“Gary!” Cee spoke through gritted teeth, interrupting the lad’s verbal waterfall, no doubt clocking my utter bewilderment. He just blinked at her obliviously, one eyelid at a time. “The prince does not wish to hear of your exploits.”

I recovered, smiling politely. “It’s quite alright.”

For a beat, there was an uncomfortable silence, but then Gary shrugged, entirely unperturbed. “Right-o, boss.” He saluted Cee before bowing to me. “Your Highness.”

“I shall take my leave. We should be ready to depart on the hour.” With matching head dips of acknowledgment from them, I returned to the room, setting the tray on the side table before perching on the edge of the bed.

I combed my fingers through Luca’s unruly mane. “Sweetheart… I hate to wake you, but I need you to eat something before we leave.”

He grumbled unintelligibly, and I couldn’t fight my adoring smile.

“I understand, pet, but you did not eat much last night.” I tried to reason with the petulant blanket nest. “I may be at fault for that, so I am trying to take responsibility.”

With a huff, my mate peeked out from under the covers, a scowl worthy of the Haryk name on his face. I granted him a moment to shuffle up the bed and stretch out his arms before setting the tray in his lap. Only once he’d taken his first mouthful did he speak. “This is pretty good.”

“Gary said you would enjoy it.” I poured water from the pitcher into one of the tankards, and handed it over. “We may have to add Royal Taste Tester to his résumé.”

Luca snorted. “I like Gary.” He lifted another spoonful to his mouth, this one noticeably smaller than the last. “Are you not having anything?”

“I am not particularly fond of stewed fruit.” My nose wrinkled. “It’s all mushy.”

“You could scrape it off,” he offered in amusement, but I just shook my head.

“I fear the dish is already contaminated.”

He laughed and continued on with his miniature bites. I watched him carefully, looking for any signs of unease, but he displayed none. Perhaps he wasn’t that fond of the taste, after all. “Would you like me to fetch you something else?”

Luca seemed startled by my request. “No, I like it.”

I nodded, but wasn’t convinced. He managed a quarter of the bowl before setting down his spoon and taking a slow sip of his water. It was clear that he didn’t want any more, but I couldn’t help worrying that he hadn’t consumed anything of substance since our afternoon at the market. Was he getting sick? Or was this a delayed effect of the reaper’s powers? “Are you feeling alright, pet?”

“Yeah,” he said, seemingly earnest in his answer. “It’s just kinda filling, and I don’t want to have to walk all day feeling bloated. That’s really not fun, at all.”