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Shelby’s attention finally slid from Rehan back to Ace. The same teasing smirk back on his face. Ace pointed her pastry in his direction, a bite now missing. “I didn’t seem to notice you running up to rescue me when she startled me. I figured you’d be aware of the emotional spike.”
“I was aware.” Shelby finally picked up his own fork but only pushed around some crispy potatoes. “But I also knew the staff were on their way up to you so…” He shrugged. “It was funny.”
“Interesting.” Rehan purred. “He feels your emotions?”
“Something like that,” Shelby confirmed.
Ace gave him a petty smile before sinking her teeth back into her pastry.
“I’m just surprised since you were so uncomfortable with me being able to hear your thoughts and the voices of the gods.” Red wine sloshed in his glass as it was brought to Rehan’s lips again. Ace watched the liquid swirl, wondering if Rehan always drank so early in the day. He tilted his head toward her, lifting the cup as if to offer a toast. “Just to ease the stress of the week. This is not a daily habit.”
Shelby’s fork scraped against the plate. A squeal of metal to porcelain that made Ace’s teeth ache. “Can you read my thoughts?”
Rehan’s smile was tense, far more polite than genuine. “I could if I wanted to.”
“And have you?” Shelby pushed.
“Have I?”
“Have you wanted to? Have you made any attempts?”
Tension made the silence that stretched after the question feel hot. The room warmed, or perhaps it was just a blush that crept up to Ace’s cheeks as she chewed and took in the uncomfortable feeling. After a few more heartbeats passed, Rehan’s wine glass was set down.
“No. I have not had the need to. Nor the want. You may rest easy.”
Shelby’s stiff posture did not relax at Rehan’s subtle comfort.
Pushing her chair back, Ace stood. Reaching for the dish of thickly cut ham, her fingers barely brushed the china before Rehan had moved and picked the dish up himself.
“Let me. I’d like to give my best effort in wooing my future bride.”
Ice shot through Ace’s veins. Her body froze somewhere between standing and sitting, her hand still open to the plate that was no longer there. Rehan paid no mind to her reaction, placing a cut of the meat on her plate and pointing to another.
“Would you like more?” he asked.
“No.” Ace’s response was no more than a whispered rasp.
There was a slight quake to Ace’s knees as she lowered back into her seat. Her lashes lifted from where they brushed at her cheeks, her gaze cast across the table. She was perhaps not the only person who’d frozen in true terror at the words. Though she was aware of the bargain she’d struck with King Osiris for both the freedom of the warlocks and to meet the demands of the gods, Shelby had yet to be told.
Shadows made Shelby’s cheekbones look more sunken in than normal, the light from the large windowed doors behind him framing him in such a way that they made him hard to look away from. He blinked his hazel eyes rapidly. His next inhale was audible across the table as he leaned back in his seat.
“I think I’m missing something,” he said slowly.
Rehan’s lips pursed into a slender line that cut across his face but he said nothing else. Shelby was fixated on Ace waiting for the answer. Bubbles of dread built up inside her stomach and every time they popped it filled her with a new sort of nervousness.
“I, uh…” Ace’s teeth sunk into her bottom lip.
How was she supposed to say she made a deal with the Fae king? How was she supposed to explain that she’d promised herself to this stranger? That the gods had brought him back just for her? There was only one way to say it. She had to be straightforward. She wanted to be honest with him.
“Rehan took me to King Osiris.”
He blinked again. “The Fae king?”
“He wants the queens off their thrones as much as us if not more.” She nodded, wet palms sliding against the wooden table.
“How is that connected to this?”
Rehan cleared his throat. “I sought him out as a means of assistance. He understood what I was brought back for.” He paused, looking from Ace then back to Shelby before continuing. “The gods brought me back from death to be a partner. Her partner. I’ve got a second chance to live and all they asked of me was to help her and to love her.” He smiled softly. “Not that I think the last part would be hard.”
