Page 182 of Sky’s Edge

“He only seems himself when he’s with me, or I’m near, and I know this because, if we’re parted for long, it takes a while for him to shake it off. Actually, this behavior started happening earlier, it’s just that it’s gotten worse with time. Since you got that threat on your life, I lost count of how many times he just ‘happened’ to show at the shoot to have lunch with me, or because ‘he was in the neighborhood.’ This worsened after the attack on Sigil. Now, on the way up here, he’s asked me to abandon the shoot entirely for the foreseeable future. ‘Until we know what’s going on,’ he said. And he’s a huge champion of me continuing in my career. That’s really out of character for him.”

“A mate thing?” I guessed.

“Tanyn isn’t his mate. You aren’t either. And it’s you two who are under threat. I think he notices whatever this is that’s happening to him, but he hasn’t addressed it with me because I don’t think he understands it. What I do think he understands is Cormac’s reaction, because he’s feeling the same way. So, he says we’re up here to negotiate with Cormac so he’ll leave Gayle’s safety to him and or Tanyn. But I know something more is up because…”

She let that trail and gave me a speculative look.

However, I was cottoning on.

“Because…you know about Aleece and Bainon.”

“Tanyn told you?” she asked.

I nodded. “And Aleece is pissed at Bainon because he told her she’s his mate because, maybe, he’s feeling this same thing Aleksei and Cormac are feeling.”

And Tanyn.

“That’s my guess. They should be here soon and hopefully we’ll find out more when they are.”

“Okay, so for now, are you hungry? I think you missed dinner.”

“While I was packing Gayle, Aleksei was dealing with the journey. He had something waiting in the craft. We ate on the way.”

“Okay then. Cocktail?”

“That I will not say no to.”

There were a variety of places we could go on this floor to have a drink and wait for Aleece and Bainon to arrive, and where we could also avoid Cormac and his mood.

The king had a dining room with its antechamber.

The queen had a breakfast room with a morning room attached.

We could go there.

As well as a variety of drawing rooms and parlors.

But I didn’t think Tanyn would want me somewhere else, or Aleksei would want Laura somewhere else for that matter.

So I led her to the antechamber.

I greeted Aleksei. I gave a brooding Cormac a wide berth.

Though, compounding why I was furious at him was the fact that he was sexy as all the hells being broody, and I wished he could love my gal like she yearned for him.

Not long later, Tanyn got a comm that Bainon and Aleece’s craft was approaching, so Tanyn left Nayden and Uly with Cormac (in other words, guarding him), and the rest of us went with him down to meet their craft.

I’d known Aleece for longer than the other gals, because my family might not hold titles, but we did have a lot of money and had for a very long time, and right or wrong, money gave you prominence, so I’d been consorting in royal circles for some time.

I’d always liked her enormously.

She was like Tanyn, down to earth.

She was also (fate?) like Bainon, easygoing.

However, as she stormed out of the craft that held her and Bainon, she was not at all easygoing.

She came right to us and bobbed an informal curtsy to Tanyn while Bainon prowled up behind her.