Page 25 of Sky’s Edge

“Demons from the Edge,” I stressed.

“Are you being serious, or is this some ploy to talk me into backing out of the marriage contract?”

For obvious reasons, he could not twig to the fact I intended to unleash a variety of “ploys” to get him to back out of the marriage contract.

But since this was no ploy, it was the truth, I could say in all honesty, “No. I mean yes. I’m being serious.”

“The Demon Rift was nearly five hundred years ago.”

“I know. You all should get over it. Alas, you have not.”

“Are you certain you’re not being sensitive to someone say, being jealous of your looks? Or your wealth? Some demons can be assholes when they’re around someone they perceive is better than them. Though, just to say, not only demons act that way.”

Hmm.

This was true.

“Specifically, who was unkind to you?” he demanded. “Or are you talking a general feel?”

Damn it.

Specifically, it had been Arnaud who’d acted like a jackass around us.

Him and our relations who still lived up there. We had family reunions. They were always awful to us.

But that could totally be about them being assholes because we were totally better than them.

Honestly, thinking about it, even though we skied up there a lot and Mom and I would take shopping trips to Abyssinia, we’d never really run into anyone else being ugly.

“Our Edgian relations,” I muttered, then admitted, “And Arnaud.”

“Arnaud was an asshole to everyone.”

“I sensed Mira didn’t like me all that much,” I remarked.

“Mira is currently living in several levels of the hells all at once. I’m strongarming a variety of things through the Assembly. In doing so, I’m stepping on a lot of toes. As this is the important undoing of a colossal mound of horseshit Arnaud buried us in, I don’t have time to kiss ass and shake hands. Because of this, representatives are talking shit about me. They’re saying we traded one tyrant for another. She’s in a constant state of damage control. What she doesn’t need is added work, having to finesse my courtship. With her current duties, my love life is not a priority, and yet I’ve told her it’s her priority. She’s not happy with me, and maybe you felt that.”

“She seemed pretty geared up to kiss your ass.”

“I’m king. Daily, beings kiss my ass. It’s part of the job. You don’t tell a king off. As for her, I’m also her boss. You don’t tell your boss off either. Not if you like your job and want to keep doing it. Which, she does.”

Hmm again.

“My beings will love you,” he declared, like he could say it and it would be so.

“We’ll see,” I replied, laying a dubious tone heavily on those two words.

“We shall,” he stated.

“Okay, can we be done talking now?” I requested.

“We should take some time to get to know one another better, Catla,” he asserted.

“We’ll have an entire weekend to do that in less than a week, sire,” I returned.

For once, I saw emotion in him.

Impatience.