He thought that just because he had some grand title at some backwater nation that nobody had ever heard of, he could suddenly wave a magic wand and make someone a fantasy title called Countess of Cerulea?
Whatever.
Cedric's eyes crinkled with laughter.
He could read her thoughts so clearly, and it amused him that she honestly thought he was making things up just to save face for her.
He could not wait to show her his kingdom.
=========
Morning dawned bright and early, but it wasn't the sun shining in through the windows that woke Talia. It was the loud singing coming from somewhere nearby.
She woke up to see the small figure of Devin, sitting in the corner of her room, playing with his few scattered toys, and singing the 'Raining Wolf' song to himself.
He had somehow clambered down from his crib and wandered across the hall and into her room.
She laughed.
"Devin." She called out softly to him. He turned to her, his bright eyes smiling.
"Rain Wooof." He grinned.
"Come here." She invited.
He grabbed Ben by the ear and ran to her.
Talia reached out and hoisted him onto the bed and he snuggled up next to her, happily singing to himself.
She closed her eyes and smiled as she felt his wriggling little body up against her back.
Today was a warm sunny day. Perhaps she could persuade Devin could play outside a bit. He had been stuck inside for awhile now due to all the rain from the hurricane.
After breakfast, they played around a bit and then she put him in a pair of blue swim shorts, and threw on a red string bikini she found in one of the side pouches of her bag.
The weather was warming up nicely as she and Devin entered the pool on the shallow end.
At first, Devin was a little nervous, but once he found out how much fun the water was, he began splashing around and making joyful noises.
They waded around a bit until Devin decided he wanted to splash in the deeper area.
"No. You can't go there, Devin. You don't know how to swim."
"Me swim." Devin insisted.
"You can swim?" Talia asked.
He nodded vigorously.
"Show me."
Devin gave a mischievous grin and then scrunched up his face.
Before her startled eyes, he began to change into a little wolf.
Within a minute, the little boy wearing the blue swim shorts had turned into a dog-like pup, tangled in his shorts.
She pulled the shorts off him and he began swimming around with all four dog legs.
"Arooooooo!" He howled with delight.
She laughed and dove in, swimming alongside the little pup.
"ArooOOOoooo! WoooOOOOooooo!" He continued howling as he swam in laps all around her while she tread water, keeping a close eye on him.
But Devin was a far better swimmer than she was, and he was tireless.
They tried racing each other, but he won so handily that she gave up after a couple of laps.
They were still splashing around in the water when she realized that someone had come to the pool area and was watching them.
As Talia turned towards him, the little white pup swam up next to her and turned his nose in the direction of the person.
"So you're the scary matron who drove off Cedric's fiancée." A voice called out by the poolside.
Talia looked up.
Silhouetted against the bright blue sky was a man with hair so blond, it was almost white. It was long and fluttered in the gusty wind, looking like angel wings behind him.
His face was comely, with pale green eyes and almost white lashes and eyebrows. And if that wasn't dazzling enough, the man wore an all white suit which was almost blinding in the bright noon sun.
He crouched down on his haunches, looking into the pool at her and the puppy Devin playing around.
"And is that my nephew?" He looked over at Devin, still swimming around.
"ArooOOOooooo!!!" Devin responded.
The man laughed. "That would be Devin."
"Are you Cedric's brother?" Talia asked.
And besides, he had called Devin his nephew.
"It's a pleasure to meet you finally." He smiled. "My name is Cecil Blaxtone. I'm Cedric's oldest brother."
Talia smiled, but internally heaved a silent sigh. Playtime was over. She needed to meet and greet Cedric's brother.
"Come on Devin. We've played enough. It's time to get out of the pool." She picked the little wolf pup up and hauled him onto the shallows.
"AroooOOOoooo!!!" Devin howled once and shook his body.
Before her eyes, his body weight began to drop and his bulky mass thinned dramatically as all the fur dissipated. In less than a minute, he had transformed back into a wriggling little boy in her arms.
"Maaaaamaaaaaa me swim! Me swim!" He chattered with fists pounding at the sky.
Talia laughed. "Yes you sure showed me. You're a super good swimmer Devin. I'm very proud of you."
Devin giggled and howled his pleasure.
As she and Devin rose from the pool, she could feel the man's eyes on her body and Talia quickly went to get the towels, wrapping it around herself and then Devin.
Anne was waiting for him at the kitchen doorway, so he ran ahead of her to get back into the house.
The man in all white approached her with a wide grin. He oozed charm to the point that it made Talia uneasy.
"So you're Talia Fabian." Cecil's pale blue eyes crinkled up with a smile.
As he came closer to Talia, she had to crane her neck up to see his face.
The similarity to Cedric was very apparent, now that she could see him clearer. They both had very similar breathtaking royal features, soft lush lips, and the same pale blond hair and face.
The only difference was their eyes. This man had light green eyes whereas Cedric's eyes were a warm amber color.
From the position of his head relative to hers, Talia could tell that he was almost just as tall as Cedric was, with a similar muscular frame.
"Hmmm." Cecil hummed and stared at her, mesmerized.
"Baby Brother forgot to tell me something very, very important." Cecil murmured, almost to himself. "He forgot to tell me what a rare and unusual beauty you are."
Talia narrowed her eyes and clutched onto the towel around her as if for protection.
"Please come inside. I'll let him know you're here."
"No need to tell me," a voice called out from the garden area.
"Cedric!" Talia turned with grateful eyes towards the sound of Cedric's voice.
Cedric smiled at her. "I see you and Devin found the pool. Next time you two go swimming, I hope you invite me as well."
Talia laughed and nodded.
"Looks like your brother is here. If you'll excuse me, I have to go change into something warmer."
Without waiting for his response, Talia fled into the house. The feeling of being almost undressed in front of these two men was very disturbing to her.
Talia had barely entered the house when Cedric and Cecil faced off.
"What the hell are you doing in my house?"