Page 127 of The Heir's Bargain

"Ferrios and Prince Charming had a fight at the commander's dinner."

"You should have been there, Major. It was—" Moris snapped his mouth shut when I chucked a throwing knife inches from his boot.

Sylvia snickered.

Quint continued, "Yes, well, I didn’t want to miss my niece's birth. Family does come first," Quint said to Moris before turning to me. "You and the prince fought?"

I scoffed. "Of course not. Sylvia is exaggerating."

Sylvia, however, brushed me off, continuing as if I hadn't said a single word and wasn't currently reaching for another throwing knife. "The prince was upset that someone didn't inform him she was coming."

I tried to interject, my brows twisting, "It's not that. It's?—"

"Was this your first fight?" Quint asked, turning a curious gaze toward me.

"Our first fight?" My eyes widened, and I wrapped my arms tighter around my legs. "I told you, we’re not fighting."

We weren't anything anymore based on how we left things, I thought to myself.

"Come on, Dani. You were just complaining to me about?—"

I elbowed Sylvia in the ribcage, and they hissed. "Hey! What was that for?"

"Shut up, Sylvia," I hissed.

When Fynn slammed the door shut on his way out after dinner, those in attendance figured something was wrong. According to Sylvia, no one had dared voice it, though. On the voyage over, Sylvia had asked me what had happened. And in confidence—or at least what I thought was in confidence—I had relayed some of the details about the argument.

"Fine. I won't say anything else. But"—there was always a but when it came to Sylvia—"if I were you, I would talk to him when we return and try to make up. Rumor has it there are women already lining up to be next."

My stomach twisted. "Next?"

Moris nodded and said, "You know, the next to court Fynn?"

My lungs dropped to the pit of my stomach. Our courtship—if one could even call it that—might have been short-lived, but I had thought Fynn would have at least waited to find his next conquest.

My conversation with him after the dinner resurfaced. I had told him I was not a queen. I had told him my career was important. But what did he say?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Instead, Fynn only focused on the mission.

And what was that supposed to mean? Did he, too, think we were ignorant for believing we could have been something?

We had yet to talk concretely about what would happen after the deal was over. If we hadn't fought, would there have been an after?

Or was I just the latest woman in Fynn's line-up, as Moris had suggested?

"I'm going to get some sleep while I can," Moris said, stretching his arms up.

Sylvia looked at me.

"I'll take the first watch," I said.

"No, I got it," Quint said. "You get some sleep, Ferrios. You've already done most of the heavy lifting to get us here. It's the least I can do."

My gaze fell to the flask.

Quint shook his head. "I didn't drink any."

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