Page 170 of Enchanted Heir
“I did, Your Grace,” I snapped.
Keir stepped forward, sliding in front of me and standing between us. “And I thought you learned yours.”
“Here, Your Grace,” Molly offered. “Have a truffle. Keir was nice enough to bring them to Jorah and me just a moment ago.”
Sweet, brilliant Molly. Proving a point without crossing a line with the king. She was letting him know she’d been with me before Keir showed up. Backing me up.
The king barked, “No thank you,” and then stomped off.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered to Keir, “I should’ve known better than to talk to you two for so long.”
Keir spun back to face me, and I saw his magic crawling in his skin. “No. You don’t get to apologize for that. He was out of line. Again. You did nothing wrong.”
Sensing people watching and listening, I quickly reached out and squeezed his wrist. “Calm down, Keir. Your magic.”
As soon as it was all gone, I removed my hand. He gave his head a shake and whispered, “Sorry. I’m struggling to rein it in around him.”
“Aren’t we all,” mumbled Molly.
I felt a hand on my lower back and knew from the woodsy smell, Krew had arrived. I turned into his touch. “There you are.”
“Are you all right?” he asked me. Then his steel blue eyes homed in on his brother. “What was all that about?”
Keir gave him a shrug. “Father being father.”
There was a tense moment with Krew staring at Keir as if blaming him for it, and then I finally couldn’t take it anymore. “Would you like to dance?” I asked Krew.
“No,” he answered roughly. “I would like for this night to be over.”
“So dance with me while we await the countdown, and then dismiss us?”
“Fine,” he agreed.
On the dance floor, he pulled me in as close as he could, all my limbs lining up next to his. “Are you all right?” I whispered. “Where were you?”
He let out a sigh. “Arguing with Renna in the hallway.”
My forehead creased with worry. “Is she okay?”
“Yes.”
Keir and Molly joined in the dancing. I didn’t know if it was the New Year excitement or everyone wanting to avoid the king while he was obviously in a mood, but everyone was dancing more tonight.
“Did he touch you?” Krew asked softly.
I took a deep breath. “He grabbed me by the arm. But not hard or anything and not for long. He did not like me standing there with Keir and Molly, I guess. Thought I was trying to make you jealous since you came in with Renna.” I gave my head a shake. “I’m so worried about so many people and so many different things right now, Krew, I just don’t even know which person I should pinpoint it on.”
“What do you mean?”
My eyes burned with everyone who I cared about in this damned castle. “You. Keir. Owen. Renna. Especially Molly tonight, but really all of us.”
“Molly?”
I nodded. “She’s in Keir’s Assemblage because of me. And I think she is starting to really like him now. I just hope he doesn’t string her along only to hurt her in the end.” He didn’t say anything for a moment so I continued rambling on the best I could without a sound barrier up. “I know our to-do list is never-ending at this point, Krew. I just want to see all the people I care about most happy. And healthy. Is that too much to ask? Am I being greedy? I just feel like none of us are whole right now. We are all standing on a giant cliff, it’s just a matter of which of us will fall off it first.”
He ran his hand through my hair. “One day at a time, love.”
By the time the countdown started up, my feet were killing me. The king’s magic made black fireworks above us, which felt like a foreboding of the year to come. As the room cheered in the New Year, Krew gave each of his consorts a hug, brushing a kiss to only my temple. Then the celebratory champagne was passed around. By the time we headed back upstairs, I hadn’t had a chance to speak with Renna and Krew was quiet again. More quiet than usual. Just before the countdown, his father had beckoned both princes up to talk, and then Krew had withdrawn yet again. Krew’s magic was restless, flaring in and out the entire walk back to his wing. I was so sick of the king’s words and manipulations causing Krew pain that I was ready to murder the man myself if I had to.
