light shade of pink that had nothing to do with the cold winter wind. ”Th-thank you, Sir Ollie,” she said, giving him a slight bow that was as much an excuse to hide her face as it was a courtesy.

”Shh,” Ollie said, pressing his finger to his lips and glancing around. ”Remember yourself, Wendy,” he said, inventing an alias for her on the spot. ”No knights or lords here, missy,” he said as he looked back at her. ”Mindful of names too,” he said so quietly she barely heard it. ”I’m still a wanted man, you know,” he added with a playful wink.

”Oh, right, um...”

”Cy will do,” Ollie said, nodding in the direction of the others gathering at the foot of the gangplank. ”Now, you should stay with Miss Lynnda. I’m sure she has some work for us to do, don’t you, Miss?” Ollie said as he looked in Ashlynn’s direction.

”If someone didn’t tell you what to do, would you remember it for yourself?” Ashlynn said, adopting a teasing tone she’d heard from senior servants in Blackwell Manor for much of her life. ”The dockhands are only here to help empty the holds,” Ashlynn said, pointing to stacks of crates that were piling up on the stones of the quay.

”Fetch our carts over and get ’em loaded up,” Ashlynn said, pointing further down the quay where Isabell was already supervising the unloading of wagons and horses from the third cog. ”Mindful of the precious cargo, ’Cy,’” she added with a pointed look to the long, heavy box that protected Ignatious from the light of day while he slept.

”I know how to care for precious things,” Ollie said, tapping the back of a knuckle to his brow in a gesture of mild respect before turning to Liam and Hugo.

”Caith and I can handle the loading,” Ollie said, nodding to Liam before clapping Hugo on the shoulder. ”Usso, can you drive a cart?”

”I-I can drive a cart,” Hugo said, pulling himself upright with a dignity that refused to acknowledge how close Ollie’s friendly blow had come to sending him sprawling. ”I’ve driven plenty of carts.”

”Then we’re sorted,” Ollie said, steering Hugo toward the line of wagons where Isabell was giving sharp-tongued instructions to the dockworkers. ”Make sure to let Belle know what each of us is up to,” Ollie added, hoping Hugo understood the instruction to pass along their hasty aliases.

There wasn’t much thought behind the names, and Ollie hoped that Liam and Hugo never found out that he’d named them for a pair of cats who kept the larders of Lothian Manor free of rats, but they’d be good enough to use while they were in the bustling docks where countless ears could hear.

Then, moving with the sort of energy that only belonged to the young and invincible, Ollie and Liam strode towards the waiting luggage, quickly organizing it for loading as though they’d done it countless times before. And perhaps Ollie had, Morwen realized as she watched him work. Perhaps he’d worked on this very dock, loading up carts full of fish for the Lothian kitchens before continuing to the market square for the rest of the supplies the massive manor consumed on a daily basis.

Morwen watched them go, momentarily distracted by the sight of Ollie’s muscles straining against the seams of his ill-fitting tunic and coat before she turned to find Ashlynn already walking toward the far end of the quay where the last of the market stalls had yet to pack up for the evening.

”Oh! I’m coming,” she called, hurrying to catch up and then matching Ashlynn’s pace as they moved past shuttered stalls and empty counters still glistening with fish scales and melted water.

”I, I’m sorry,” Morwen added when she caught up to Ashlynn. ”I, um, I was a bit distracted and...”

”It’s fine,” Ashlynn said with a light, musical chuckle. ”’Cy’ can be a little distracting at times, can’t he?”

”I, I don’t mean to be too forward or,” Morwen stammered, only to stop abruptly when Ashlynn turned around and placed a finger over her lips.

”I understand your interest, ’Wendy,’” Ashlynn said, putting slight emphasis on the young lady’s fake name. ”I won’t stop you from expressing it. Before you do, can I give you a word of advice?”

”Of course you can,” Morwen said eagerly, perking up her ears and blushing when she realized how quickly she’d answered Ashlynn’s question.

”He’s not ready for romance,” Ashlynn said bluntly. ”And he’s never thought about marriage the way our families do,” she added in a quieter voice as her eyes tracked pairs of Lothian guardsmen moving about the quay.

”If you want to draw close to him,” Ashlynn added in a slightly gentler tone. ”Then lower your aim. Start with friendship and accept that things may go no further than that. In time, if you both discover that your feelings for each other are stronger than friendship, I’ll celebrate the pair of you.”

”But if you’re always looking at him with eyes that want more than he can give,” Ashlynn warned. ”I’m afraid that even friendship will be beyond your reach.”

”I, I understand,” Morwen said, shivering from a cold that had nothing to do with the winter wind. She felt like Lady Ashlynn had upended a bucket of icy river water over her head, just as her heart had felt warm and light after stealing a few moments of closeness with Sir Ollie when he walked her down the gangplank.

But she needed the shock and the reminder. If she was going to serve as Lady Ashlynn’s handmaiden while they were in Lothian City, she would have plenty of time to get to know Sir Ollie... But if she stared at him like a moonstruck doe, then she would never be able to close the distance between them.

”I understand,” Morwen repeated, nodding her head and sounding more confident than she had the first time. ”Thank you, Lynnda,” she added sincerely.

”Good that you understand,” Ashlynn said with a kind, gentle smile before she turned back toward the few market stalls that were still open. ”Now, we have a bit of shopping to do...”