“Just about every fence around the city. But especially those around Central Park. They’re wroughtiron,” she explained. “We would like to have them replaced with something less … murdery.”
There was a chorus of claps from her peers.
“If we’re speaking about those sorts of requests,” an older male werewolf said, moving forward, “my kind would like you to commit to changing all of the silver door handles in public buildings. It’s an accessibility issue.”
“While we are talking about accessibility …” Another woman stepped forward. She was a shifter of some sort,but nothing about her suggested what kind. “I would like for you to commit to adding larger stalls to public restrooms. It’s impossible to shift comfortably in the current ones.”
“Hell, it’s impossible to comfortably take a leak in the current ones,” some human in the back of the crowd piped in, getting a chorus of laughter.
There were dozens of other questions, concerns, and demands for change from the crowd.
Finn answered to the best of his ability, prepped well with all the talking points he and Henry had discussed all morning.
There were a few who threw him for a loop, of course; you couldn’t prepare for everything. But he’d been coached for so long on how to answer things with confidence, charm, and just a little bit of humor—when situationally appropriate—that he managed to answer those questions and calm those concerns with ease.
This was the part that made all the rehearsed press conferences and long television interviews with talking heads worth it. This was why he was running. To be a man of the people. All the people. To learn more about the issues that other communities faced, and try his best to make a better, more equitable world for them all.
“Hello,” a woman said. She was tall, with long braids that hinted at green when the light hit them right. A dryad, Finn guessed. “I actually have a question regarding your pollution initiatives.”
“Of course. That’s an issue near and dear to my—our—hearts,” he corrected, giving Iris’s knee another squeeze. It made her smile stretch wider for the audience, but he was acutely aware of how it didn’t reach her eyes.
All eyes shifted to Iris, who looked wide-eyed under the attention.
“I, uh, yes, of course,” she said, slowly pulling herself together. “Ocean pollution is at an all-time high. The last time I took a swim, I got a candy wrapper and a fishing line stuck in my hair. I’ve seen so many examples of carelessness when it comes to disposing of waste properly. And I know the roadsides and forests are dealing with similar issues.”
The dryad nodded along as Iris spoke. Finn could swear everyone in the room leaned into her, found themselves drawn to her. She wasn’t a siren. She didn’t have the ability to lure people in. Still, they found themselves entranced by her.
Finn couldn’t blame them.
He felt a similar—stronger—tug toward her. Even if she seemed to do everything in her power to avoid him. When she wasn’t buried in a book, or going out with Arden or Selene, she was behind a closed door with Monty.
Whenever he passed those closed doors, he would feel a tug of envy as Iris’s real, twinkling laugh filtered out into the hall.
The more he was around Iris, the more he realized that he almost never got that real part of her. She was always guarded, masked, watching him with pinched brows and eyes that always seemed to find him lacking.
He only caught glimpses.
Like when she’d been excited over the ring.
Or, of course, when his hands and lips were on her, when they were lost in sensation and each other.
But since that night in the pool, she’d made it a point not to so much as brush his shoulder in the hall.
All he did was replay that scene over and over in his mind.
There were more questions for Iris, despite her not having the power to make changes. It seemed like everyone was just charmed by her and wanted to be in her orbit.
And Iris, to her credit, easily warmed up and lost her tension. Despite being new to land politics, she clearly had experience speaking to large groups of people.
It struck him, as he watched her, how little he actually knew about her life and upbringing.
Being a princess, there must have been royal duties. She surely had training in decorum and composure and had been forced to sit through never-ending ceremonies and meetings.
She handled it like a pro.
Before he knew it, after answering a few final questions, the whole thing was over.
They made their way off the stage but somehow lost track of each other in the crowd.
