I felt panicky. “I’m the last person you should seek advice from!” I stammered. “Look at me! I’m a mess!”

Smiling softly, Ceri dropped her eyes. “You’re the most caring person I know, consistently risking your life for those who can’t fight on their own. I see this in the people you love. Ivy, who is afraid she can’t fight her battle alone anymore. Kisten, who struggles to stand in a system where he knows he’s too weak. Jenks, who has the courage but not the strength to make a difference in a world that doesn’t even see him.”

“Aw, thanks, Ceri,” the pixy mumbled from under his napkin.

“You often see the worst in people,” she said, “but you always see the best. Eventually.”

I gaped at her. Noting my unease, she hesitated. “Do you trust Trent?”

“No!” I blurted, then paused. But here I was broaching the subject of introducing Ceri to him. “Maybe in some things,” I amended. “I trust your judgment, though.”

Apparently it was the right thing to say, since Ceri smiled and put a cool hand upon mine. “You believe in him more than you realize, and though I may not know him, I trust your judgment, slow as it is in coming.” Her smile turned wicked. “And I’m not a silly girl to be blinded by a tidy posterior and expansive landholdings.”

Tidy posterior and expansive landholdings? Was that the Dark Ages equivalent of a tight ass and a lot of money? I chuckled, and her hand slipped away. “He’s devious,” I warned. “I don’t want you to be taken advantage of. I know he’s going to want a sample for his labs.”

Ceri sipped her tea, her eyes focused on the sunlit garden. “He can have it. I want my species to recover as much as he does. I only wish I’d pre-dated the curse so the damage could be fixed completely instead of the bandage he has been slapping on our children.”

My fingers curled around the cool porcelain, but I didn’t bring the cup to my lips. Trent owed me big-time. Ceri was giving him one hell of a better bandage. “He’s manipulative,” I added, and she raised one eyebrow.

“And I’m not? Do you think I couldn’t wind this man about my finger if I wanted?”

I looked away, worried. Yeah, she could.

Ceri laughed. “I don’t want a husband,” she said, green eyes twinkling. “I have to reinvent myself before I can share my life with anyone. Besides, he’s getting married.”

I couldn’t help my snort. “To a really nasty woman,” I muttered, starting to relax. I did not want Trent marrying Ceri. Even if Trent weren’t such a dirtbag, I’d probably never see her again after she found his garden.

“I do believe,” Ceri said wryly, “you think this wedding is just punishment for past sins.”