On my approach, she lifts her gaze. “Miss.” She gives me a small bow.
“Is Deimos here?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “He went up on the roof.”
I frown. “How do I get there?”
She wipes her hands down her white apron, then glances over her shoulder down the corridor as if she’s expecting someone to reprimand her for her talking to me. “Quickly, I will show you.”
“Thank you.” I take quick steps to keep up with her as she races down several hallways, then pushes open a door to a set of stairs.
“Go all the way to the top.”
The stone walls of the circular enclosure are a dark gray, with narrow slits for windows. My skin pricks with the cold in here.
“Um, what is on the roof, exactly?” I turn back only to discover she’s already marching back to the prince's room. If Deimos is up there, likely so is Luther, and even Ahren. As much as my stomach protests at seeing them all together, maybe it's not a bad idea to get everything in the open. To speak the truth about my engagement, about what is up Ahren's ass lately, and for me to tell them the truth of who my father was.
No more secrets. Tightness coils in my chest about such a conversation, but if I intend to marry the princes and join their family, we need to come clean on everything.
I want us to start fresh.
Taking a deep breath, I step forward and make my way upstairs. It’s quiet—there’s no one else in here. It's only when I look out a window do I see how far up I am. I must be in a tower at the corner of the mansion.
Losing track of how many turns I’ve taken, I finally reach the top, my thighs smarting. Gasping for air, I pause for a moment to catch my breath so I won’t appear flustered.
One last look at my ring, and I push the wooden door open. I can do this.
Bright daylight greets me, along with a faint breeze. I step out of the stairwell and onto an outdoor terrace. The mansion sits like a U-shape around the open balcony, which is enclosed by a stone railing. A table and several chairs sit in one corner, filled with platters of food and what appear to be paper scrolls. And there's only one lone figure up here.
Ahren stands at the other end of the balcony, hands on the railing, head low and staring at the kingdom grounds below.
Suddenly, I'm doubting my decision to be here.
“Lingering in the doorway is asking for trouble,” Ahren states without looking my way, his voice deep and velvety. Just hearing him brings to the surface so many emotions—the pain of his rejection and secrets, how much I miss him.
I guess that is the best invitation I’ll get from him, so I shut the door behind me and go to tuck my hands into pockets, except my dress has none. I’ve been keeping my ruby on the underside of my laced-up corset where there are layers of fabric. It’s amazing what perfect little pockets they make.
Fidgeting, I chew on my lower lip and saunter toward him while my stomach does somersaults.
“How much trouble are we talking about, exactly?” I murmur upon approaching him.
“The kind that seems to follow you around.” There's a tenderness in his voice; the words aren't bitter or aggressive. They belong to the fae who made me fall for him.
Maybe this is my chance to finally speak to him, to find out what's going on. I move to stand alongside him and stare out over the town sprawled over the rising landscape. The cottages shine black beneath the morning sun with trims of varied colors around the roofs and windows. In the valley lies a river that seems to divide the town in two, and I try hard to imagine what it would have been like growing up here. But in all honesty, I can't even fathom that lifestyle.
My chance to grow up amid my kind was taken from me by an evil woman in Ash Court, and one day I'll find out why.
“Deimos and Luther should be back later today,” Ahren explains without looking my way.
“Where are they?”
“On an errand outside the castle walls to escort visitors past the Bloodcursed.”
My stomach clenches at the sound of them facing danger. “Why did they go out there instead of soldiers?” I sound protective of them, and dammit, I am.
“Our mother insisted they be the ones to meet with our father first.”
I almost choke on my breath. “Your dad, the asshole who left your mother for another woman?” Not to mention the bastard who beat Ahren senseless growing up, ripped his wings until there was only bone left, and left the scars on his back that will be imprinted on my mind for eternity. “Why would you welcome him to your court?”
“It's not mine yet, and Mother accepted him for the sake of kingdom alliances. We must all stand together against the Unseelie.” This time, the bitterness surges through his voice.
“It’s still wrong,” I answer.
He glances over to me, the corner on one side of his mouth curling upward, those pale green eyes smiling while the wind catches his long white hair and pushes it off his face.
I lose myself in those few moments in his presence. He's spectacular. Handsome. Rugged. Dominant. Scary. And someone that makes my heart thud in my chest with need.
As much as my hands tingle to reach over to him, I fear I'd be pushing my luck, so I turn back to the view, my hands gripping the cold stone railing instead.
“I admire that you always speak your mind. That's one of the things that I hate about my role. Being unable to do so.”
When I glance over to him, I notice him looking down at my hand, at
