Page 63 of Until the Stars Fall

Brennan swung his head around to peer at me. “Not sad, brother. She looked…hopeful.”

I groaned. Why couldn’t she just listen? Why couldn’t she let him go?

I’d warned her repeatedly, even threatened to kick her out of the palace.

Why had she been upstairs near the banquet hall in the first place? Had she been looking for him? So many questions, and no good answers.

I shot Brennan a sidelong glance. “You didn’t happen to give her reason to be hopeful, did you?”

He blinked at me slowly as his brow lowered, as if I had just suggested something totally preposterous. “How could I have? I was standing at the end of the hallway with Calla on my arm. We saw them, turned, and left. That’s it.”

Rubbing my fingers on my temples, I forced my breathing to slow. I needed to think, but there wasn’t time. Guests would start to arrive within the hour, and if Lieke didn’t adhere to the rules and stay hidden, I couldn’t guarantee her safety. She might be a thorn in my side, but she was still a thorn under our protection.

Until you have to banish her from the palace.

If she tried to interfere and I didn’t hold to my word to take her to the king, there would be no hope of her ever listening in the future. She’d never take me seriously if I gave her too many chances.

And I’d already given her plenty.

“What do you—” Brennan started to ask, but a knock at the door cut him off. He checked the clock above his fireplace. “It’s not time yet, is it?”

“We still have a half hour or so, but if it’s a message from the king, you’d best not leave the page waiting.”

Brennan nodded, muttering, “Right, right,” and dashed over to the door.

My nerves frayed when he opened it and stiffened. His heartbeat took off. His jaw tightened.

“You shouldn’t be here, Lieke,” he said.

I dropped my face into my hands, shaking my head as I growled in frustration.

CHAPTER 30

Lieke

Brennan answered the door with his cravat hanging loose and untied over his unbuttoned and untucked shirt. He seemed relaxed, calm, and possibly even happy—until he recognized me and uttered those damned words.

You shouldn’t be here.

How many times had he said those words to me? And yet I never listened. This was quite possibly one of the worst ideas I’d had in a long time, perhaps even worse than confronting Connor last week. For all I knew, Brennan wasn’t alone in his room. What if the princess was here? Or the king?

“I know I shouldn’t be,” I said, “but I needed to see you. Can I come in?”

Shoving his hands into his pockets, he rocked back on his heels, but he didn’t move to allow me to enter. “Why?”

“I’d rather not get caught standing outside your door, Brennan.”

He shook his head. “Should have thought about that before you came.”

Narrowing my eyes, I searched his face for any hint of the hopelessness I had noticed downstairs. He had seemed so desperate to escape his circumstances, but now he was treating me as an annoyance. Had I imagined his dread before? Or was someone here, keeping him from speaking to me plainly?

“Who’s with you, Brennan?” I asked.

His brow lowered slightly. “What does that matter?”

“Because this isn’t you. You wouldn’t treat me like this.”

“Exactly how am I treating you?”

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