Page 118 of A War of Crowns

A deep, lingering silence.

Her pointless party continued on around them, laughter and conversation rasping over the whine of the music. A few courtiers passed close enough to their trio to offer soft congratulations on her birthday, their engagement, and all manner of other nonsense. Bows and curtsies were always gifted to them both.

But still, the queen lingered on near his side. His blind side at that.

And he was growing tired of having to keep his neck torqued to watch her.

Finally, he snapped, “What do you want?” which lured her into shooting him another glance honed to a dangerous edge.

“People will think itrudeif I am not seen to be socializing with you at some point this evening,” the queen softly hissed, “given that you are my fi—”

He arched his eyebrow again when she seemed to struggle with that final word. For a time, her mouth soundlessly worked over the vowels before she finally bit out, “Myfiancé.”

Aldric huffed out a breath. He waved his hand, trying to shoo her away. As though she were a fly. “Very well. We have socialized. You may now return to your guests.”

And yet still, she lingered.

“You have not yet danced,” the queen carefully observed.

Aldric made a face. “I don’t dance.”

“You don’t or youcan’t?”

“I—” he started to snarl before he bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying something he would regret. He needed to benice. He needed to keep her on his good side so she would allow their wedding to proceed. “Icandance,” he quietly explained, a good deal more calmly than he had originally intended. “But Idon’t.”

“Well, why not?”

“What does it matter?” he couldn’t help but ask.

Calix, still lingering nearby and entirely too interested in their conversation, observed, “I believe Her Majesty is wanting to dance with you, Your Highness.”

But the queen was swift to contradict, “Want is very much not the correct word, Master Fitzjesmaine.” She frowned. “Butunfortunately, I fear that since youarehere, it will be expected for us to dance together at least the once, yes.”

Aldric scoffed at the very idea and wiped his palms against his trousers. The ballroom was crowded and hot.

He hated it.

“What sort of…barbaricElmorian custom is this?” he demanded of her and Calix both. His second-in-command had no answers for him. The other man shrugged, clearly just in the dark as he. “I must dance with you simply because I want us to be wed?”

The queen looked entirely too pleased with herself when she sweetly reminded him, “And here I thought you would not wish to marry me even if I were to crawl on my hands and knees and beg you for it.”

Calix’s ears clearly pricked at that. “What’s this then?”

“Nothing,” he and the queen snapped in unison.

Drawing in a deep breath, Aldric demanded of the woman beside him, just as he had promised Calix he would, “I want our wedding to take place before Wintertide.”

That certainly seemed to garner her attention. Gifting him a rapid double-blink, the queen murmured, “I beg your pardon?”

He spoke a little more loudly when he repeated himself. “I want our wedding to take placebeforeWintertide.” Flicking his hand toward the courtiers still tottering about the dance floor, he added, “If you want to dance with me, those are my terms. Your word right now that we will be wed before then.”

A breathless laugh burst past the queen’s lips as she turned away from him. For a time, they stood like that. Him staring up at her back, watching her shoulders shake while shelaughed.

The back of her gown was beaded with yet more purple starlight.

When she turned around to face him again, though, it was to fix him with a cool stare as she declared, “As I already told you, I must discuss the matter with my Privy Council first.”

“You are the queen,” he reminded her. “What is there to discuss?”

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