Chapter 12: The Mysterious Gift

 

 

 

Chapter 12: The Mysterious Gift

 

LAST night was such a nightmare. All I had to do was sit there and be practiced on, and yet I came away completely exhausted.

“Miss Maynaaaa! Every time I touch your hair, Sir Ray starts glaring at me! Help!”

“Kirion, focus. Ray, face that way.”

All night long, there were dozens of little exchanges along those lines. Meanwhile, Sari was glaring at me so hard you’d think she was trying to bore a hole straight through my head. Then, not even thirty minutes later, Ray demanded we end the session because “the room’s gotten too hot.” On top of that, for some reason he made me promise that I wouldn’t meet with Kirion alone at night for any reason, even for work, ever again.

All in all, it was a rather draining night...but the very next morning, my fatigue flew out the window.

Right as I was about to leave my quarters, I opened my door to find a small, neatly wrapped box sitting on the hallway floor just outside. The hallway itself was deserted, so I had no way of knowing who left it, but the card tucked under the ribbon read For Mayna, so I scooped it up and stepped back inside my room.

“What is this?” I wondered aloud as I untied the ribbon. Then I lifted the lid—

“Oh my god!”

—and there I found the iridian whiteshell accessory I’d swooned over yesterday.

“It’s every bit as beautiful as I remember...!”

I ran over to the mirror, took off the accessory I’d been wearing, and put the whiteshell on instead. Fortunately, it paired with today’s hairstyle rather nicely. And while it wasn’t flashy, it was still eye-catching, affording the wearer an air of pristine elegance.

Giddy, I took a moment to admire myself from every angle, then rushed out of the room. I had someone I needed to thank, after all.

While I was on my way to Patricia’s room, I encountered Ray heading the same direction to take his guard shift for the day. Like a gleeful child, I ran after him and touched his arm. “Ray!”

He glanced back, took one look at me—and my hair accessory—and smiled. “Good morning, Mayna. I see you’re in a chipper mood today,” he greeted. Was he intentionally playing dumb, or what?

“You went and bought this for me, didn’t you? Thank you so much!” I exclaimed.

Perhaps someone with a bit more decorum would have declined such an expensive gift, but now that I was wearing it, I couldn’t possibly give it back. Still, it was more than I was comfortable accepting from a friend—assuming I could consider him that—so I decided I’d figure out a way to pay him back somehow. But I wasn’t going to worry about that until later. For now, I just wanted to express my joy and gratitude.

“See? I put it on right away!”

“It looks great on you. Very pretty.”

It was possible he was referring to the accessory and not me specifically, but either way it seemed he was being sincere, and so I was willing to accept the compliment. He gained nothing from giving me this gift, and yet he smiled along with me, almost as if my cheer was contagious.

“That ornament was practically made for you.”

“Be honest—it was you, wasn’t it?”

“Who knows? It’s a mystery,” he grinned, as if it wasn’t completely obvious. This gift couldn’t possibly have come from anyone else.

“I really, really appreciate this. I’m going to treasure it,” I told him.

“Oh! Miss Mayna!” Just then, Kirion turned up, likely on his way to Patricia’s quarters as well—and the next words out of his mouth left me speechless: “I see you’ve already put it on! It looks great!”

“What?”

Baffled, I stared at him. If I didn’t know any better, it almost sounded as though he was the one who bought it for me.

“What’s going on? How do you know about this accessory?”

“What do you mean? Obviously I bought it and left it outside your door, silly! Bet you weren’t expecting that, huh?”

“But then...how did you know to choose this specific ornament?” I asked, perplexed. I was pretty sure only Ray could have known how badly I wanted it.

“Well, you see, I was in town yesterday when I saw you and Sir Ray walking down the street together. I wanted to say hello, but the two of you looked like you were having such a great time, and I couldn’t bear to interrupt...but then part of me wondered if perhaps you were on a date, so I decided to tail you to find out.” He shrugged his shoulders sheepishly. “After you left that jewelry store, I went inside, thinking maybe I could get you something. So I went to the owner and said, ‘The woman that was here just now—was there anything she was particularly interested in?’ and then he directed me to that accessory.”

“You’re serious?” I asked dubiously.

At this, Kirion pouted. “You don’t believe me?”

Beside us, Ray quirked a brow, suspiciously narrowing his eyes on Kirion.

I really thought this was a gift from Ray... I guess not. And for some reason, I was actually disappointed to learn otherwise. In fact, I couldn’t help but hold out hope that Ray would admit the gift was from him. He didn’t, of course.

“You say you saw us together, but couldn’t bear to interrupt? That’s simply not possible. The Kirion I know would come and hassle us without a second thought.”

“Wow, rude!” Kirion laughed uncomfortably.

I removed the accessory and handed it back to him. “I appreciate the gesture, but I’m sorry—I can’t accept something that expensive.”

A few short moments ago I thought that I couldn’t possibly give it back, and now here I was, doing just that. Why was it that I was only comfortable with this gift if it came from Ray? Was it because I knew an aristocrat like him could easily afford it?

“Come on, Miss Mayna, don’t be like that. Just keep it,” Kirion insisted with a sly smile, wrapping his hands around my closed fist. “It doesn’t matter how expensive it was. When it comes to my Bondmate, I’ll gladly pay any price.”

“Your...Bondmate...?” I repeated, as though I hadn’t heard him loud and clear.

“Of course! Don’t you feel it? Ever since we first met, I’ve felt something between us, and now I’m certain. You’re my Bondmate, Miss Mayna.”

Frozen, I forced my stalling brain to think back over the days since Kirion had first arrived. There was certainly something between us, all right. Every time I looked into his dark eyes, I felt a deep restlessness in my chest. Even now, my heart was thumping out of control...and here at point-blank range, it almost felt like I was on the cusp of being swallowed whole—

“Don’t touch her!” Ray dove between us.

He seized Kirion by the collar and slammed him against the wall.

“Guh...!” Kirion winced in pain.

“Ray!” I shouted, panicked.

“What are you trying to pull?” Ray demanded, glaring down at the other man.

Kirion wheezed for breath. “That really hurts, you know... C’mon, let go of me... Miss Mayna, help...!”

“Ray!” I called again, but no response. He didn’t even loosen his grip.

“Why would you invent a lie like that?”

“What are you talking about? I’m not lying...!”

“Are you even really a Dragonkin?” Ray growled.

“What’s going on out here?!”

Patricia’s bedroom door flew open, and Rebecca dashed into the hall, followed by Mona and Sari.

“Kirion!” Sari shouted as she ran over.

But Ray promptly relinquished his grip, and with an icy glare, he turned and left.

“What happened? Are you okay?” Sari asked fretfully.

“I’m all right. I don’t know why, but something I did really upset Sir Ray,” Kirion explained.

Personally, I was tempted to go after Ray, but that would sadly have to wait. Patricia’s hair wasn’t going to style itself, after all.

❀❀❀

“PATRICIA, what’s the matter with your hairstylist today?” Prince Dario asked the Princess once he noticed the hard look on my face. Today the three of us were going over potential hairstyles for the wedding, and I had presented over a dozen new designs for their perusal.

His comment quickly brought me back to my senses, and I wiped the grimace off my face. “I sincerely apologize, Your Highness.”

“Something happened with Kirion today,” Patricia explained to him, though I wasn’t sure how she knew that, since I hadn’t told her about it. Then again, perhaps it was obvious, considering any interaction with my apprentice was distant and awkward (on my end, at least; Kirion himself was acting fairly normal).

“Oh yeah? Come to think of it, Ray seemed pretty tense when I saw him in the hall earlier,” Darion teased.

“I apologize for the distraction. Let’s go ahead and choose a hairstyle for the Princess.” I gestured down at the designs on the table. Meanwhile, the bride and groom were having a good chuckle at my expense.

“Personally, I like this one. It suits Patricia’s kind and cheerful demeanor.”

“Then let’s go with that one!” Patricia declared swiftly.

“You sure? Shouldn’t you pick one that you like?”

“No, that’s okay. I want to match your tastes,” she told him, blushing faintly. Dario laughed shyly in response.

What a happy couple.

With the bride’s wedding hairstyle decided, the Prince rose from his chair and got ready to leave. He was a busy man, and his schedule was packed.

“I didn’t know Miss Mayna could draw,” Kirion mused as he looked over my designs with Patricia.

“What, you can’t?” she replied incredulously.

Dario leaned over to me. “Have fun with Ray,” he whispered playfully.

Torn between “Yes, sir” and “No, thank you,” I stared resolutely at him for a moment, then asked, “Your Highness, um...is it an accepted practice among Dragonkin men to prank a woman by telling her she’s your Bondmate?”

“Is this about Ray?”

“No, not this time.” I stared carefully at the floor.

“Ah, now I get it,” Dario murmured, shooting a quick glance in Kirion’s direction. “No, it’s not an accepted practice...but every now and then, there are shallow, thoughtless individuals who use the concept of a Bondmate to prey upon the naïve and gullible.”

“I see...”

“Thus, it’s up to you to see through it. You must choose your partner not for the things he says, but for the love he gives you.” And with that, Prince Dario left the room.

He’s so mature, you’d never think he was only eighteen...

That said, this was not a matter of choosing between Ray and Kirion. Ray had long since changed his mind and stopped pursuing me. Kirion, on the other hand, was an active problem, and one I didn’t know how to handle.

I sighed and looked over to find him grinning at me. “Kirion, can I borrow you for a moment?”

With my apprentice in tow, I stepped into the hall. I wanted to settle this as soon as possible, and fortunately, Sari wasn’t around to “chaperone” us. But as I turned, I promptly made eye contact with Ray. Of course. I’d forgotten he was on duty out here.

“Where are you going?” he demanded. Whether he was speaking to me or to Kirion, I wasn’t certain. Either way, I glanced over my shoulder.

“None of your business,” I shot back flatly. Ray took a step in my direction, so I hastily continued, “And don’t follow us. You’re on duty, remember? And for that matter, this doesn’t concern you.”

At this, Ray stopped short, with a look on his face like a puppy who’d just been commanded to stay.

Okay, maybe I was a bit too harsh just now—but after everything he’d put me through? The concern for my health? The gift (yes, I still chose to believe it had come from him)? Why would he do those things for me if I wasn’t his Bondmate? At this point, I was exasperated. Not just with him, but with Kirion, too. I couldn’t tell what either of them were thinking.

I led Kirion out to the courtyard, then turned to face him. “Kirion, do you honestly think I’m your Bondmate?”

“Yes, of course,” he asserted, smiling amicably. “I never said anything until today, but I’ve suspected it ever since we first met.”

“Then what about Sari? You two have grown rather close lately.”

“She’s just a friend. But if it makes you insecure, I’ll stop talking to her.”

“No, there’s no need for that.”

This was so awkward. We were all coworkers, and we needed to maintain a civil relationship at minimum in order to get our work done. Still, I wanted to make my feelings on the matter perfectly clear.

“Kirion, I can’t return your feelings. I understand you see me as your Bondmate, but I don’t love you like that.”

“That’s just because you’re not a Dragonkin... If only you were, you’d feel it, too,” he alleged with sadness coloring his voice and face. It pained me to hurt him, but at the same time, I couldn’t trust that he actually meant what he said.

You see, Kirion was a walking contradiction. While on one hand he seemed like a friendly, extroverted, honest young man...he was also the sort of guy to willfully provoke others and flirt with two women at once. There was clearly more to him than met the eye.

I didn’t believe his statement about the hair ornament, either. If it truly was a gift from him, then why didn’t he simply give it to me directly? That seemed much more in line with his personality. Plus, the attached card had read “For Mayna.” If Kirion had written it, surely he would’ve written “For Miss Mayna” instead.

“I just want to be friends, Kirion,” I implored him.

Unfortunately, it seemed he wasn’t ready to give up on me just yet. He puffed up his chest, his long dark ponytail swaying with the motion, and declared: “That’s not enough for me. I can’t be ‘just friends’ with my Bondmate! So whether you like it or not, I’m going to prove to you that my feelings are real.”

“Kirion...”

I’d had enough of this “Bondmate” crap the first time around. I was sincerely, completely, at a total loss.