Dragon Knight-Commander (A Cullen Rutherford Shapeshifter Romance)

Chapter 12

Travelling with the army was a lot slower. I would have preferred a gallop across the dips and flats of the bright green mountain paths. Spring was in the air. It was chilly and most of the mountains were clad with soft snow but with the glorious sunshine on my face I wondered what summer would be like in Thedas. Not that I would be here.

Cullen had picked twenty mounted army men for the mission and a dozen ancillary workers who pulled tents, ammunition and provisions in wagons. He sat at the front on his mount. The sunlight danced off his armour like it had off his scales.

I rode Warrior Girl at the back next to Maxwell. He knew that I liked hearing about the lore and history of Thedas so to pass the time he picked out significant events and wove them into a gripping story of heroism, adventure, love, wrathful gods and magic. He had a way with words and I hung on every one, imagining the events in the scenery that unfolded before me. He told his stories with humour and at one point I laughed out long and loud.

The troop came to a sudden halt as Cullen stopped and turned to look at me. He scowled and urged his horse on.

'Not allowed to laugh now, Cat,' said Maxwell. 'I don't know what you said to him last night but if I were you, I'd watch your back.'

'What do you mean?' I said. The pit of my stomach fell.

'He came to see me this morning. He's put me on a warning.'

'For doing what?'

'For encouraging you to take a break and leave.'

'But you're the Inquisitor.'

'At first I put it down to jealousy, but like everything else about Cullen, it's all about the Inquisition. He reminded me that you are some demigod sent to free Thedas by my side. That the Inquisition required focus. By the Maker how many times did I hear that word - Focus. Then he got personal and warned me off of you. After last night I would put that down to jealousy but he said that if our relationship turned sour we couldn't afford to lose you unless it's because you're going back home. That he has pledged to find a way for you to get back to your kingdom. On and on and on. He's only a few years older than me but it was like speaking to my dad. Anyway, are you so desperate to leave us Cat?'

I cleared my throat. 'My family will be missing me. I've got a job.' A boyfriend who's face I couldn't remember. 'A mortgage. Payments are due on my flat. And England in the 21st century is cool. It's easier than here. Not as beautiful, but it's home.'

His hand shot out and he held my horse's bridle. 'But what if you can't find your way home, Cat? What if the future is now your past and you must live in the present?'

'That's way too many tenses.'

Maxwell was a very good-looking man. He knew it. He wore muscle t-shirts and tight breeches to show off his well-trained body. He was proud of his aristocratic dynasty and his confidence was bone deep. He was dark and handsome, a ying to Cullen's yang. He was fun, always. Sometimes cruel with his observations but always funny. Now he was serious. I felt a flutter of panic. Surely not another proposal. Two days in a row: I was on fire.

I said, 'If there's no going back, then I will have to accept that. But it's early days. Perhaps when I've done my bit for you lot, the asshole in this universe who sent me here will just poof me right back again. Perhaps I will find the exact bit of earth I came from and slip back through time. Perhaps I will finally wake up and this will all have been an amazing dream.'

'I could make you happy, Cat. You only live once and if I only have you for a few more weeks before you're poofed away, I'll take that.'

I blushed. 'So is this what you had planned to say to me in your chambers last night?'

He laughed and said, 'As if I would have the nerve to proposition a demi-god. Friendship, Cat and getting to know each other better to see what the future holds.'

'So it is normal to date in Thedas?'

'Date?'

'Take a girl out, give her dinner for a few years before you propose.'

'Yes, we call it courting. Not a few years. One year at the most is probably sufficient to know, is it not?'

'Yes Maxwell. Thank you very much. One year is sufficient. Five years is too long and one kiss is too short.' I kicked my horse's flanks and laughed. With a sudden lightness in my chest I consigned both Darren and Cullen to the devil and cantered along the track to catch up with Cassandra.