Page 7 of Falling Princess

“Even Lorcan can’t be that oblivious.”

One thing I appreciate about Kenton is that his dislike for Raina’s boyfriend runs nearly as deep as mine.

“How has he not noticed the way Raina looks at him?” Kenton continued when I didn’t immediately respond. “Like a child at a Midwinter’s dessert table.” He made a face, all wide, yearning eyes and pantomimed drool.

It’s unkind. I laughed anyway.

“Stop it.”

I swatted him.

“Seriously, Raina looks at him like he’s a honey stick in a shop window, and she’s a girl without a dael to her name.”

Daels are our currency, like dollars or euros, only worth a lot less.

“Uncharitable, Kenton. Shut it; they’ll hear you.”

Sure enough, Lorcan glanced up. It’s only a slight tilt of his head. I can see the blue of one eye beneath the overhang of light brown hair, right above Raina’s midnight locks. I instantly felt guilty and dropped my gaze.

He isn’t intimidated by me.

Weirdly, Iamintimidated by him, especially when he catches me being human. It doesn’t happen frequently—I do try to be a perfect princess most of the time—but there are moments, like now, when Lorcan makes me feel as though the world has tilted off its axis.

His existence is a constant reminder of my own shortcomings. Can anyone blame me for despising him?

“How do you think Lorcan knew there would be a blast?” I whispered to Kenton when the subject of our gossip returned his attention to Raina. “Do you think it’s possible he’s Skía?”

Wouldn’t that be a twist. It makes a certain kind of sense—

I glimpsed a fleeting expression on Kenton’s face. “What?”

What aren’t they telling me?

“Lady Cata keeps you in the dark, doesn’t she?”

“About everything,” I grumbled.

“She means to protect you.”

I believed him. Annoyance flashed through me anyway. How am I supposed to become a good queen when they always cut me out?

“Such as?”

He glanced around before leaning closer. Kenton smells faintly of pine and soap, with a masculine note I can’t quite define. It’s a nice scent. I’ve never thought much about the way people smell before now, other than good or bad.

“There were credible threats about public places. Train stations, shopping districts...and nightclubs. Anywhere large numbers of people might gather and a single bomber can easily pass unnoticed. Your choice of venues and the timing of your escape scared a lot of people.”

I thought back to the way the bouncers at the Dragon’s Nest waved us through without patting us down. The lack of security cameras. In retrospect, it’s not difficult to understand why it made an appealing target for both a bomber and a wayward princess trying to avoid scrutiny.

“How did you find that club, anyway?” Kenton asked.

“I searched some online forums. Incognito mode,” I added hastily, even though I know better than to believe that means anything.

“Your phone could have been tapped.”

“Possibly.” Probably. I know Sas can go in and look at any website I access from it, whenever she feels like it. I’m sure she’ll report back to my father, too.

“Or it could have been a coincidence that you and Raina were at that club, at that time, and Lorcan was prudent in hustling you out of there.”

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