A body of lean muscle. A face of sharp angles.
Magic glowing in emerald-green eyes.
The man’s ears came to a delicate point at the top, just like Padraig’s.
“You must be Aveen.” The man vanished only to reappear at my side, his accent lilting, rolling like the Airren hills. He smelled of almonds.
My heart constricted and stomach fluttered when he reached for my hand. Strangely cold lips grazed my knuckles. “It is truly an honor to meet the woman who has bewitched my brother.”
My brother.
This man was Rían’sbrother?
“Although,” the man said, tracing a solitary finger down the center of my palm toward the pulse at my wrist, “Rían has been quite stingy with details. Tell me, how did the two of you meet?”
How did we meet? Was I supposed to lie or tell the truth?
As if he could hear my bungled thoughts, Rían tugged me by the elbow, tucking me beneath his arm. “We’re not here to discuss that.”
The smile on his brother’s face never wavered. “No matter. I’m sure the truth will come out eventually.” He gave Rían a pointed look over my head. “It always does.”
The air hummed with electricity as if lightning were about to strike.
“What’s your name?” I forced through my dry throat.
The man grinned, revealing a set of straight, white teeth. “You can call me Tadhg.”
Tadhg.
Rían’sbrother. Presumably a prince as well.
A prince with a wrinkled shirt that looked like it had been worn for days.
A prince with grass stains on his elbows.
A prince with dirty handprints smeared down the thighs of his wool trousers.
“Why are your clothes in such an awful state, Tadhg?”
Dropping onto the chair in front of the barren fireplace, Tadhg unfastened the two remaining buttons on his emerald-green waistcoat. “My brother bet me that I couldn’t convince anyone to share my bed if I didn’t look like a prince. And I’ve been proving him wrong for”—his eyes narrowed on Rían—“how long now? It must be at least a century.”
“You’re cursed to look like a woman’s fantasy,” Rían shot back, hands flexing into fists. “Of course you won.”
Chuckling, Tadhg smiled at me. “Do I look like the man who visits your dreams, Aveen?”
I didn’t dream of men often.
When I did, they all looked like Tadhg.
Although there was no way I could tell him that. “I find you repulsive.”
Tadhg snorted. The way his smile tugged on his full lips left my chest tightening. “You’re a terrible liar. Perhaps my brother can give you some lessons.”
Rían kicked over the chair. Tadhg’s laughter echoed around the room. He didn’t bother moving from where he’d sprawled on the floor, just slipped his hands beneath his head and stared up at the ceiling. “Ah, ah, little Rían. Wouldn’t want your dark side showing now, would you?”
As fascinating as it was to see Rían on edge, the long day had taken its toll. “I hate to interrupt, but I’m trying to figure out how Tadhg is supposed to help in my . . .”
Rían’s brows rose.