Avery smirked as she said, “I can better understand how it’s impossible to kill the king without retribution, when the damn crown grows out of your head. It looks good on you.” Avery smirked and twirled one of her golden waves around her finger.
Savine shook his head. There was a lot that Avery would need to learn about Latian culture when she was in Orofine, but it could wait. He adored her carefree outlook on life, and he wondered if it actually mattered if Avery lacked reverence toward the crown. After all, his father had done an excellent job of making a mockery of the role of king.
“There’s something I want you to have tonight. You’re not wearing Latian green, but I wanted to remedy that.” Savine picked up a box on the side table and opened it, showing Avery the contents of the box. A large, rectangular cut emerald necklace encrusted with smaller emeralds was nestled on satin. Next to it laid identical emerald earrings.
Avery sucked in her breath, her eyes wide as she looked at the jewels. “Oh Savine! They’re gorgeous. But how did you get them here?”
“They were once my mother’s and my grandmother’s before her. Kyla brought them to me this morning. She took them when we fled Orofine and kept them hidden for my future queen,” Savine said, his breath catching on his words. “I didn’t even know she had them. All these years, she’s kept them safe, waiting to give them to me.”
Avery’s big, brown eyes shone like orbs as he moved around to her back and draped the jewels over her neck. “Savine… Are you sure? I don’t deserve to wear these.”
Savine felt his essence whirl at the lie she muttered. He naturally felt on the defensive when she talked down about herself. “As my mate, youare theonlyone deserving to wear the queen’s emeralds.” Her chest rose faster as he led Avery to the mirror. He wanted her to see herself in splendor. Savine moved to her ears, placing the heavy jewels into her lobes. His fingers lingered over the shell of her ear. Goddess alive, he loved all her soft curves.
“But Kyla—“ Avery hesitated, and Savine didn’t let her get another word in.
“Kyla has no claim to these jewels.” Savine pulled Avery close, pressing her back against him as they continued to look at their image in the mirror. He didn’t mean for his voice to be so filled with emotion as he said, “Please. Accept them, as my queen.”
The color drained from Avery’s face as she nodded. “Your queen.”
A queasy sensation roiled within him. Was she going to reject him? She looked as though she doubted her place with him, the old pangs of past rejection made him want to push her away and put distance between them before he got hurt again. But he didn’t. Despite every instinct to guard his heart and soul, he stayed next to her.
He turned her to face him. “Avery, talk to me.”
Her head dropped slightly before she looked him in the eye. “It’s just a lot, you know. I’m not qualified to be a queen. Like, fuck Savine, I didn’t even want a full time job back at home. And now I’m going to be a monarch? I’m not meant to be a queen.”
Savine gently lifted her chin up. “I never thought I would have a soulmate. I didn’t think that was evenpossibleafter what I experienced in the Tower of Teeth. But you’re here, and ourbond is begging us to complete it. You and me. That’s all that matters. Nothing else. And if you don’t want to be queen—if you want to spend your days making trails around Orofine, then so be it. If you want to learn to use your magic and find your natural place here, then do that. I will not make you be a monarch.” His voice shook and he was overcome with emotion. “But please, do not reject me. Not until you have seen Orofine.”
Avery placed her small hand in his. He felt her tremble slightly as she said, “I’m not rejecting you. But Savine, you’re a king now. Not a rebel leader. Not a prince. You’re king. You are going to have to make the best decisions for your country. What if that’s not me?”
“Of course it is!” Savine’s tone came out sharp, his own essence pumping in response to her doubts. “I wouldneverreject you! You’ve made it clear that I need this month for my nation, but you will be mine. No more talk about it, let’s go to dinner.”
Avery shook her head. “Just think about where I’ll fit in your new reality.”
She turned and began making her way to the door. Savine took a deep breath, trying to keep the unease from devouring him. She wasn’t going to stay with him. The woman he’d waited his whole life for was going to run, not because of his past, but because of his future. It was a cruel twist to what he’d always known about himself.
He wasn’t worth loving.
Chapter 8
Morgan
Morgan walked up the endless stairs of the Towers corridor, following closely behind Avery’s two friends, Susan and Rue. Her heart hurt that her sister had left her alone with strangers and went off to find that king. She felt queasy and sweaty as she tried to follow the others up the stairs. It had only been three weeks since she’d been discharged from the hospital, and she was still taking pain pills to deal with the agony of her broken body’s slow healing. Fortunately, she’d had them in her jacket pocket when she went over the falls and had taken one around lunch. There were only six left in the bottle and sheshivered to think of the kind of pain she’d be in when they ran out.
Selene had brought her a gown to wear to this supper, and it was the most gorgeous article of clothing that she’d ever worn. But, she felt like something smashed and half mended in the elegant gown. Her broken face could never look beautiful in such splendor. The harsh red lines of her scars hadn’t fully healed yet, and the off the shoulder gown revealed her mangled neck and shoulders from where the monster had dragged her down the mountainside in his jaws. She didn’t say anything in protest when the gown was brought to her, even when the sight of her reflection made her want to throw up.
“Almost there, Morgan!” Rue called out from a few stairs ahead. “You would think the Nepheli could be a little more hospitable and at leastflyus to where we need to go. Or, you know, not put our bedroom in the middle of the tower.”
Susan giggled and stopped to wait for Morgan to catch up to her. “Are you okay, Morgan? We can take a break if you need one.”
Morgan nodded through heavy breathing. Her infection from the attack and her stay in the hospital had left her weak. She’d always been petite, smaller than her sister’s muscular body, but after her hard recovery, not even her own clothing felt like they fit her anymore. “Just… give me a minute,” Morgan rasped.
Susan nodded and patted Morgan’s shoulder. “I’m from a community of healers. I don’t know if Avery has told you that yet. I’m not a skilled healer, but I can try to help you. I’m sure Kyla brought some salves, and Avery has been showing a strong aptitude toward healing magically. We can help you recover from this attack.”
“Thanks for the offer,” Morgan said and paused. “I think I’ll be okay.” She passed Susan and continued climbing the staircase. She didn’t want their pity or sympathy.
Two winged guards waited at the staircase to escort them down a long corridor, past other windows and open balconies. The open air windows exposed a sunset sky of remarkable colors—all pinks, oranges, and reds. The late evening light glimmered off the spires and peaks, revealing a beautiful alpenglow. For how many pane-less windows this place had, it still was a comfortable temperature. Morgan assumed, like her tea and bath, that it was magic that kept the rooms comfortable.
The guards motioned to a wooden door carved with a bas-relief of a woman receiving a shining crown on her head. The sun above sent rays down to her head and the obvious fae crowd knelt before her.
