He shoves a maiden off his lap onto the floor. She yelps in surprise and shoots me a glare which would turn princesses into poisonous toads. Good thing I’m no princess. He holds out his hand toward me like he’s used to maidens becoming frozen statues in awe of his royalness.Yes, that’s me, completely overwhelmed by your grandness. Help me, I’m a simpering maiden in need of a good—a smell hits my nostrils—sausage.
My legs move toward the yummy smell, which just so happens to be in the same direction as the king. It’s a win-win situation, and it seems the Idols have taken pity on me this diurnal. It’s about time.
The king pushes his chair back and captures my hand, dragging me into his lap. His interest in me is apparent from the bulge now digging into my ass. This is wrong, on so many levels, I would have a stairway to Idylican if we put them together.
“And who might you be, pretty girl?” he drawls while rubbing his hand up my back. If I was into older men, I could totally see the attraction and why many maidens would try their hand at winning the heart of the king. I shiver because I am not one of those maidens. The king chuckles, mistaking it for one of pleasure. Idiot never considered a maiden wouldn’t want him.
He toys with the end of one of my curls, his knuckles brushing against the swell of my breasts. I bite the end of my tongue to stop myself from dressing his presumptuous ass down. I aim for a smile instead. Time to get this theft on the road.
“How about we take this feast somewhere more private?” I whisper in his ear.
He jerks to his feet and my legs fall down. Luckily, he grips me against his body, saving me from an embarrassing face plant. Because this would be an epic fail if I break my nose before we reach his chambers. A bloody maiden isn’t an attractive one. I grab his goblet as he hauls me toward the edge of the room and behind a curtain. These castles and curtains, when will they learn? A hidden door comes into view and then we are through it, and he’s dragging me like a man possessed. I try to keep track of where we are going, because at some point I need to make it back out of here.
Within two tempos, he’s pushing me inside a grand chamber. I squint at the many, many candles lit in the room. Not Daphne proof. He was expecting a well put together maiden this sundown, while the best he could hope for now is that I drug him and he has a nice snooze. At least that way I won’t be responsible for killing a king, not even the Stirling brothers could save me from my fate then.
The king whips his jacket off and unbuttons his shirt as he pulls it out of his breeches. Whoo, slow down there. I place his goblet full of berry wine down and bite my lip. The king’s eyes never leave me. Ugh, how does one drug a king with beady eyes?Time to get inventive, Daphne.He stalks closer to me and reaches around to untangle the ribbons of my corset.
“What in the Blazes?” he mutters, spinning me around. “Whoever dressed you this sundown did not expect you to fall into favor with your king.”
My lips tip up. Theo knotted the ribbons so they couldn’t be undone. Clever knight.
“Stay still,” he snaps. I glance over my shoulder and my eyes widen as he produces a long dagger from a sheath on his waist. He raises it and pushes it through the ribbons. The dress falls apart and I grab it around my breasts, aware of the hidden root.Think, Daphne. Hello, Idols? Please, could you tell me how to achieve my goal without being bedded by the king?
The king pushes my hair over my shoulder and trails his fingers down my spine. My stomach flips and it takes everything I have not to run out of here. I spin and face the king, my lips landing on his and our teeth clashing. Ugh, nothing like kissing Malachi. The king chuckles as his hands land on my hips and he walks us towards the bed. He’s still clutching the dagger. I spin us and push him down onto the bed.
“Close your eyes, my king,” I utter. My voice is husky, but it’s from the terror of screwing this up, not from the anticipation of a long night being hammered by the king.
He tilts his head like he’s contemplating my request. I smile and aim for seductive. “I’ll make it worth your while.”
“As you wish,” he mutters, closing his eyes. My hands explore his body and he leans into my touch. I just need to drop this root into the goblet. Hmm. I glance down at the obvious bulge and spot an emerald green sash around his waist. I untie it and then wrap it around his eyes.
“Oh, you are one of those?” he says with a smirk. One of those? One of those what? What the Blazes did maidens get up to in this kingdom?
I grab the goblet and take a sip of the berry wine. “Open your mouth, my king,” I whisper. He does as I ask and I take another mouthful before putting my lips against his and passing him the sweet liquid. He licks his lips and grins at me.
“More,” he demands.
I whip the small bag from my breast and tip it into the goblet before swilling it around. I take another mouthful and repeat the process, hoping the root won’t affect me from just being in my mouth. Surely you had to swallow it for it to be effective? Here’s hoping. I feed him the rest of the liquid and he empties the goblet while his hands roam over my body, including my now bared breasts. It’s a good thing I blindfolded him because I’m sure the revulsion on my face would give me away.
He leans back and tucks the dagger under the pillow before bringing his hands back to me and dragging me up so I’m straddling his thighs. His deflating bulge is a good sign. Even if his mind wants it, his body is no longer in the game.
“You never told me your name,” he slurs. Just a few more tempos and he will be out cold. We never discussed a secret identity. Am I meant to give him my real name or a fake one? Ugh, espionage is hard.
“Daphne,” I tell him. Because let’s face it, he was going to forget this entire night. Plus, I have enough going on without responding to a fake name.
His hands fall away from my body and he stretches out like a languid cat. I freeze and a soft snore escapes his lips. My body relaxes. Look at me go. I’ve not had one mishap this turn. I reach over and slide my hand under the pillow, my fingers wrapping around the cool hilt of the dagger and I drag it out in front of me, keeping it pointed away from me as I admire the way the ruby eye glints in the candlelight. There’s a hum of power along the blade that makes me suspect I’m not just stealing something the boys can cut their bunkum steaks with.
I pat the king’s chest. “Thanks, old man, for being so cooperative.”
He jolts upright, and the dagger spears into the right side of his chest. His eyes snap open and pain tightens his face. I shriek, grab the goblet, and smack his temple with it as hard as I can. He falls back down to the bed while a crimson stain blooms on his white shirt and pools on the bedsheets.
The heart is on the left side, right? I’m sure it is. He’ll survive this. It’s just a flesh wound. His breathing stutters. Oh my Idols, I just killed a king. His chest lifts. No, no, he’s alive. Perhaps I should alert someone? But then I would be implicated in the stabbing of a king, which I totally did. Ugh, I knew it was too good to be true. Thanks, Idol scum. I’m sure there is something about not removing the blade if you stab someone. But I need it.
I climb off him and scan the room, finding a platter of meats and fruit. Ooh, frost fruit. I pop a few in my mouth. Yum. I grab the meat knife and move back towards the bed. Still breathing. So if I just swap the dagger out for the knife, he should be fine.
I lick my lips as I stare at the knife in my hand, then wrap my fingers around the dagger. A quick in and out, he’ll be fine. I yank the dagger out of his flesh and move to plug the hole with the other knife. His back arches and the knife slides into his stomach. Oh, for fu—.
“Really Idols?” I whisper. It’s like they are punishing me for a whole tempo of no calamity with extra potent chaos. Ugh. I scramble back from the king and glance around the room. Maybe if I just cover him up? I grab a blanket from a chair and throw it over his body. There, he looks like he’s sleeping. Blood creeps through the pale blue blanket.
