Page 116 of Settle Down, Princess

How had Arik been allowed to live? He stared at his king with obvious disgust, and if I saw it, so did the rest of the court. That was a question I needed answered later as I watched the two of them face off. Magnus flinched ever so slightly, which made the king’s frown deepen.

“You dare question your king?”

“I do when there’s a potential for conflict to break out with the border kingdoms.”

Arik shoved a sheaf of papers at Magnus, the other man’s hand snapping up to take them and push Arik away, before he flicked through them. My marriage contract, I realised. I hadn’t seen it, had no say in its content, but I knew of its existence. Women had few protections, but a legal document outlining the conditions of their marriage was one of them.

“Border kingdoms…?”

I sucked in the look of confusion on Magnus’ face greedily, without betraying a thing in my expression. I was a perfectly blank-faced doll as I stared. Giselle looked restive, her fingers trailing through the king’s hair as she looked at him, the contract and then… Arik. She’d wanted me to be jealous and hadn’t managed it before, but I felt a stab of it now. I wanted to plunge the knife on my thigh into her eye socket and hear her screams echo through the room for even daring to glance Arik’s way.

Because he was mine.

I shouldn’t looked at Arik. I shouldn’t have sought his gaze. He certainly shouldn’t have met my eyes, those blue depths now like a stormy day. They were full of emotion, each one chasing the other across the sky of his eyes, but I caught anger and fear and fury and… Love?

Was that what that emotion was, the one that turned his eyes to molten blue rather than his usual glacial glare? A small cough from Silas had Arik redirecting his gaze, only for the rogue to claim my attention. He winked at me, then made a great show of staring studiously at the contract, right as Roan edged closer. The big warrior’s hand strayed to the hilt of his sword, his focus directed at the crowd in the room, his baleful stare convincing them that stepping back or out of this room was a very good idea.

But where was Creed?

“Lanzene and Matteau are prepared to support any military action Stormare might take…” The king sought to shove the papers back into Arik’s hands, but the prince made no attempt to take them. I watched them flutter through the air as they fell to the floor. Magnus’ gaze landed back on me, and I wasn’t happy for that. His eyes narrowed, his lip curling as he stared. “Prepared to fight a war for… her?”

Chapter 67

My little heart squeezed then, forcing me to see my father in a whole new light. Had he tried to protect me? Lanzene and Matteau were always looking for another reason to attack each other, so it wasn’t quite the compliment I would’ve wished for, but still… War? For me? I barely fought the urge to preen.

“I told you not to choose a wife from Stormare,” Arik said between gritted teeth. “Its strategic importance to our enemies, to our own economy, means that alienating the king was not in our best interests.”

Arik wasn’t talking to Magnus like he was his king. He wasn’t even giving his liege the respect due an older brother. Arik was dressing him down like a small child in front of the entire court, and that couldn’t stand.

“Lord king—” one courtier said, bowing low, but the tension was evident in his voice.

“Everyone out!”

He might’ve been weak, but Magnus had the imperiousness of a king. He pointed his finger to the doorway and some courtiers instantly moved towards it. Others hemmed and hawed, obviously wanting to know more about the military threat, but the king’s resolve held. Curiosity didn’t outweigh the customary need to obey a direct order from their ruler.

“Magnus, darling—” Giselle purred, but when she tried to sidle closer, he turned on her with a glare.

“You as well. I want no one in this fucking room but the wench that is to be my wife and the bastards who signed a marriage contract that could result in the whole country being plunged into war.”

“You do not wish me to inspect your wife to be, Your Majesty?”

Selene’s tone was perfectly conciliatory, but Magnus turned on her with a fury that had every muscle stiffening. He surged forward, hand raised, ready to do what, I didn’t know. But right as he came close, something slowed his steps… He took in the black robes and then me, a dangerous light in his eyes.

“Yes, Holy Mother, I do. Inspect the girl and make sure she is indeed pure because if she isn’t…” He glanced up at Arik, his lips twisting into an ugly smile. “Well, that would nullify any contract anyone might sign.”

So in the end, my life depended on one thing yet again: whether or not a man had touched me. I blinked, the room coming into stark focus, so I caught the heated looks each one of my mates gave me.

“We don’t need to be in the room when this happens,” Arik said in a much gentler tone. “We can wait outside, let the Holy Mother do her job—”

“Why, brother, are you shy? Surely you’ve seen a woman’s cunt before. I certainly won’t be leaving the room because I’ll be doing more than looking soon enough. If she’s intact, I’ll claim her, perhaps even get a baby in her belly before the day ends.” His lips twitched as he heard a guttural growl come from Roan. “Well, Holy Mother?”

It was better that this was happening in an almost empty room, I told myself furiously as I felt my dress inch higher. At least every bloody courtier in Khean wasn’t looking on, but as I felt the cool air of the room play across my legs, I couldn’t stop the tears from forming in my eyes. I’d learned to blink them away when I was still a child. A princess does not weep unless it was at a state funeral. A princess remains calm and serene behind her veil at all times. I could almost see cloth around my face, shielding me from their collective gaze, but was it a veil or a shroud I saw? I didn’t know as I hissed, feeling the woman slide my underwear down, then separating my thighs with all the clinical cool of a healer.

I’d never forgive Magnus for this. Right now I felt reduced to my most elemental parts, little more than a piece of meat tested for tenderness. My whole body jumped as Selene probed and inspected, forcing me to feel a horrible sensation of being opened before all of them. One tear slid free, then another, the only acknowledgement of my violation that I could allow before her hands drew away.

“Your future queen is still intact, Your Majesty,” Selene said in a cool voice.

Well, at least there was that. My value as a woman remained, which just made my lips twist into a bitter smile. Despite everything I had done, despite all I had experienced, I—

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