I sighed. “Sometimes you have to look past what scares you in order to find true magic.”
Rory blinked. “That gave me shivers, Queen Vervain. I daresay there are things you've seen that I can only dream of.”
“I daresay you're right.” I winked at him. “Just take my advice and never judge anyone by what rumor, legend, or even other people say. Treat everyone with the same respect until they prove unworthy of it.”
“That's good advice for anyone, but especially a king.” He nodded, then waved his arm toward an archway. “We're here. Do you need a moment to compose yourself?”
“Compose myself?” I snorted a laugh. “You're hilarious.” I was still in the dress I'd been wearing when I'd put Samara to bed—a silk and velvet gown in deep blue which was seriously rumpled, but I strode into the throne room ahead of King Rory as if I was Queen there.
And there he was—the asshole version of my husband. Arach 1.0, King Dragon Dickhead. Damn, he looked fine. He had dressed up to visit the Earth Kingdom. Black leather breeches clung to his corded thighs, a black velvet tunic gaped at his neck to give a hint of the Dragon-Sidhe muscles beneath, and a black brocade cloak hung from his broad shoulders, hood thrown back to catch the crimson hair that flowed beneath the fire crown. Arach rarely wore that crown, but he was coming to meet the new Earth King, so it was probably required. Or was it to impress me? If it was the latter, he needn't have bothered. I had one of my own. In fact, I had two—a gold one like the one Arach wore, the metal shaped into flames and set with yellow diamonds and rubies; and then my white gold crown of dragons encrusted with white diamonds. He looked good in his crown, I'll give him that, but I preferred him without it. It slicked his hair down, and I liked it more wild.
Arach eyes widened, then narrowed when he saw me. He strode forward, jaw clenching, and looked me over from head to foot. A tic formed in his jaw.
“What's got your bee in a bonnet?” I asked.
“You look as if you've come straight from bed,” Arach said, sending a glare Rory's way. “Whose bed have you come from,Wife?” His hand went to my wild hair and tangled in it to pull me to him.
“Oh, no you didn't just imply I'm a cheater, then grab me by the hair!” I shrieked as a blast of light came out of me.
This wasn't the first time I'd knocked Arach on his ass with starlight, courtesy of the Trinity Star. But it was the first time for this him. He lay sprawled on the ground and gaped at me, just as his escort of massive Red Cap soldiers gaped at him. And he stayed down for three seconds. That's how shocked Arach was.
“I'm not apologizing for that.” I pointed at my husband as he got to his feet. “You deserved it. I know your mama didn't have the most time with you, but I'm sure Isleen taught you to treat women better than that. Or didn't she? Maybe she coddled the little Dragon King. Is that it? Did she let you run wild around the castle, terrorizing your subjects? If so, I'll have words with her when I get home. Parents are the Gods of a child's world. They shape that child into the person they become. And Isleen took on that responsibility when she raised you. This behavior—” I waved at him in a circular, disappointed way—“is unacceptable!Youare unacceptable, Arach! And that you would behave this way before another king is even more unacceptable. What iswrongwith you? My hair? Really? The only time you pull a woman's hair is in bed!”
Arach was making clicking sounds, almost like my cat Nick when he was hunting, but much slower. It was as if he were trying to form words and failing. Rory wasn't faring much better. And the Red Caps weren't the only soldiers in the room gaping at me. There were also Dryads and Spriggans attending their king, and they didn't know what to make of me either. I was in the center of a flabbergasted formation of faeries.
“Oh, don't look so damned surprised. I told you who I am,” I huffed at his incredulous expression.
“What the fuck was that?” Arach roared at me as he stormed back over.
“What? You expected me to hold my tongue after you treated me like a barbarian?”
“No, not the ranting.” He waved that away. “That was the most royal behavior I've seen you exhibit. I'm talking about that blast of magic.”
Ranting was queenly behavior? Yup, this Arach is messed up.
“Oh, that. That was starlight.” I grinned and flung my sparkly hair. “And that was just a tiny smidgen of what I'm capable of. Remember that and don't fuck with me again.”
Arach's eyes went wide again.
“Oh, yeah. That's how mad I am, Arach. I'm using foul language! Mama's not happy! And when Mama's not happy, no one's happy.”
“Just because I grabbed your hair?” Arach scowled. “A lot of women like that.”
“Were you not listening to me at all?”
He blinked.
“Unbelievable.” I rolled my eyes. “As Ijust said, the only time to grab a woman's hair is in bed.Notafter you accuse them of infidelity. And you certainly don't use their hair to drag them away. Although, it was perfect timing on your part. I had just told King Rory that you're a caveman.”
“So, you haven't been with another man?”
“Why would you even think that?”
“Your hair.” He waved his hand limply. “It's bedraggled. And your dress is rumpled.”
“I had a rough day, and it's not as if I brought a change of clothes with me from the future. I was resting when you arrived. In a guest bed.”
“You had a rough day doing what exactly?”
