Asgard’s dark fashion made him look like an imposing Asgardian royal instead of the Forest Fae heir he was.
His parents shared a look and then turned their backs on him as one. North sighed.
“I guess that could’ve gone worse,” she said under her breath.
“There was no bloodshed,” Easta chimed in, beaming at Noren as he bowed to her.
“I’m shocked they spoke to you at all,” North added.
“Oh please,” Easta said, turning to her sister, “and miss the chance to publicly snub him?”
“Fair point, though with the Alfheim princes here, one can’t be sure anyone was even looking at us,” North said with a smile, craning her neck around Westley’s body to take a peek at the Elven brothers.
“True,” Easta said with a sigh, peering around Westley’s other side. “I wonder how many of them I can get to bed tonight.”
“Okay, that’s enough.” Westley gripped the top of his sisters’ arms, dragging them away from the Elven. They laughed as they let him march them over to the food table. “Eat,” he ordered.
They’d just made a long journey and his parents wouldn’t allow food in the carriage.
“This is not what I want to fill my mouth with,” Easta mumbled as she bit into a piece of fruit.
“You’re ridiculous,” Westley said with a huff as North and Noren laughed. He knew it was all in jest. Both sisters were mated, though their stories were quite different. He watched as they spoke animatedly with each other. Even Noren joined in, looking lighter than he had in weeks.
Before they could torture him further, the doors opened and Westley’s magic purred, curling up his spine, sending a hurricane of energy through his whole body. His head snapped towards the top of the stairs.
She was here.
“IntroducingTheirMajesties,QueenKoa Magnusdottir and Queen Aelfsi Roardottir of Asgard, and their daughter, Her Royal Highness, Princess Solveig Tordottir,” the announcer called, and the crowded ballroom hushed as the queens descended the stairs. Koa was radiant in a gown spun from gold sunlight, tendrils of fabric trailing behind her like rays.
Aelfsi appeared like the moon in swaths of silver fabric billowing out around her. They walked arm in arm, cascading down the stairs. Westley’s gaze lingered on them for only a moment before landing on the figure that followed their wake.
Solveig stood alone in a midnight gown, so black it swallowed the light around her.
The high neck left her arms completely bare, the silky fabric draped across her body. Her dress wrapped around her torso, gathering at her hip, opening on one side as she began to descend, showcasing one long strong leg.
Her red hair was piled on top of her head in an intricate updo of curls and braids, exposing her neck. She was steady as she took step afterstep, the heeled sandals on her feet not deterring her in the slightest. She moved like a shadow, a goddess spun from his deepest desires.
Westley’s body flushed, his pants suddenly tight.
When she reached the bottom step, he was already there, not having made the conscious decision to move. She caught his eye immediately, a smug smile on her face. He had to break the tension before his magic changed from water to fire with desire and burned the palace to ash where they stood.
Princess?he asked with a quirk of his brow.
She turned away, sending an image of her middle finger into his mind. He chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” North whispered, assessing Solveig with keen interest as she greeted those who approached her.
“That’sher?” Easta hissed, a gleam entering her eyes.
“No way,” North said excitedly.
“She’s fucking gorgeous,” Easta said.
“Why didn’t you tell us!” North smacked his arm with so much force it actually hurt.
“Tell you what?” he asked, unable to take his eyes off Solveig as she made her way around the room. She turned, showing off her exposed back, finally giving him a full view of her tattoo.
A line of ancient runes he couldn’t read trailed down her spine from her neck all the way to where her dress dipped low. He wondered if it continued below the fabric.
