Page 48 of Queen of Ever

Haddock let out a sigh.‘Fine, fine.I’ll stay here.I need paper and ink and somethin’ to eat.And a blanket.’

‘You’ll have it,’ Tarian said.

‘I’d better get back before someone comes to check on me,’ I said.I really, really didn’t feel like feeding a castle full of bored fae a morsel of gossip for them to feed on.It would be a frenzy if they all really thought I’d spurned Solas to take up with Tarian.And Solas was unpredictable and indecipherable.I didn’t like to think of how he would respond if he felt like I’d humiliated him like that.

Tarian’s jaw tightened for a moment.‘Alright,’ he finally said, though I could tell he wasn’t happy about it.Secretly, that made me glad.

He took my hand and led me up the darkened staircase back to the world above.I did my best to supress the shivers that rattled me, pulling my cloak a little tighter to brace against the evening breeze.We walked in silence as we neared the castle.

Tarian squeezed my hand a little harder and pulled me towards the castle wall where we would be more hidden.He brushed my hair behind my ear, staring down at me with a complicated expression, but I could sense the emotion there.I didn’t want to part either.

He leaned in, pressing his lips to mine.Gently at first but becoming more urgent, his arms encircling me tightly.When he finally pulled back, he rested his forehead against mine, our panting breaths tangling together in the cool night air.

Then he pulled back completely, releasing my hand.‘Go and get warm,’ he said.

I nodded and slipped away, taking a deep breath as I began the solo trek back to the door we’d snuck out of.This was only temporary, I told myself as I chaffed at my arms for warmth.And I wondered whether whatever Haddock read in the stars would make it more or less so.

Chapter 19

Imogen

Thefollowingmorningwassurprisingly warm, and after a restless night, the prospect of some sunshine to clear the fog from my mind enticed me outdoors to a small, circular courtyard close to the Seelie quarters.It was about as well kept as the rest of the castle with crumbling pavers and chunks of fallen stone where a wall had slumped completely to the floor, but there was a fountain in the centre and wildflowers pushing through the cracked stone.

The fountain was large, with tarnished gold veins and chipped carvings that were so faded with age they were impossible to make out, and it had a wide rim that made a perfect seat in the sun.I was glad to find it quiet.The Seelie courtiers had started to whisper about me, and they weren’t exactly subtle.When I entered a room, they would stop talking or tilt their heads a little closer together and drop their voices, but their eyes followed me still.Maybe it was because of my murky relationship with Solas.I was sure I’d been seen attempting to slap him at the feast, so maybe they were all just trying to figure out whether we really were engaged after all.It would have been a relief if any of them would have just asked me outright so I could at least have the chance to deny it.

Or maybe Tarian and I hadn’t been as discreet as we thought.I flicked at the water in the bowl of the fountain, watching the sun catch the spray of droplets.I just wanted this conclave to be over.

‘Why are you sitting out here all alone?’

I turned my head to see Solas standing nearby, watching me.Who knew how long he’d been there.I’d been so lost in my own thoughts I hadn’t even heard him approach.Given our last exchange, I expected him to be angry, but instead he seemed perfectly calm, even offering me a smile.But it didn’t reach his eyes.It already had me feeling like he had calculated his next three moves and as usual, I was left wondering what game we were playing and hoping I could keep up.

‘Marietta had something to do,’ I said.She hadn’t told me what that was, exactly, but I’d wanted some time to myself, so I hadn’t pressed her about it.She’d been gone an unusually long time, though.But I withheld that detail.Solas certainly didn’t need to know.

‘You’re not making friends with the other courtiers?’

From the tone of his voice, I gathered he wanted me to.No doubt the more ties I had to the Seelie Kingdom, the better for him.But on the whole, the courtiers at this conclave were not people I wanted to get to know.Political machinations seemed to be a favourite pastime of the fae courts, which was something I had no interest in.

‘Did you really come to ask about my anti-social behaviour?’

‘There’s no need to be so curt with me.’

‘You mean no need other than the whole sham engagement thing?’

‘I’m trying to apologise for that,’ he said.‘I’ve even brought you a gift.’Holding out his hand, he dangled a stunning gold necklace from one finger, intricate in its design of a sunburst hung with strands of gold that looped back up to entwine with the main chain, glittering with tiny diamonds.But what captured my attention most was the gentle hum of magic around it.

I looked up at him, not so much as twitching a finger to take it.‘What does it do?’

‘What do you mean?It’s a necklace, you wear it,’ he said smoothly.Did he expect I couldn’t sense the magic on it, or did he expect I would doubt myself enough to just ignore the feeling and take it anyway?

‘Why do you keep pursuing me?’I asked, still not willing to touch the necklace.

‘Isn’t it obvious?’he said.A clear evasion.I was getting better at recognising that now.

‘I need to hear you say it.’

‘You expect me to be open with you, even knowing what I do?’he demanded, his temper beginning to slip.

Again, his words were ambiguous at best.Knowing what, exactly?That I didn’t feel the same?That I wouldn’t accept him anyway?Or that I knew he was just playing a game?

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