Page 23 of To Wake a Kingdom

I’d said I didn’t care if they had to go out in the cold. That it wasn’t my problem if they froze to death. The wind roared again, rattling the panes, the whole castle sighing at the gale’s ferocity. I’d be a monster to send them out into this. Despite my endless list of reservations, I resigned myself to their company for the night.

“Kianna, please show Gideon to the stables,” I said, a collective breath releasing around the room. Kianna nodded, jumping up. I threw her a scathing look. This was still her fault. She shouldn’t have invited them in the first place.

Ronan remained at the table, lifting his cup, triumph in his expression. My gaze traveled the line of his mouth, his lips full and soft, moving to the scruff of his jaw. Lost in the idea of it brushing my face, an involuntary movement had me touching my cheek. He wasn’t just handsome, there was something luminous about him, like the sky had given up its favorite star and dropped it into my kitchen.

As his bright green eyes met mine, my body threatened to melt into nothing. Biting the inside of my mouth, I centered myself back on the earth and pushed away from the table. The room had become too warm, the air stifling.

“There are guest rooms in the west wing.” I stood up so abruptly that the stool fell from under me. It clattered to the ground, and I winced. “Kianna can show you where they are when she returns. Help yourselves to whatever you need.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.” Ronan stood then too, walking around to the other side of the table. He righted my stool before stopping inches in front of me.

I had to crane my neck to look into his perfect face. He took my hand, his fingers warm and gentle, my skin firing like ceramic in a kiln. The brightness in his eyes darkened to the color of night-shaded pine trees, his nose flaring.

Then he pressed his mouth to the back of my hand, something awkwardly emotional stirring in me. “You have rescued us from a miserable night on the road. Your irrepressible generosity knows no bounds.”

But the spark in his eyes suggested he was mocking me again, and I yanked my hand away. “Bastard,” I muttered under my breath, spearing him with narrowed eyes and spinning away. His low, dark laughter followed me out of the kitchen as I dashed to my room.

The wind continued to howl as fat white flakes rained from the sky. After changing into my nightgown and robe, I paced the floor, stopping every now and again to watch the world fall under a cover of white. I’d always loved the snow. The way it rendered everything into muffled silence, coating the landscape in a shell of sparkling purity. But I couldn’t fall asleep with Ronan in the castle. He was the son of the man who’d murdered eleven Fae in my home. I didn’t want him here.

A knock came at my door, and Kianna called softly, “Your Highness?”

“Come in.” I kept pacing as she eased the door open.

“You are unhappy with me.”

I whirled on her. “Yes, I’m unhappy! Why did you invite them to stay? Don’t you realize how dangerous this is?”

“Why is it dangerous?”

“Don’t you remember what happened the last time a strange man found his way here? Or have you already forgotten your sisters?”

She recoiled as if I’d slapped her, but I was too angry to care.

“I have not forgotten,” she said, picking at the silver beading on her dress. “But I thought it would be nice to have some company. You aren’t happy here with just the two of us.”

“Happy? What do I have to be happy about? There is nothinghappygoing on here.”

“You’re right. I thought…” Her voice dropped to barely a whisper. At her trembling bottom lip, the fight in me died.

My shoulders slumped as I sank onto the chest at the foot of my bed.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to have them here. We don’t know who they are or why they’re here. I don’t even understand how they found us. The forest should have kept them from seeing the castle.” I looked at her. “What were you thinking?”

“I thought they could help?” Kianna’s voice pitched up a note at the end.

In search of patience, I looked heavenward, hoping answers would fall from the sky. Why had I been saddled with the most incompetent Faerie in existence?

“Why can’t you undo this, Kianna? The man in the bookstore said you could fix this. He was right when he said the book he’d sold me was useless—there’s nothing there either. Surely you must have some idea.”

Kianna shook her head. “I’m sorry, Your Highness.” Her big, dark eyes shone with unshed tears. After a moment, she spoke again as she sat down next to me. “I think they are good people. They do not strike me as the sort who would harm us.”

“I suppose you’re right.” I felt as defeated as a worm curling over the toe of my boot. It was so lonely here, and it wasn’t awful listening to their comfortable banter during dinner. It felt like things had almost been normal.

“And they’re all so attractive.” Kianna fanned her face, a sly glint in her eyes, and I couldn’t help but smile. “The commander especially—though he carries himself more like a prince, wouldn’t you agree?” I wondered what she thought she was keeping from me.

I sighed. “Yes, he’s very handsome, but that is completely beside the point. They can’t stay here. As soon as it stops snowing, they need to leave.”

Kianna gave me a grave nod, her curls bobbing. “Of course, Your Highness. As soon as the snow stops, they’re gone.” She placed a delicate hand over her heart. “You have my word.” The words rolled off her tongue, and I dropped my head in my hands and built a bridge made of sighs.

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