P.C. Cast - Goddess of the Sea

Raising her eyebrows at the knight she asked, "Is there something out here that you're afraid of?"

"Of course not," Andras said, drawing himself up to his full, imposing height, blond mane shimmering in the early afternoon sunlight.

He really was incredibly handsome, the perfect knight in shining armor.

"Oh, then those guards must be for me." She fluttered her eyelashes at him coquettishly. "Silly me, I thought I just heard you say that I didn't need to be afraid of anything while I was under your protection. Or is that just while we're within the walls of the monastery?"

The knight's jaw tightened. "Marten! Gilbert! Remain here. I will escort the princess alone."

The two squires sent hot looks in CC's direction, but they did as they were ordered.

"Come," Andras said, his voice gentled from the tone of command he used with his men. "We shall walk down the road. It branches not far from here and the eastern fork winds through a rather nice meadow. I thought that you should visit some of the inland parts of Caldei," he said, putting an emphasis on the word.

CC wanted to tell him that she could care less about what was inland—she just wanted to go to the seashore! Instead she swallowed her frustration and strolled casually beside him, careful to keep her expression neutral.

"Anywhere you would like to go is fine with me. You were right; I do enjoy the exercise."

Andras smiled at her compliment, and CC couldn't help returning his smile. He did seem to have shaken Sarpedon's influence and was his usual, macho self again. The thought made her smile turn into a grin, and even though they weren't near the water, CC found that she was actually enjoying the walk. Soon they came to what CC recognized as the little path that branched from the road and meandered down to the shore. CC pointed to the trail.

"Isn't that the path that we took before?" she asked.

"Yes."

CC sighed dramatically.

"Are you well, Undine? Perhaps you would like to rest before we continue?" Andras asked.

"No, I'm fine. I was just remembering what a wonderful lunch you had packed for us and what a nice time we had that day."

Andras's eyes widened. "I am pleased to hear you say so, Undine."

CC took a deep breath, steeling herself. Then she turned to face the knight. "Andras, I have been thinking about us." She paused, letting the word us linger in the air between them. "We have had some unfortunate misunderstandings, and I am sorry for that. After all, you did save me, and I should be more appreciative than I have been." Purposefully she looked down at her feet, pretending maidenly shyness. Then, glancing up at him through thick lashes she said, "Maybe we could start over."

CC watched a fierce look of triumph pass quickly over the knight's face.

"Yes, let us begin anew," he said passionately.

CC plastered a wide smile on her face. When the knight began to lean toward her as if he wanted to kiss her, she pulled her hand from his arm and clapped girlishly.

"Oh, good!" CC chirped, waggling her fingers in the direction of the trail and brightening her face, as if an idea had just occurred to her. "And what better way to start over than for us to follow the same path we did before all of our misunderstandings started!"

The knight hesitated only a moment before responding. "If it would make you happy, Undine."

CC sighed in relief as they stepped off the road and began following the twisting trail. It took very little time for them to break through the trees and come to the sandy shoreline. CC breathed deeply, washing herself in the aroma of the salt breeze. Her spirit, dressed in her human body, quivered and strained with its desire to rejoin the waters. The ocean was sweet-laughter blue, and the whimsical waves played tag with the shore, calling to her in a voice that echoed through her blood.

"You always become even more beautiful when you are near the sea." Andras's voice was raw with lust. "I wonder why that is."

CC wrenched her thoughts from the water to focus on the knight. His features were tight, locked in the intense expression of a man determined to possess a woman. CC felt a shiver of apprehension. She had been a fool to believe that Sarpedon's influence could be so easily shaken. She realized that she had to distract him. Struggling to calm the fear within her, she formed her lips into a friendly smile.

"Well, it must be because I love the sea so much. Being near it makes me feel like I'm home." She took another deep breath, schooling her face into an aspect of polite interest. "But enough about me. You've hardly told me anything about your childhood. I would love to hear about Caer Llion."

The mention of his home seemed to break through his fog of lust, and Andras blinked like a man surfacing after a long dive.

"Caer Llion is a place of great beauty," he said solemnly. "It is not wild, as is this coastline. It is well-ordered and civilized." Andras stepped closer to her. "You could find there everything your heart desires."

CC summoned up a delighted laugh and skipped a step away from him, as if she could hardly contain her glee at the thought of learning more about his home.

"Oh, it sounds wonderful! Please, tell me more," she said as she wandered girlishly down the shoreline, picking up an occasional seashell or piece of discarded coral, while she moved ever closer to the water.

"Well," Andras said thoughtfully as he followed CC. 'The first thing you should know about Caer Llion is that it is a well-ordered castle…"

Andras loved his home, and his voice was warm and animated as he enumerated the wonders of Caer Llion. All CC had to do was to make an occasional, interested noise and smile encouragingly. He was so intent on his description of Caer Llion's stables that he didn't even notice when CC slipped off her shoes. It was only when she hiked up her skirts and actually stepped into the water that he paused in his recitation.

"You should have care. The water can cause a chill."

CC noticed that his gaze was riveted on the glimpse of knee and calf she was exposing.

"I'll be careful," she said, cheerfully ignoring the heat in his eyes. "Go on, you haven't described the main hall of the castle yet."

CC breathed a sigh of relief as he continued his dissertation. Nodding and smiling, she half turned away from him and continued walking down the shoreline. Hungrily, her eyes scanned the water. There was no flash of orange and gold, no sign of Dylan's sleek body.

She wanted to call to Dylan. She had planned to—until she had stepped onto the beach. What would Dylan think when he saw her with Andras? Would he trust her, or would he be angry and jealous? Or worse, would he feel hurt and betrayed? Questions filled her mind as she made polite noises at the knight to keep him talking.

The shoreline bent to the east, then it curved back abruptly to the west. In the middle of the bend was formed a shallow cove that was littered with large, smooth rocks. The water there was more tamed than the wild waves that jarred the shore beneath the monastery. CC pulled her skirts up a little higher and walked out into the cove, climbing easily up on the rounded top of the nearest rock.

"Undine, those rocks are slick with sea water," Andras said.

"Oh, they're really not very slick. See?" She tapped the sand-colored rock with her toe. "The tide is out and the top is dry." She smiled at him. "Andras, would you say that the stones from which Caer Llion was constructed are the same color as this rock, or do they look more like the gray stones of the monastery?"

Andras rubbed his chin, pondering rock colors and shades of his beloved Caer Llion. CC stepped to the next rock. By skipping from rock to rock she had traveled well out into the cove and was four stony mounds away from the knight before he finished the description of the wall surrounding Caer Llion.