Page 18 of The Heir's Bargain

Terin sprung up. But as Terin reached for Moris, the prince froze. His hand was midair, inches away, as Moris came crashing down.

"Fuck. That's not what I meant to do," Moris mumbled, rubbing his head.

He squinted at Terin, and the prince fell, catching himself with his hands before he smacked against the concrete alongside Moris.

"Shit, Moris. Maybe next time, don't paralyze me when I'm trying to help you?"

"Sorry." Moris attempted to push himself up but fell flat on the ground. He groaned. "Maybe I am a little drunk."

"A little?" Terin countered.

Laughter bounced off the castle walls. Even Graeson struggled to keep the grimace on his face.

Because of the temperamental and dampened blood of the gods, we spent our childhood nurturing and caring for our abilities. Yet our gifts were still fragile little things if not properly used or cared for.

When Pontanius came to the moral world, he had fallen in love with a mortal woman, Alysinth. As a result, their children had been born with both mortal and immortal blood, granting them the power of the gods. While the children were not as strong as their immortal father, they were stronger than mortals and had unforeseen abilities. To help his children master their abilities, Pontanius and the goddess Sabina built the Whispering Springs, a waterfall infused with the gods' will, in the center of Pontia. By visiting the springs and speaking with the gods, a child could learn to control their gift.

However, our gifts could sometimes remain volatile years later—especially if someone had one too many glasses of wine.

"Already started without me, huh?" Fynn asked as he hopped down the stone steps, glass in hand and crown crooked on his head.

"Not our fault Mother-dearest was parading you around like a prized cow," I said.

Terin snorted beside me.

Fynn threw himself onto the bench with an exasperated sigh. "Don't even get me started, Ferrios. Do you know how many times I had to smile and nod as one woman after the next chided away about her frivolous accomplishments?"

"Aww, the little prince's life is so hard," I mocked. "He's forced to dance with pretty women."

Those around us chuckled, raising their glasses to cover their amused grins.

Fynn narrowed his eyes and said, "Forced is the key word here."

Sylvia scoffed, kicking their feet in the water as they perched on the concrete wall. "Hot is the more accurate description." Sylvia wore a simple dark green ensemble that complimented their auburn hair. The green fabric was draped over the concrete wall and dipped into the water like ivy crawling over stone.

"Sylvia's right," I said. "At least your mother is trying to set you up with attractive partners."

Fynn's attention flicked to me again, his eyes locking onto mine for a second too long. I scrambled, double-checking that my shields were up.

A smirk slipped upon his face.

Too late.

I slammed the door shut and forced him out of my mind.

"So, both of our mothers are trying to set us up, huh? Are they part of some mothers-seeking-spouses-for-their-reluctant-children club that we need to dismantle?"

I snorted. "Perhaps that should be your first decree as Crown Prince."

Fynn plucked the crown from his head and spun it around his finger. "If only this crown were more than a physical representation of the symbolic chain that will be locking me to this castle in the near future." He gripped the crown within his palm and sat it on his knee.

Moris' brows twisted, confusion spreading across his face.

I clicked my tongue. "If I have any say in the matter, my mother's plans will not work. I'll entertain her options. Let whatever poor suitors she chooses court me, and then get rid of them."

"Get rid of them?" Moris squawked. "Dani, you can't just go around killing people!"

Huffing, I waved a hand in the air. "Oh, calm down. I'm not going to kill them, Moris. I'm simply going to show them that courting me is the exact opposite of what they want to do. I don't care if they think a relationship with me is advantageous. My father might be the commander and one of the queen's advisors, but his position in society will not be worth courting me."

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