I held up a stopping hand, cutting him off. “If you have to explain your joke, then it’s not funny.”
He flicked his right hand at me. “Or I misjudged my audience.”
“That too,” I conceded. I struggled to place the crown on my head right. “This fucker is heavy.”
“And it’s crooked too.” Lord Pippin stepped in front of me as he raised his hands and adjusted it on top of my head. He tilted his head, eyeing his work. “That looks right.”
I jiggled my head side-to-side. It didn’t fall off.
“Oh, my god.” Lord Pippin removed his phone from his pocket, aiming it at me. “Please do that again. I want to record that shit.”
Laughing, I shoved his phone away. “Stop it. We need to go.”
He sighed and put his cellphone away. His hands brushed down his black suit jacket, tugging at the bottom of it to remove a wrinkle. When he lifted his head back up, his brown eyes were hard—cold. The Overlord was staring out at me.
I lifted a black brow, murmuring, “I’d wondered where he’d run off to.”
His eyes narrowed. “I can cut off the business behind closed doors if I want to.” Lord Pippin cleared his throat. “And you were doing your Challenges. I had to behave a certain way.”
I decided to use his nickname. “You know, Pippy, I honestly don’t give a fuck.”
Lord Pippin stared. “Will you ever forgive me?”
Good question.
I sighed heavily. “It’ll go away with time. It’s only because I cared about you so much.”
The Overlord’s swallow was audible. He surprised me, bending at the waist to place his mouth against my ear, speaking softly, “Fine. You want the truth? I’ll tell you. I know I didn’t handle it right, but I was afraid to contact you. I was afraid you’d be a distraction to me, to the crown…because I cared about you so much too.” The lord straightened an instant later, brushing his jacket down again as if he hadn’t just blown me away with his honesty. He marched toward the door, barking over his shoulder, “Let’s go, your majesty. Death awaits us.”
Chapter Ten
~ Gwynnore ~
Lord Pippin and I stepped into the cavernous royal waiting room. The rest of the Overlords were already here, sitting and talking amongst themselves before the ceremony began. I stopped Lord Pippin before he could walk away, gently placing my palm on his forearm.
His eyes dipped to where my hand rested, then back up into my gaze. “Yes?”
My lips thinned into a straight line, not enjoying this persona. But I did understand it. I stood on my tiptoes, my mouth aiming for his ear. Luckily, he obliged and bent so I could speak privately with him. I whispered too quietly for anyone else to hear, “Thank you. For telling me the truth.”
The redheaded Overlord nodded his head once and straightened. He strolled over to a chair, unbuttoned his suit jacket, and sat fluidly onto the seat. Back to ignoring me.
I barely kept myself from rolling my eyes. I took a seat next to Lord Xenon on the love seat and pretended the entire morning hadn’t shaken me to my core. I asked, “Who’s going to officiate her ceremony?”
Lord Xenon cast his black eyes on me. “Cleo requested Lord Cato handle it all.”
I tapped my fingers on the arm of the loveseat. “Even the beheading? Isn’t that normally the Queen’s job here?”
“It is unless the individual wanting Eternal Slumber requests for someone else to do it.”
My attention turned toward my father. “Why did she request him? Were they friends?”
“No, they weren’t,” Lord Xenon hedged. “But Lord Cato and Lord John were close before he requested his own Eternal Slumber. And Lord Cato performed his. She’d like the same.”
I hummed, closing my eyes and leaning my head back against the wall. It was damn hard to do with a crown on my head. I yawned behind a fist. “She wants to make sure she sees her soul mate in the afterlife. I didn’t know she was superstitious.”
“Actually, I don’t believe she is.” The Overlord poked my arm, barely even a touch. “Don’t fall asleep. They’ll be coming to get us shortly.”
“Not sleeping.” Another yawn. “Just relaxing.”
