Page 44 of Chosen By the Fae King

“Welcome your king!” Hilda whisper-hissed from behind us.

The contestants all curtsied at once and he hummed, like he was pleased with what he saw.

Somehow, I managed to dip into a curtsy, the picture of poise even as I trembled inside. When I rose, a hair before the others, his dark eyes glowed with challenge. My traitorous body responded with an ache I didn't dare acknowledge.

Nox's lips curved, slow and predatory. I couldn't win this game so I returned to conversation with my friends.

The king mingled within the small crowd, stopping and speaking to each female. He carried himself with a fearsome elegance. I hated how tremendously handsome he looked in his royal suit of black with accents of gold on the cuffs and lapels.

When he arrived at our little foursome, my spine erected.

“Your Majesty, how are you this evening?” Mirrelle inquired.

“I am quite well, Lady Mirrelle. Lady Astrid, it's nice to see you in attire that isn't a medical gown.”

Astrid lifted a second hand to her goblet. “Thank you, Your Highness. It was ... thoughtful of you to visit.”

“You visited Astrid in the infirmary?” I asked in puzzlement.

All four sets of eyes whipped to me. “Your Highness,” I threw out quickly.

“Of course I did,” he clipped.

I lifted my glass to my lips before I made a complete ass of myself.

The king continued chatting with Astrid, Mirrelle, and Sofiya, though I didn't hear a word of it. The insensitive rider who'd argued with me that night about getting help actually went to visit Astrid.

Probably to make sure he didn't have to tell her parents he'd accidentally killed her. That had to be it.

A moment later, Nox put a hand at my back, excused himself, then moved past me without another word. I tried to breathe through my mouth so I wouldn't have to deal with the spice of the smokey scent he left in his wake.

I released a shaky breath, my knees threatening to buckle. Damn him. And damn me, as well.

I risked a glance at the crowd and found more than one envious glare aimed my way. At least I wasn't the only one affected by Nox's presence. It was a small comfort.

I felt someone's stare from across the room. Lorne was watching me with an unreadable expression, observant eyes peering out from beneath a fall of vanilla hair. I averted my gaze.

The king's brother had unsettled me in a way I couldn't quite define. I would think on his earlier words another time.

A hand grasped my arm, and I started before recognizing Sofiya. Our two companions had left us. “Steady there,” she said with a wry smile. “His Majesty seems to have that effect on people.”

I grimaced. “Is it so obvious?” I whispered as quietly as I could.

“Only to me.” Sofiya squeezed my arm in sympathy. “He's getting under your skin.”

“He's insufferable,” I bit out.

“He's also our sovereign. And a dark fae of some sort. Power like that is difficult to resist.”

I was going to say his power had nothing to do with it, but the lie was bitter on my tongue and couldn't be verbalized. Nox exuded power like a physical force, and the wild part of me craved the heady thrill of challenging it.

He'd been right. I wanted to challenge him and was only realizing it now. I was an idiot, apparently.

Sofiya's gaze turned knowing. I opened my mouth to argue but thought better of it and distracted myself by examining the other females in their finery.

A mistake.

With Nox making rounds, the tension among the contestants ratcheted up several notches. They vied for his attention, peppering him with coy smiles and artless flirtation. Nox accepted their tribute with an indulgent amusement that grated on my nerves.

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