FORTY-EIGHT

Spring had come to Vardan's rose garden far sooner than it had reached her father's house, Zuleika found. Some of the bushes had already burst into bloom, while the profusion of buds on others promised that spring had only just begun.

It was a far cry from the snow-filled courtyard she'd first arrived in. And so sweet-smelling, too. Zuleika took another deep breath, hoping that the memory of sweetness would be enough to help her keep her composure in her interview with Vardan. No, she would need more than just the memory. Reaching out, she plucked a purple rose from the nearest bush, and tucked the bloom into her braided hair.

"Now you've returned to steal my flowers, Lady Belle?"

Zuleika whirled and found Vardan seated on a bench she hadn't seen, tucked under an archway twined with flowers. He rose.

"I...I didn't mean to..." she stammered. "And my name isn't – "

"Belle, I know," he interrupted. "But you have been Lady Belle to me so long, both before me and in my dreams, it is hard to remember you are also Lady Zuleika, powerful enchantress." He bowed.

Zuleika swallowed. "My power is less than it was," she admitted. "I lost a lot of blood. It will return, though, as I recover. Which reminds me that I have a proposal for you. When I heard of your plan for a merchants' league – "

"You came here with a proposal because of the merchants' league?" Disbelief registered on his face.

Zuleika shook her head. "No, I came because Rolf brought my father's goods, and told him that they came at a price. That I must come here immediately."

"I gave no such order," he snapped, then his voice softened as he continued, "Though I considered it. Many times. Rolf..."

Realisation hit Zuleika at the same time as she saw it dawn in Vardan's eyes. "He lied," she breathed. "Loyalty. He lied to me out of loyalty to you, so that I would return to Beacon Isle. To you." His eyes. Once she'd seen them, she couldn't look away. Beast or man, those eyes spoke to her soul as he pierced her heart. She understood the loyalty that had driven Rolf. Now, she, too, would live or die for this man. Even if he never looked at her the same way as he had the night he'd kissed her.

She cleared her throat. "To be your envoy, I assume, as I suggested. I can travel quickly, and if I speak for both you and my father, I'm sure your league will exist before the year is out. If you give me a list of merchants, I shall go immediately – "

"You will not. Rolf and my men have the league well in hand." Vardan took a deep breath. "If you wish to help me, I have a different proposal in mind. One where you stay here on Beacon Isle, with me. If you wish."

"Of course, but I thought...after I was the cause of the curse afflicting your island, you wouldn't want me here. No one would."

Vardan grasped her hand. "You cursed a mirror, not me. My brother gave me a cursed mirror, not you. I looked into the mirror and cursed my island, not you. Yet you came to my aid, to our aid, and broke the curse, though it nearly killed you. None of this is your fault, Lady Zuleika."

She swallowed. "But it is. I still cast the curse so the king could give it to you. I had no idea it would be so powerful. Lifting it was the least I could do, when I knew no one else would be willing to die in order to correct my mistake. What else could I do?"

"I can think of a few things." He captured her other hand and brought them to his lips. A warm, tingling kiss drove all other thoughts out of her head for one blissful moment. "You are the only person alive who could break that curse?"

"Yes."

"And yet my brother told me to slay you."

Zuleika frowned. "That would not have broken the curse. The mirror was imbued with blood magic that only blood could dispel. Killing me would have ensured the curse was permanent."

Vardan inclined his head. "As you say. A curse my brother made you cast, which he gifted to me, and then lied about how to break it. He has woven a curious web to trap us both and keep us apart. Perhaps he fears what we can do together."

"With the league, yes – " she began, but he silenced her with a kiss. A kiss that stole her breath and her senses, because she wanted nothing more than him.

"With you by my side, he wouldn't dare try to curse me again," Vardan said. "Lady Zuleika, my brave Belle, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

Zuleika felt lightheaded. For a moment, she thought she'd heard him say something else, something impossible, until she realised she must have heard wrong. Her soaring heart plummeted. "Your witch?" she asked. "I could cast protection spells on your person right away, but to protect the isle would take longer. I would be honoured to try, though."

He chuckled. "I have had enough of spells to last me a lifetime, and perhaps a second one after that. No, I want you to be my wife. The woman who will stand by my side when the league first meets."

Zuleika's heart soared once more. There could be no mistake this time. "I will," she said, lifting her chin.

"You will? You really will?" He beamed. "I will send someone to bring a priest directly. We will be married in the chapel today, and tonight..." He swallowed, his eyes shining. "Tonight I will truly make you my wife. Nothing would make me happier."

Could he truly mean that? With all her heart, Zuleika wanted to believe him.