Page 26 of Destined for the Fae King

“Not at all.” In fact, the idea of a casual lunch is perfect. Much better than some stuffy formal dinner where we’re stuck at opposite ends of a ridiculously long.

“Excellent. Let’s be off.” He holds out his other hand to me, and I stare at it in confusion. “Ah,” he says, reading my expression. “We’ll need to shift there.”

“Oh?” Now that’s interesting.

“I know it can be a bit disorienting for humans,” he continues. “But we’d miss lunch if we walked all the way.”

My confusion has already faded, replaced by a wistful excitement that tingles in my veins. “It’s fine. I’m excited actually.”

“Oh?” He cocks his head, and I bite my lip at the mimicry of my earlier comment.

Vasilius flexes his open hand in invitation, and this time, I take it, forming a little ring between our bodies as we face each other.

“I’m ready.” I nearly bounce on my toes.

The corners of his mouth lift. “Don’t let go.”

“I won’t.”But the words aren’t even out of my mouth before the world around us starts to warp and shift, the air constricting like suddenly being stuffed in a too-tight sweater.

Chapter 10

Icling to Vasiliusas we shift to a new location. Colors spin and blur. And then, just as suddenly, the pressure around us pops, and the world stops moving. Seconds have passed, but we’re in a completely different place, though we’re likely no too far from the palace.

A roof shields us from the midday sun, but the view spreading out around us is still blinding. Sunlight shimmers off dunes of sand that fill my vision from one edge of my periphery to the other. There’s a literal fae king in front of me, one I’ve dreamed about for years, and yet all I can see is what’spasthim.

“The Dune Sea,” I whisper in awe.

The sight pulls me in. I drop his hands and move to the edge of a gazebo of sorts. A railing of pale wood at the edge of the stone platform is all that separates us from the dunes. A strong wind would be enough to brush the sand right over my feet. Finally, I tear myself from the sight and look around.

Vasilius stands with his arms crossed, but he’s still smiling, so me totally ignoring him in favor of the view can’t be too bad of a misstep. Besides, I’m sure he expected some bit ofsurprise, given that he didn’t even tell me where we were going, and this is… There are few words for it. Stunning? Incredible? Awe inspiring?

The land behind me is sand as far as I can see, but behind the king, I can see this gazebo is at the edge of some large structure. A covered pathway occupied by several fae guards connects us to it. In the center of our structure is a small table set for two, covered platters already at each place setting. A fae male pours a bubbling golden liquid that I’m guessing is wine into two glasses.

“I take it you like the location?” Vasilius lifts one brow.

“It’s incredible.” I glace back again at the Dune Sea, unable to resist its pull. I never thought it would be hard to pay attention to the king during my time with him, but this may put me to the test. Turning back to him, I say, “Thank you for choosing me today, for bringing me here.”

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re pleased.” He holds out a hand to me again. “Shall we dine?”

A weightlessness fills me as I cross the space to him and take his hand. This could be our life, our future. Suddenly, the fact that my uncle somewhat forced me into this doesn’t seem so bad. There are certainly perks, maybe a lifetime of them.

Lunch passes both too quickly and far too slowly. I poke at the food, trying to pretend I’m still eating just to prolong things, but I haven’t actually taken a bite in a while. This should be the part of the meal where awkward get-to-know-you conversation has shifted into something genuine and exciting that leaves my skin tingling with anticipation and the actual meal itself a footnote in an otherwise exquisite date. Or that’s what I’d hoped for.

It must be because I started the conversation wrong, asking Vasilius what he liked to do when he wasn’t busy being a king. I had no idea he was going to spend the whole time regaling me with stories of hunting fae beasts through the wilds of the court.

Oh, I want to be interested, I really do, but I can only hear about slaying various vicious beasts for so long before the meal turns from exquisite to nauseating and it takes everything I have to focus on the words coming out of his mouth. I want to learn about him, truly, but I wanted him to get to know me as well. There’s no back and forth, little time for me to try to jump into the conversation, and every time I manage to get in more than a smile and nod, things boomerang back to where they were with Vasilius telling stories like he’s the one trying to impress me.

Maybe he is? My smile falters just a little at the thought. He’s a king after all. Most people probably just want to hear about him and play to his interests. Ishoulddo that, right?

Vasilius wipes at his mouth with all the grace of his title before setting the cloth aside. “So, what do you care to do with your time?”

I blink at him.Me?I almost ask, so surprised by a question finally tossed my way. “I’ve always loved to dance.”

“Ah, a dancer!” He raises his glass and takes a sip. It’s his second, or maybe third, glass, though the fae wine doesn’t seem to have any effect on him.

I wish I could say the same for myself. I was so nervous and excited that I downed half the glass right after I sat, and boy, was that a mistake. The effect was quick, leaving me flushed and my head spinning just a bit. The king’s proximity sure doesn’t help matters. Maybe it is a good thing he’s done most of the talking up until now because I’m really not sure what would have come out of my mouth half an hour ago. Since that first unfortunate sip, I’ve left the wine alone and the food has managed to balance me out a bit.

“Not professionally or anything,” I add. “I loved it though. The way the music just seemed to take control of my body. I tooklessons for years and was in a number of local performances, including several where I was the lead. Performing for a crowd was absolutely thrilling.”

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