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Sadness hits me before the thought of my mother even forms fully in my mind, and a depression forms in my chest. It’s impossible not to miss her, especially when I think about Queen Torria holding a squalling baby Nor and going on to birth four other children. I was my mother’s only child, her pride and joy.
The thought hurts too much to entertain.
“You look lovely today,” he says, drastically changing the subject. It’s enough of a shock to distract me from my sad thoughts and bring the heat back to my cheeks. Aside from some off-handed comments about me not being unattractive, he’s never come out right and complimented my looks before.
“Thank you.” I look over, studying the side of his face in awe. “How do you always do that?”
He meets my gaze with an equal amount of disbelief. “Do what?”
“It’s like you read my mind,” I say, pausing to put my thoughts together. “You know when I’m upset or worried. Sometimes all I have to do is think of something, and then you act on it. Like now, when I was starting to feel sad, you changed the subject. Almost like it was intentional.”
“It was.”
His response hangs in the air between us for a long moment before his arm around my shoulders gives me an affectionate squeeze.
“I can’t read your mind,” he assures me. “But I’ve told you I can hear your heartbeat. I also pick up on the slightest changes in your body language. The tensing of your muscles. Any shift in your breathing.”
I know he isn’t speaking sexually, but his gruff voice coupled with the way he talks is enough to make my stomach flutter.
“I’m sure humans are aware of body language,” he goes on before I have a chance to wonder if he can also sense a shift in my libido. “Imagine being able to detect things a hundred times more minute. That’s what it’s like.”
“And you can do that with everyone?”
He nods once. “Yes, but only if I choose to tune into it. I block most of it out.”
“But not me?” The corners of my lips tug upward, and he drags his eyes back to me with a smirk.
“Never you.”
My cheeks prickle as he stares at me, and I open my mouth to say something, but I’m not sure what. The only thought on my mind is that I’m glad he doesn’t tune me out, but I can’t tell him that. Admitting I want him to consider me suggests I enjoy being on his mind, that I want him to think about me. That I want him to care about me and my feelings.
That’s definitely not part of our truce.
I’m still staring into his gaze, lost in the amber sea of his eyes, when the sound of a door opening grabs my attention, and I look to see a servant stepping into the garden. His brown skin shines in the sunlight, and even though I can’t be sure, he looks young. When the door closes behind him and I realize he’s alone, my stomach pitches toward the ground, and before I can convince myself that he’s simply on an errand, his eyes lock on us.
Oh shit.
“Not again,” I groan, already considering worst-case scenarios. Why is it that when Nor and I are alone, bad things happen?
Is our marriage really that much of a bad omen?
“E-excuse me, Your Highnesses,” the servant says, stopping short of the bench and bowing low. His face is unfamiliar, and I wonder if he’s new or if I’ve simply overlooked him during my first few hectic weeks here in the castle. He looks frantic as he resumes his upright position and his eyes land on me, making my stomach turn slightly. “The King requests your attendance immediately.”
When his gaze doesn’t shift to Nor automatically, my stomach clenches.
“With me?” I ask, staring at him in disbelief. What could he possibly want with me? He’s never requested to speak with me before. Maybe I did something without realizing it, and he’s finally sending me back to Hyatt in the first available carriage. My heart sinks at the thought.
“Yes, Princess.” He bows his head awkwardly, clearly nervous.
“Not both of us?” Nor asks.
The servant shakes his head. “The king only mentioned that I fetch Princess Irissa, but he did not request that she come alone.”
I glance up at Nor, whose brows are drawn dangerously low over his eyes. Judging by his tense muscles, he’s just as surprised and worried as I am.
“Very well. Where did he ask her to meet him?”
The servant clears his throat, his eyes bouncing quickly between the two of us, before he answers. “T-the dungeon.”
