Rise of the Mages (Rise of the Mages 2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

pretty well the previous night. He’d put his arm around her. She’d laid her head on his shoulder.
    His heart hammered. Would she want to take up where they left off? He wanted to run to her to find out, but he’d probably trip and fall. Instead, he paused after each disorienting step. Better to play it cool anyway.
    What if she wanted him to kiss her?
    Blood rushed to his cheeks at the thought, and he slowed more to give the blush time to fade. When he finally reached her, he met her eyes. “My fair maiden Ashley.”
    “My fair prince Xan.” She smiled and extended her hand.
    He bowed, arm at his waist and left leg extended behind him just like books he’d read, and lightly brushed the back of her fingers with his lips.
    So far, so good.
    “Sit with me?” Ashley glided to a nearby oak and gracefully floated to the ground.
    She’d practically bolted to the tree. Was she as eager to resume their snuggling as he was? No. Her haste had to have some explanation that fell within the realm of possibility.
    Ashley glanced at him, her face tilted.
    What? Blast. He was just standing there staring at her like an idiot. What must she think of him?
    Xan scurried after her. Time and distance warped. He lurched across the space separating them. His foot connected with her leg, and he stumbled face first into the grass. She cried out.
    He’d kicked her. Caused her actual pain. Tripped. Fallen to the ground in a heap.
    Better that the tumble had caused his death. Better to die ingloriously than to suffer such embarrassment.
    He scrambled to his feet. “Are you hurt?”
    Ashley flexed her leg. “I don’t think so. You just startled me, I guess.”
    Such a blasted clumsy oaf! How could such calamity have befallen him? All prospects of kissing her, or even cuddling, vanished. Surely, she’d never speak to him again, much less continue with their—association? courtship?—relationship.
    “I am so, so sorry,” he said.
    She shrugged as if it were of no matter but offered no invitation to sit with her. He plopped down with his back against a nearby tree and drew his knees to his chest.
    Every time he looked up, she glanced away as if fascinated by the grass.
    Xan finally sighed. “Ashley, I’m not the most graceful of suitors, but …”
    Where exactly had he been going with that heart-felt declaration? Probably somewhere along the horrifying lines of using the L-word way too early. There had to be some way to salvage the situation.
    Think. What would Brant say? Praise her. Tell her how beautiful and smart and graceful she was.
    He opened his mouth—
    A vicious yank tugged at him. A rope strung to a team of horses at full gallop would have had less impact on his midsection.
    The world swirled around him. Colors blurred into blackness.
    When he came to, nausea roiled his stomach, and his head pounded. His eyes darted open to stare at the harsh glare of an oil lantern. He squinted to make out the person holding the light.
    Justav stepped into his line of sight and grinned. “By order of the Three Kingdoms, I place you under arrest for violation of the Prohibition of Magic Decree.”

8.
    Xan instantly regretted opening his eyes. Bright light shot through a narrow slit high above him and pierced his brain. His head pounded, and his ribs ached.
    Where was he?
    Stone walls surrounded him. Rough straw provided little padding against the hard floor and poked through his clothes.
    “Xan!” Master Rae glared at him through an iron-grated door.
    Indistinct memories assaulted Xan—being yanked out of the dream and large men draping him over a horse for a semi-conscious ride.
    “Are the charges true?” Master Rae said. “Quickly. Captain Reed has bought me little time.”
    “They arrested me!” Xan tried to rise but only gained his knees before the pain stopped him.
    “Focus, lad. Answer the question!”
    Xan barely remembered what happened. Some absurd accusation about using magic. “That peacock had me thrown in here to get