Ronan didn’t have a chance to reply to her surprising comment before Aisling reached out and took Dominique’s hand. “Now, you need to go entertain yourself for a while so I can get to know my future sister-in-law without you scowling at me.”
Dominique released a light laugh, shocking Ronan. He’d never heard her laugh before. Not truly. It was warm and sultry, and it sounded sincere.
Aisling was already drawing her away, but Ronan took a step toward them, which had both women giving him a flat stare. He didn’t want to leave because he wasn’t sure what Dominique would say to his sister. He was even more concerned what Aisling might say to Dominique.
Finally, he huffed and walked off when they kept staring at him, saying nothing.
For the rest of the hour, he watched from afar as Dominique thawed to his sister. Her smile was genuine from the beginning, but her entire face warmed and relaxed the longer she talked to Aisling. Even her body seemed to loosen, her movements becoming more fluid. She gestured with her hands as she spoke, behaving more like a real woman than an automaton. She was completely captivating, and he couldn’t stop watching her.
His sister said something to Dominique that had her lifting her left hand. Aisling lifted it higher, examining the engagement ring. Then, they both looked over at him.
That was it. He was interrupting. They’d been chatting for almost an hour while he was stuck making idle chitchat with people he couldn’t stand. He headed in their direction, his focus entirely on the two women when his father appeared in front of him.
“Ronan, a word,” he said.
With the expectation that he would follow without argument, the king turned on his heel and stalked toward the door. Ronan glanced at Dominique and Aisling and saw that his mother was gliding up next to them. Clearly, she was the distraction.
He wanted to ignore his father’s summons, but he’d known this would happen. He was just hoping it wouldn’t be when Dominique was around.
Ronan walked after his father, going down the hall to the library. His father waited until he walked in, shutting the door behind him before his true feelings were shown on his face.
A dark scowl furrowed his brow as he asked, “What in the hell are you thinking? You not only bring that half-blood here, but you’re planning tomarryher?”
Anger and confusion warred within him at his father’s words. “Half-blood? Dominique is just as fae as you or I.”
“No, she’s not,” his father spat. “Or are you blind as well as stupid?”
Ronan took a slow, deep breath. He was not going to rise to his father’s bait. If he lost his temper, his father would be in control of the situation, which was exactly what the king wanted.
“Both of her parents are from long, distinguished fae lines, all pure bloods. How could she be?—”
“Because her whore of a mother was fucking her way through every fae, human, or any other creature she found after shegave her husband two daughters to carry on the fairy godmother duties for the family. Even Graciella doesn’t know who that bitch’s father is.”
Ronan’s hands curled into fists. Hearing his father call Dominique a bitch had a red haze descending over his vision. She might infuriate him, and she might be a great deal like his parents, but she had no control over the actions of her mother. She didn’t deserve the vitriol Caden was flinging at her.
“She’s still a fairy godmother, Father. And, since I haven’t heard this little tidbit of information, I’m assuming it’s fairly secret.”
His father scoffed. “Of course it is. No one knows but her mother, stepfather, your mother, and me. Now,youknow, which I’m hoping means you’ll call off this engagement before it becomes an issue.”
Ronan read between the lines of his father’s words. That was a threat. If he remained engaged to Dominique, the secret of her parentage would be revealed with one well-placed whispered rumor.
“And if I don’t?”
“Then, I’m afraid someone will find out, and it won’t be a secret any longer.”
Ronan took a step toward his father, lowering his chin. “That’s a shame. There are a lot of things I worry people will find out. Things that happen within the castle walls between a king and his sister-in-law.”
He saw the moment his father realized that he knew. The king’s face went white. He’d come to the throne through marriage as Bronwyn was the heir to the kingdom. As they’d threatened to do with Aisling, Bronwyn’s parents had done to her. They’d all but auctioned her off to the most suitable noble males in the realm. Unfortunately, that male was his father.
Neither of his parents had much attraction, much less love, for each other. But his father had been interested in his aunt, Elodie.
Through careful research and surveillance, Ronan had discovered that his father and his aunt had a short-lived affair twenty-five years ago. It hadn’t lasted long, but it resulted in something neither Elodie nor Caden could hide—a child.
If Elodie’s husband, Cormac, found out that the king had not only fucked his wife but gotten her with child, he would be within his rights to challenge him to a duel. Honor would demand it. Though trysts happened in the castle, if it became known to the people of the kingdom, Cormac would have no choice but to issue the challenge, no matter what it might do to his sister, the queen. Knowing how possessive he was of Elodie, Ronan had no doubt his uncle would insist on a public duel.
While his father kept himself in shape, Cormac was once the Captain of the Guard before Ronan was born. Now, he trained the new recruits in the arts of combat. He might be approaching what amounted to fae old age, but he was a dangerous adversary who could kill a man with a few well-placed blows.
“That was a short-lived mistake, decades ago!” his father blustered.
