Page 83 of Silent Secrets

“Well, it won’t remain hidden if you continue to speak about it so loudly.” Grace lifts her eyebrows, voice pointed, before she slides a key into the door and throws it open. “It is so that rulers can step away from parties to meet with others without actually leaving the celebration.”

“Yeah, I’m sure that’s what they use it for.” Caiden chuckles, his hand landing on my lower back as he leads me into the room. The other three follow us in and the door shuts with a small snick before silence falls over the room.

“It’s soundproofed.” I don’t know why I’m surprised by this—it makes sense. If you’re going to meet with someone in the middle of a party, you want to be able to shut out the sounds of the celebration. Or if you’re sneaking away with a lover, as Caiden implied, you would want to keep the sound from escaping the room.

“I wanted to give the five of you a chance to talk now that your magic has revealed. But you’ve already shown your preference for them on the dance floor. You need to be more careful from here on out. All eyes will be on you, Hadley. From here on out, every move you make is being watched and judged, so keep that in mind.”

I nod, understanding what Grace is telling me. I may not like it, but there isn’t much that I can do to change it. She reaches over and squeezes my hand.

“I know that there is a lot of pressure on you, Hadley, but I also know that you can handle it. You’ve done so well over the last two weeks. You are exactly what Sorlphi needs now, but there is still much you have to do. Your mother would be proud of you.”

I feel tears at the back of my eyes and fight against them. I know Grace is speaking of my birth mother, but I also know that the mom who raised me would be proud of me as well. Each day without her is hard, but it’s growing easier now. Something that I know has to do with the people in this room and Adaline. For the first time in my life, I have people I can rely on.

Grace turns her attention to the four men who surround me. “She will need all of you now. You know what the courts are like, how the aristocracy will react to her now that she has proven that she is the future Fae Queen. Whatever she decides—whether it’s to take you as consorts or not—she is your queen and your future positions mean that the five of your lives will remain intertwined, regardless. Now is the time to prove where your loyalties lie. Don’t disappoint me, boys.”

Before any of us can respond, she’s gone.

Glancing between each of the men, I’m unsure of what to say. I know that she brought us in here so that we could speak, but I’m not ready to tell them that I’ve decided that I plan to take at least three of them as my consorts. I’m still unsure about Hunter and that’s what makes me keep my mouth shut.

“How does it feel?” Caiden asks, breaking the silence.

I turn to him with a grin, thanking him with my eyes for speaking up. “What? Having magic?”

When he nods, I shrug and let my eyes fall shut. I can feel it moving within me and I realize that it’s been like I’ve had a piece of myself missing until now. I don’t know what would have happened if I’d been in L’Airid when I turned twenty-one, but something tells me I never would’ve known that I had magic. If no one had ever come looking for me, I truly believe that I would’ve felt incomplete for the rest of my life—a thought that is truly depressing.

For the first time in weeks, I feel calm and centered. I don’t feel like my emotions are bouncing around, trying to control me. All I can do is hope that the excessive anger and need for violence is a thing of the past.

“I can feel it everywhere, just under my skin. I thought it would feel foreign, but it feels right—like I’m finally whole. Balanced and in control.”

“Now, you just need to learn how to use it. And you thought your lessons were over now that your magic revealed.”

My eyes narrow as I turn to Hunter when he speaks. He holds his hands up in surrender, chuckling.

“It isn’t an insult. Or at least I don’t mean it as one. I can feel your magic—you’re powerful. More powerful than any of us or our parents. More even than your parents were. I’ve never felt so much power in a single Fae before. You’ll need to work with each of us to learn to control it and so that we can see exactly what you can do with it. I think that you’ll be able to do things we’ve only ever read about before.”

My head tilts to the side as I consider him. He seems genuine. There’s nothing in his voice that makes me think that he’s being sarcastic or disingenuous. Which is probably the most disconcerting thing about this moment.

“Have you been possessed?”

Hunter makes a face. “What the hell are you talking about?”

I grin because that’s more like the man that I’ve come to know. I just shrug, turning my attention to Marcos as he steps up to me.

“I know that I’ve told you how beautiful you look tonight, but nothing compares to how you looked up on that platform in front of your throne with your magic flowing around you. I wish you could’ve seen yourself.”

I don’t know what to say to that, but when he leans down to brush his lips against mine, I know how to respond to that. Though when I attempt to deepen the kiss, he pulls away with a chuckle.

“As much as I’d love to take this further, kitten, we don’t have the time.” He glances over his shoulder. “Not to mention, there are a few others who I think would like a kiss right about now.”

Kai and Caiden move up to stand behind Marcos, and a smile lights up my face. All three of them are looking at me in awe, something that makes me slightly uncomfortable, but I also love it. Hell, I’m beginning to think that I might just be in love with them.

Whoa.

You can’t love someone after knowing them for just two weeks, can you? Fucking hell. This is too much, too fast. On top of the magic that I have coursing through me, I don’t know how to respond to this realization. Now that I feel centered with my magic, I can say for sure that what I’ve been feeling for them wasn’t from the imbalance I felt from my magic.

Everything that I’m feeling is real, which is scary as hell.

“Don’t go getting lost in your head, angel.” Kai moves around Marcos so he can take me in his arms, pulling me against his chest. “Don’t let your doubts get to you. Stay here in this moment with us.”

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