Page 34 of Magic of Sins

“No, I …”

He stands up and comes over to us, hands clasped behind his back. My gaze automatically drops to his shiny polished shoes and I keep my eyes glued to them.

“What brings you to us, Miss Ashton?”

I stutter in surprise that the king is addressing me directly.

“I … I …”

“Mr. Nox scared her, Father. She no longer felt safe at home,” Ophelia rushes to my aid. “I invited Miss Ashton to stay at the palace for a few days. After all, we’re the ones who put her in this position. I assumed you wouldn’t mind.”

That isn’t a lie—I am afraid to go home, and Caden is partly to blame for that. Still, the king furrows his brows even more.

“So the encounter with Mr.Nox frightened you, Miss Ashton?”

“Yes.”

I dare to look him in the eye. His gaze is hard and unyielding.

“And now you fear your own shadow,” the king says and nods thoughtfully. “Very well. You may stay.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” I say, though his condescending remark annoys me.

After all, I have a lot more to fear than that.

I curtsey again. Somehow, I get the feeling that the king is scrutinizing me, like he’s waiting for me to do or say something rash. Ophelia places her hand reassuringly on my arm as her father finally turns his back on us. I can see the tension slowly draining from her.

At the door the king stops and turns to us once more.

“Oh, and Miss Ashton?”

Ophelia’s hand slides off my arm as hastily as if she’d been burned.

I swallow, not daring to move an inch.

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“Just so we’re clear: I will not tolerate sin in my palace.”

Chapter Ten

“Just one dance,” Ophelia keeps repeating softly, as if to encourage herself.

She has been pacing nonstop since we entered the reception hall. Her hands are shaking a little. She keeps putting them on her stomach as if she needs to remind herself to breathe. Erin is already giving her worried looks. But as her guard, her place is in the back.

“It won’t be so bad,” I try to cheer Ophelia up, even though I feel at least as tense as she does.

I don’t belong here. Despite the dress Ophelia lent me, I feel like I don’t fit in, like I’m a brightly colored dot in a mass of gray.

The King’s warning still echoes in my mind.I will not tolerate sin in my palace.If even one of those present knew what I had done… If the king found out…

Instinctively, my eyes are drawn to the tall man in a gray suit and black polished shoes. King Henry is engrossed in a conversation with the parents of Lord Ernest Diligence. He hasn’t noticed his daughter yet, whose attention is being monopolized by an older couple. The gray-haired lady curtsies so low that she almost loses her balance. While the three exchange pleasantries, I let my gaze wander around the room.

It is a contradictory sight—the hall with its shiny tiles and large windows, trying to look festive but not pompous. The guests in their gray suits and dresses, looking as if they’re afraid to stand out from the crowd.

A woman gives Ophelia a disparaging look. The princess has decided to wear a pantsuit tonight. It’s not against the law, butit’s an unusual choice for a woman. I wonder why the king lets her get away with it. He doesn’t strike me as the type of father to be defied.

I borrowed the tulle skirt that Ophelia was wearing when we first met. She would have preferred to put me in a long silk dress, but I was just barely able to prevent that.

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