“Right now? He’s been here since before dawn?”
He nods, a sympathetic frown pulling his lips. “I’m sure he would have come to you at once if there wasn’t so much to attend to. I only just left the throne room myself.”
My legs turn to water beneath me, my hand flying to my chest as my breaths grow shallow. Foxglove is wrong. Aspen did come to me at once. He came to me and saw me...
“You said you just left the throne room? Is he there?”
“He is, but—”
I don’t wait to hear another word. On flying feet, I tear down the hall. The palace layout isn’t entirely familiar to me, but I know I can find the throne room without guidance. I’ve visited the observatory plenty of times on my own, and the throne room is just beneath it.
After a few wrong turns, I finally find a set of enormous double doors. Two shadowy wraiths stand before them. Guards. I’m taken aback, realizing this is the first time I’ve seen guards at Selene Palace. This can’t be good.
I address the two wraiths. “May I have permission to enter?”
They say nothing.
“I am Evelyn Fairfield, guest of Queen Nyxia. Might I speak with her?”
Again nothing.
A lump rises in my throat, desperation mingling with frustration as my palms grow hot. I’m about to do something reckless, although I’m not sure what, when one of the doors opens.
Queen Nyxia squints at me. “I thought I tasted violence.”
I’m surprised by her appearance. Her black suit is wrinkled and torn in places, her silver hair no longer smooth and sleek but sticking out at odd angles. I blink a few times and open my mouth to speak. Although, now that the queen is before me, I’m not sure what to say. I should bow, offer a formal greeting, ask an intelligent question. But I can only say one thing, and it comes out like a croak. “Aspen.”
She rolls her eyes and opens the door wider. Inside the throne room, a group of fae are huddled around a table. I recognize them as fae royals—the white wolf from Winter, the fae with curling horns from Earthen, and the blue fae with flowing hair from Wind. All are in similar states of disarray as Nyxia—wrinkled clothing, messy hair, skin covered in grime or blood. But my eyes seek the figure standing at the end of the table.
Aspen’s eyes meet mine. His hair falls in disorderly waves around his face, and his russet waistcoat is unbuttoned, gold cravat hanging loose around his neck. I want to run to him, to fold myself in his arms like I did in my dream. His eyes, however, keep me at bay. There’s no warmth in them. It confirms my fears—Aspen really was there last night. He saw me kissing Prince Franco.
My voice comes out with a tremor. “May I speak with King Aspen in private?”
The wolf lets out a low growl. Aspen silences him with a shake of his head. “It wasn’t her,” he says, although I’m not sure what he’s referring to. He says nothing to me, though.
Queen Nyxia speaks, her tone casual and exasperated at once. “We are in the middle of a very important discussion.”
“I need to speak with him.”
She crosses her arms and stares daggers at Aspen. With a grumble, he turns away from the table and stalks toward me. I expect him to stop when he approaches, but he brushes past me and out the door. I give Nyxia a belated bow before following Aspen into the hall.
I find him leaning against a wall, expression bored. He watches me through narrowed eyes, taking in my appearance from head to toe. “You look like you had a fun night.” There’s no mirth in his tone as his gaze lingers over my chest.
My hands fly to the neck of my robe, where I find it has slipped in my haste to get to the throne room, exposing a little too much skin. That’s when I realize what this looks like. I’m dressed in a robe and naked underneath. I take a step toward him. “Aspen, nothing happened last night. It’s not what you think.”
He averts his gaze, and his voice comes out with a lazy drawl. “It’s none of my business. You are free to choose any mate you desire.”
“It’s not like that.” A thousand arguments, justifications, and questions soar through my mind.I was drunk. I was upset you were marrying someone else. Wait, did you marry someone else? It was just a kiss. I wanted it to be you.But nothing makes it past my lips.
“Nyxia told me about her offer,” Aspen says, punctuating each word with clear disgust.
I shake the cacophony from my head. “What offer?”
“That she’ll support your claim to the Fire Court throne if you take Prince Franco as your mate.” His jaw shifts back and forth, but vulnerability tugs at his carefully curated facade. “I wouldn’t blame you for accepting.”
My mouth hangs open. “I’m not taking Prince Franco as my mate. And I’m certainly not bidding for the Fire Court throne.”
He furrows his brow, posture stiffening. “Then why are you here?”
