“Are you sure you are well enough to be moving about?”

  The question came from Arian from her spot in the middle of my bedroom. For my part, I stood in front of the crackling fire nestled in the hearth and warmed my hands.

  “I feel just fine now,” I assured her as I rubbed my palms together.

  Arian moved over to my side and looked me over. “But how could you recover from such agony so quickly? It has only been half a day since you collapsed.”

  I shrugged. “Strong genes?” Her dark brow dampened my humor. I turned to face her and clapped my hands on her shoulders. “I wish I had an answer, but I don’t. I just suddenly feel a lot better. Maybe it was just too much excitement.”

  My friend’s face was a picture of doubt. “I fear you are taking this too lightly. Your appearance only a few hours ago was of one who had all their strength sapped from them.”

  I spun around on my heels to face her and stretched out my arms on either side of me. “Does this look like someone who has all the strength sapped from them?”

  Arian examined me from top to bottom and came away with a frown almost as deep as before. “You do appear to have more color but your face is still very pale.”

  I sauntered over to her and grasped one of her hands in both of mine. “Well then, I’ll just have to take you along with me as a chaperone. If I faint then you can catch me. How does that sound?”

  She turned her face away and bit her lower lip. “I still worry about you. . .”

  I squeezed her hands and offered her a wide smile. “It’s okay. I’m okay. Even Grandmother gave me a clean bill of health, right? She did kick me out of her cave.”

  “Only because Dian could carry you here,” she pointed out.

  I leaned toward her with a devilish look in my eyes and winked. “That may be, but is that really what you want to talk about?”

  She blinked at me. “What do you mean?”

  “What I mean is I think you could have been carried home, too. Jin would have been happy to hold you in his arms for a while.”

  Her cheeks took on a healthy shade of rose red. “I-I do not know what you mean.”

  I threw my head back and laughed. “Your cheeks tell me you do. What will Prince Yushir say when he finds out he has competition?”

  The downcast expression on her face made me immediately regret my words. Arian bowed her head and sighed. “I. . .I do not know what to say. What I should say to either of them, that is.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I have had men vie for my hand before but I. . .I believe if I were made to choose between them I could not do so.”

  “Hey there,” I whispered as I slipped up to her side and draped an arm over her shoulders. “It’s okay that you don’t know who you like. Nobody’s pressuring you to marry just yet, anyway. Just enjoy their attention and your time back at home. You’ve earned both.”

  Arian lifted her head and smiled at me. “Thank you, Anna. You are a good friend.”

  I snorted. “I wish I was a better guest but I seem to be making a lot of trouble around here already. I mean, your family’s business is out what? Two months’ worth of meals for Grandmother?”

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  Her eyes twinkled and she shook her head. “There is no need to fret about that. My father often heeds her advice and her medicines, and so there is hardly a month where she does not go into the restaurant every day for a meal.”

  “Where did she come from?” I wondered as I led my friend toward the door.

  Arian shook her head. “I do not know. She arrived here many, many years ago, long before I was born, and assisted my grandfather in building the first of the lodges. Their designs were based on the houses from her homeland, or so she told my father once.”

  We arrived at the door and I grasped the handle. My hand shook a little and I snatched it away behind myself, but my poor effort to hide the shaking didn’t fool my friend.

  “Are you certain you are well?” Arian persisted as she studied me with a sharp eye. Her gaze landed on my hand draped over her shoulder. “You are leaning quite heavily on me.”

  “Am I?” I replied as I slipped away from her. My body swayed from side to side until I clapped a palm against the wall beside the door. I gave my suspicious friend a sheepish smile. “It’s just a little twinge. I’ll be fine.”

  “I would rather you remain in bed for a while longer,” she insisted.

  I grinned and rubbed the tip of my finger against her arm. “Oh no. I had enough of being bedridden after my plant attack. I expect you to finish the tour with me. I haven’t even been to the new market, only the old cave one.”

  Arian’s shoulders slumped and she sighed. “If you insist.”

  I looped an arm through one of hers and gave an affirmative nod. “I do, now let’s see what this wonderful hometown of yours is really like.”

  My friend set a hand on my arm and smiled at me. “Very well, but you will tell me when you become too tired, will you not?”

  “Definitely,” I assured her.

  We had hardly taken a step when a knock came from the other side of the door. Arian and I glanced at each other with questioning looks on both our faces.

  “Lady Roberts? Arian?” Dian called through the door. “Father wants to know if you both will be joining us for dinner. He wants to have a feast in honor of Lady Roberts’ arrival.”

  Arian cupped her head in her free hand and sighed. “Father should have made the feast for you yesterday.”

  “We didn’t exactly give them notice we were coming,” I reminded her as I playfully nudged her arm with my elbow. “Besides, I was too tired to attend the party last night. I’ll be a lot more fun tonight.”

  “Could we discuss this without a door between us?” Dian spoke up.

  Even Arian had to crack a smile and I laughed. She opened the door and revealed her brother leaning one arm against the door frame. A mischievous smile lay on his lips and his eyes twinkled with a light I’d seen a few times in my friend’s gaze.

  He looked me up and down. “I am very much glad to see your silver hair has returned.”

  Right. The water magic Grandmother had thrown over me. Dian had seen my hidden identity.

  I drew a strand in front of me and petted the threads. “Yeah, I’m trying out a temporary look. What do you think?”

  He closed his eyes and solemnly shook his head. “It doesn’t suit you at all. Silver is much more your color.” I didn’t have the heart to tell him brown had been my original hair color.

  “You have delivered your message,” Arian spoke up as she eyed her brother. “Did you need something else?”

  “It isn’t what I need but what you ladies need,” he teased as he jerked his head over his shoulder. “I thought you might care for some company in your next outing, or would you prefer to call me after the trouble has started?”

  “We are not sure what we will do quite yet,” Arian countered as she set a hand on my arm. “Perhaps we will go take a bath.”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Then you will need my company after all.”

  “I wouldn’t trust you with a dead hive.” We all looked down the hall and beheld Jin sauntering toward us. The young man was all cleaned up from his adventures and a bright smile lightened the tan on his features. He joined our little tete-a-tete and folded his arms over his chest. His sharp eyes took in the sights and stopped on Dian. “What brings you here, Dian?”

  Dian swept his eyes over the house. “I thought I would admire the woodwork here in my family’s home.”

  Jin’s gaze fell on where Dian leaned against the entrance. “And is this door frame particularly interesting?”

  “Not so much the frame as what it frames,” Dian countered as he returned his gaze to us. “That is a view worth staring at.”

  Arian couldn’t suppress a roll of her eyes before she pulled us through the two young men. “If you will both excuse us, we have some very light exploring to do.”