Page 21 of Courting the Tiger King

She slipped her hand back into his and their dance resumed, her dress fluttering about his legs as they twirled silently, eyes locked in a battle of wills despite his being none the wiser as to what they were fighting about.

“Zennon—”

“Does not seem to mind that we are dancing.”

This time she growled. “Are you going to keep doing that? Cutting off what I say?”

He let her finish speaking and then smirked. “No.”

“Butwhyare we dancing?” Her brows furrowed and he missed a step, so focused on the minute movement.

“Why not?”

“But—”

“You seem awfully preoccupied by it,” he mused. “Why is that? We’re dancing,caritas, yet you act as if we were being seen doing something far more primal.” The rasp of his voice surprised him and when she shivered, he knew it wasn’t from cold. “Who are you?”

At that, she blinked. “You know who I am.”

“I’m not so sure,” he murmured and wariness made her mouth flatten as he spun her around to the song’s final crescendo. Her hair was a wash of gold tumbling around her shoulders as she followed the movement effortlessly and curled back into his arms for the final beat.

Their breaths heaved, her scent invading his senses, and for half a second they didn’t move. Until a titter broke out and Neah yanked herself away before dipping into a shallow curtsy. “Thank you for the dance, my king.”

He inclined his head as the dance floor filled in around them, other couples flocking to the scene now that Wren had done his duty in opening the dance. He remained silent as Neah walked away, not sure what he might say if he opened his mouth, nor didhe trust the way his body responded when she’d called himmy king, as if the words were a claim rather than an honorific.

Following Neah at a more sedate pace, he noticed her spine straighten when she sensed his pursuit and then relax when he turned his attention to Lady Zennon.

“May I have this dance?” He held out his hand and his mate took it, a small smile on her face as they walked to the centre of the room. “I hope you didn’t mind me dancing with your friend. Only, she is an intriguing character and as she is close with you, I find myself wanting to know her better.”

“Of course, it’s no trouble, my king.”

“Wren,” he corrected and she smiled as he guided her into the first steps of the dance.

“Wren,” she said, and her smile was pleasant, sweet, and she was malleable under his palms. He felt overly aware of every step, every breath, not wanting to crowd her, or lead her too strongly as he felt her delicate form.

The dance was over quickly and he found that he’d spent more time concentrating on his footwork than he had appreciating the woman in front of him. But his nerves made sense—this was hismate. He wanted to make a good impression. Of course things had flowed easier with Neah, his steps coming easy and sure, the space between them warm and fraught, the stakes were different.

He bowed his head and Lady Zennon smiled. “Save me another later?”

She nodded. “It would be my pleasure.”

His eyes found Neah, watching them closely even as her face was inscrutable. “The pleasure is all mine.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

NEAH

The night had been warm, almost uncomfortably so, especially with Zennon sharing the bed. Neah felt like she’d spent the majority of the night tossing and turning rather than sleeping, which might account for her grouchier-than-normal attitude.

Well that, and Zennon hadn’t stopped needling Neah about the dance she’d shared with the king two nights ago. Since then, Neah had done her best to avoid the king and fade into the background when Zennon spent time with him. It wasn’t hard—their conversations seemed dry and silence often pervaded the air until one or both of them attempted to speak. Neah couldn’t deny that there seemed to be a lack of spark between the two and it wasn’t often that the Goddess chose poorly when it came to matching fated souls.

With the dawn came a break in the heat at last, but the attendants woke Neah not long after she’d managed to doze off. They’d fled quickly when she’d quite literally growled at them. It was a sound she’d never made before, more animal than human, and her hand had flown up to cover her mouth. Maybe once she’d have taken it as a sign that her long-awaited shifter side might make an appearance, but she’d lost that hopeseveral years ago. Now, she took it as an odd curiosity potentially brought on by stress.

Two strong cups of tea later, Neah was feeling slightly more awake as she made her way down to the courtyard the king’s guard often used to train. The king had invited Zennon there, which surprised Neah. Though she supposed it made sense for the king to know how to fight and do battle. However, Zennon hadn’t received the same training Neah had so she wasn’t sure what the king was expecting from her sister.

The breeze was nice on Neah’s skin as they walked across the green toward the small group gathered opposite the archery targets. Her father had designed the training course that they stood in the middle of and Neah felt her tension drain away. This, at least, was familiar territory.

The king looked up and spotted them at that moment, lifting a hand in greeting that Zennon reciprocated. Gabriel, Skye, and, to Neah’s surprise, Sonnet, stood with the king, the latter looking bored.

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