Ashborne (The Ashborne Trilogy: Book 1) Read Free

center of the
banquet table, using both of his large paws, he excitedly raised my
hand to bestow a prickly kiss upon.
    “ I haven't seen you since
you were crawling around on the floor and shittin' on yourself!” he
laughed heartily. “Just look at ya! You've got your mother's eyes!
Look at how beautiful you've become!”
    I bowed my head in respect and spoke
graciously. “Thank you. Yes, it's been too long.”
    “ Amber,” my father
interrupted and stepped forward, clearly annoyed by the gushing
over me, “this is the King of Benethil, Gillien Fildar, and his
son, Prince of Benethil, Alexander Fildar.”
    “ We're honored to have you
both as our guests tonight,” I said.
    “ Alexander, come have a
look,” My father gripped my hand tightly and signaled Alexander
closer.
    Despite my father's age, he was still
surprisingly strong. His body still carried much of the strength
and muscle he earned from waging war in his younger years. As
Alexander stood in front of us, Father callously raised my
arm.
    “ Turn around, Amber. Let
this boy have a look.”
    I knew my father was going to do this,
yet it still made me angry. I felt like cattle being auctioned off
as I turned full circle. Alexander eyed me like a snake eyes its
prey, taking in every inch of my body as I turned back to face
him.
    Alexander, who must have been nearly
twice my age, kissed the top of my hand while staring solely at my
breasts. “A pleasure to meet you, M'lady.” His respectful tone
certainly didn't match his demeanor.
    Maybe it was his shifty eyes, his
black mustache and goatee, or the lustful expression on his face,
but I could tell right away that Alexander was not to be trusted.
Still, I smiled and nodded my head politely. That was my job
tonight.
    “ What do you think? You
can marry this, right?” my father said, sounding like a street
merchant looking to unload his unwanted wares.
    Alexander crossed his arms. He started
at my laced heels and slowly went all the way up to my eyes. He
looked at me, seemingly pleased with himself. “Hmm. I'm not sure.
Perhaps she could stay the night in my chambers to help me
decide.”
    Ugh… swine. Lay one hand on
me and I don’t care who you are, I’ll break it off.
    “ Hey! Knock it off!
Darius, leave those kids alone and let's eat! I'm starved!” Gillien
said as he headed back toward the end of the banquet table that was
already decorated with the finest meats, cheeses and fruits our
kingdom had to offer. He and my father must have had more history
than I knew, because there were only a few men who could address my
father by his first name without consequence.
    He pulled out a chair near the head of
the table and gestured to me. “Amber, you come sit here. Let's get
to feastin' and drinkin'! It's been two whole days since I've had
some good wine!”
    “ Oh? Will no one else be
joining us this evening?” I asked politely, taking my seat from
Gillien.
    “ Heavens no, girl! I ain't
here to share my wine with the whole of Ashborne. We're here on
business.”
    That was a relief. I wasn't looking to
stick around any longer than I had to. As everyone else found their
seats, I began to wonder what kind of business Gillien had with my
father. I knew from experience that the road from Benethil to
Ashborne was a week's ride along dangerous territory. For the King
himself to brave such a journey, something must be
wrong.
    “ I figured this wasn't a
social visit,” my father said, stuffing some cheese into his mouth.
“What's this all about, Gillien?”
    Gillien poured wine into an over-sized
goblet he must have brought from home. “Now, now! Let me get some
damn wine in me first. We've got plenty of time for that later. Let
me catch up with your fine daughter here. Amber, have some wine.”
He grinned and held his giant goblet out to me.
    I chuckled. “No, thank you. That's too
much for me. Besides, I have to continue training our new recruits
tomorrow with Gentry.”
    Gillien took a big gulp from