Page 116 of Bride of the Midnight Prince

I want to say something. I want Rahk to look down at me, wink, and whisper,“Isn’t all of this ridiculous?”I want this to be a shared joke between us. Maybe then I could make sense of it. Maybe then I would be comforted that, if nothing else, I married a friend and ally.

Instead, it feels as though I have wed a stranger.

Somehow, when we arrive in the banquet hall, cleared of tables to leave room for dancing, the queen is already there. She sits on another throne, on a dais. There is no sign of her son.

“Lord Rahk,” she says, her clear voice carrying across the space, mingling with the sounds of the stringed quartet tuning their instruments. “You have won the favor of the illustrious Lady Vandermore, it seems.”

Rahk releases me and bows low while I curtsy deeply. “Lady Vandermore is gracious to offer it.”

This is the part where I do not behave like a trapped bride. I swallow, trying to find my tongue, willing it to work properly. I struggle to find something to say and then decide on the most honest thing I can offer. “He has been kind to me, Your Majesty.”

Queen Vivienne regards me shrewdly. “What is the reason behind the sudden marriage?”

Rahk, being a fae, cannot lie. That leaves the job up to me.

“We have been secretly engaged, Majesty,” I say, “but there have been . . .complicationswith the matter of my fortune. You know that I have been the object of unwanted advances because of it. It reached a point where I needed to be wed for my own protection. Lord Rahk was generous enough to move the wedding sooner.”

“Your protection?” repeats the queen, lifting one elegant eyebrow. “Which suitors drove you to the point of needingprotection?”

I give a nervous chuckle. “There has not been a singular person, but rather the many.”

That one eyebrow does not relax. People stream through the open doors, however, and the quartet begins a lilting rhythm. Rahk takes my arm lightly and leads me to the dance floor, away from the queen’s interrogation.

She watches us as our hands clasp, as though to read the things we aren’t saying in the press of our palms and the way he slides his fingers beneath my shoulder blade. She must think ours a marriage of convenience rather than a love match, and I suppose that is the case.

The dance begins. It is a waltz. This is a ridiculous parody of our dance practice in his study only two days ago. I do not purposefully mess things up this time, but dance proficiently. Rahk himself, to my surprise, has notable improvement. Did he fake his own uncertainty?

Well, he knew I was a woman. His little comments return to me in a new light.

“You make such an excellent womanly partner.”

“The number of strong opinions you hold as a twelve-year-old continues to amaze me.”

He has known thisentire time.

We sweep across the polished floor, moving in time to the music. To anyone watching, it appears as though we stare into each other’s eyes. I try to read the inch of space between his eyebrows to even a sliver of emotion, but I could be staring at a sculpted stone for all the life in his expression.

We are surrounded by curious members of the court. The atmosphere has shifted from silent to musing, pleasantries and quiet talk being exchanged around us. I wish everyone was gone. I wish we didn’t have to be here at all.

I cannot bear the silence any longer. “Lord Rahk—”

“Please be silent, Lady Vandermore. We will speak later.”

I’m Lady Vandermore now? I clamp my jaw shut and grind my teeth, but don’t reply. He spins me. Our eyes meet briefly, but his flee as he pulls me close again. He physically holds me further away than he ever did when we danced in his study.

After several dances, Rahk abruptly comes to a stop. “This is enough. We are leaving.”

And leave, at last, we do.

Chapter 35

Kat

AtRahk’sestate,heimmediately hands me off to Edvear. “Have Mrs. Finch tend Lady Vandermore. I shall be in my study.”

Then he strides off without another word.

Edvear’s yellow eyes seem brighter in the darkness. He ushers me into Rahk’s room. Charity comes and helps me undress, making me miss Mary. It also makes me confused about what this night will hold for me.

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