Page 9 of The Rejected King
His full attention was on her now, but he didn’t say anything.
What if Emree was choking? Would he sit there and let her die? And what about the guards? Their eyes followed her every cough, but they didn’t move to help her. She should fall to the ground and pretend like she had passed out. Maybe then the three men would show some concern.
But that wasn’t why Emree was there. She would have to teach these men a lesson another day. She coughed out the last tickle and pointed to her throat. “Phlegm,” she explained to the royal secretary.
“I can see that,” he said dryly.
Emree dropped her eyes to her skirt. Well, at least he hadn’t forgotten about her.
Davin
“We have one lastinterview,” Davin’s mother said as she flipped through her notebook. She held up a piece of paper in front of her eyes, reading it. “Her name is Emree Dutson. She’s quite young, but Fennish and Yvonne Kemp say she’s amazing.”
“Are we trusting Fennish Kemp now?”
His mother shot him a wry look. “The fact that he ran against you doesn’t erase years of friendship between our two families.”
Davin stood to pour himself a glass of water, walking the length of his mother’s office. The room was decorated in creams mixed with light blue and sea green accents. The sofas and chairs had a floral pattern that swirled around the arms and stretched across the corners. Large windows pulled from the floor to the top of the tall ceilings, letting in an abundance of natural light. The cream walls were decorated with framed drawings school children from New Montana had colored for her over the years. The entire room felt cheery and comfortable, like his mother’s personality.
Davin gulped what was left of his water, striding back to the chair next to her. “You said she’s quite young. How young isquiteyoung?”
His mother’s lips pulled into a frown. “Nineteen.”
“Nineteen!” Davin gasped. “You want the Promenade to be handled by a nineteen-year-old?”
His mother shrugged. “In all fairness, you’re hardly much older or wiser. You’re only five years older than her.”
“Exactly,” Davin said. “That’s why I need someone older and more mature.”
The queen raised an incriminating eyebrow. “I’m surprised at you, Davin. Haven’t you wished that more people would take you seriously despiteyourage?”
Davin kept his expression neutral, but guilt nicked at his conscience.
His mother shrugged. “Truly, I’m interviewing her as a favor to Yvonne. Miss Dutson’s parents work for the Kemps and are apparently good friends of theirs.” His mother closed her folder. “But maybe there’s no need. I’ll just tell Yvonne we found someone more qualified for the job.”
The truth was, they hadn’t found anybody qualified for the job. At least in Davin’s opinion. There were plenty of competent candidates, but Davin hadn’t found anyone he liked, and it was important that he liked his Promenade director. He would be spending a lot of time over the next few weeks with whoever got the job.
“Who are you thinking about hiring?” he asked.
“What about Cinda Carlisle?” his mother suggested.
“She reminds me of my old schoolmaster...what was her name?”
“Mrs. Humont.”
Davin pointed a finger at his mother. “Yes, her. She still frightens me.”
His mother flipped through more resumes. “What about Kendrick Myton?”
Davin shook his head. “I can’t get past his haircut.” The man had a mullet in the back and a major comb-over happening in the front.
“Would you like me to tell him he can have the job if he cuts his hair?”
Davin pressed his fingers together in front of his mouth, forming a triangle. “It would be a shame to make him choose between his hair and us.”
His mother rolled her eyes. “What are you looking for then?”
Davin couldn’t really explain it. He just knew he hadn’t found it.
