Page 33 of Hateful Prince

“You say the orgy is the reason I need to go back to the scene of the crime. I say otherwise. One of us is right. The other is you.”

“Right or wrong, your presence is required. Didn’t you get the summons?”

Oh, I hated him and his confident smile. “I’ve been busy. No summons.”

“Come on, I’ll escort you.” With no room for argument in his tone, he headed toward the rec room. “Trust me, you’d much rather I bring you there than Joffrey.”

“Oh, I dunno. There’s something special about that little spring loaded Troll doll.”

Swiftie raised a brow. “I wouldn’t let him hear you call him that.”

“But you risk life and limb by touching me? Your priorities are seriously out of whack, buddy.”

“What are you talking about?”

I had to blink at him. How could he not know about Tor? Everyone knew about Tor.

“You ever heard about the Beast of Novasgard?”

He nodded, his palm resting on my shoulder once more.

“He’s my man.”

Taylor blanched and dropped his hand.

“Maybe there’s hope for you after all,” I muttered. “Lead the way, Swiftie. Just a word of warning: I won’t need a cat-eye sharp enough to kill you if Tor sees you touching me. Save yourself.”

We walked the entire way to the rec room with Taylor holding his hands up like I had a gun pressed between his shoulders. And I laughed to myself the entire time. Tor would be so proud.

Chapter

Ten

DAHLIA

“I’ve never been summoned to the rec room before. Are we having a party?”

“Something like that,” Swiftie murmured, pushing the door open for me.

I expected to find the usual suspects, Sorcha scowling at someone and Oz reading a book or poking fun at her. Maybe the shifters would be doing their woodland landscape puzzles or Caspian and Cain would be playing cards. No. It was a whole ass assembly with chairs and an aisle and everything.

“What the fuck is this? An intervention?” I squeaked, suddenly afraid he was going to pull me up on the makeshift stage beside Joffrey, who was currently standing on top of a stool. “Please tell me this is a talent show or there’s a comedian? Maybe a magician. Oh, I know, it’s like when Johnny Cash used to visit the prison. Are we getting a performance from The Apocalyptic Unicorns?”

“Sit down, Miss Moore. Do stop your rambling,” Joffrey snapped.

Before I could slink to the back of the crowd, where I found all four of my men standing, Sorcha’s cool fingers wrapped around my wrist, and she tugged me hard. I sat in the plastic chair between her and Oz.

“Saved you a seat,” the vampire murmured.

“Uh, thanks?”

She smirked, and I swore I heard three different sets of growls behind me.

“Now that we’re all here,” Joffrey intoned, his voice as bored and put upon as ever, “let’s get down to business.”

Did I hum the song from Mulan in my head? Yes, of course I did. But I quickly pushed that earworm out of my mind and leaned close to Sorcha, murmuring, “What exactly is the business?”

“Sex, darling. He wants to talk about the sex.”

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