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Focusing back on Zeke, I saw that he was wearing an identical shirt to Noah but had paired it with his own dark-blue jeans and heavy boots.
“That’s a little casual, don’t you think?” I teased, not actually caring at all. I would have attended in my own jeans if it wouldn’t have given Drin a heart attack.
He brushed a section of his loose, gloriously shining hair back over his shoulder, giving me an unimpressed look. “I let them fuck about with my hair, that’s enough.”
I grinned and nodded. “It looks great.”
Liam’s gaze was still roaming all over me. “Tell me that this shit is going to be over quickly and we get to rip that off of you soon.”
My skin heated even as I gave him a reprimanding glare. “This ‘shit’ is important. If you ever want to get out of this castle, this needs to go well.”
Noah groaned and stepped up close behind me, pressing his face into my neck. “I cannot wait to go home.”
I slid a hand up to cup the back of his neck as he pressed a kiss behind my ear. “I know how hard it is for you guys to be stuck in this castle, I’m sorry.”
Zeke shrugged and reached his arms up to stretch out his back. “We get it baby girl, don’t stress about us.”
“Let’s get this over with then, shall we?” Liam asked with a warm smile, offering out a hand.
I started to reach for him but stopped, shaking my head and looking around. “Hang on, I need my shoes.”
Liam crouched down beside the bed and straightened with two lavender strappy heels hanging from his fingers. “These?”
I nodded and reached for them, but he pulled them back out of reach before dropping to one knee before me. Wordlessly, he gestured for me to lift a foot, taking it gently and smoothing his palm up to my knee and back before slipping on the first shoe. My skin prickled with sensation at his light, sensual touches, Noah steadying me with a hand to my elbow as Liam gently buckled the strap that delicately looped around my ankle. My breath was a little shaky as he placed the first foot back down, his fingers wrapping around my other calf and giving it a gentle tug until it lifted, sending my pulse racing as he fastened on the second shoe.
Standing before me, he scooped up my left hand and pressed the back of it to his lips, his eyes twinkling with mischief and desire. “Perfect.”
My tongue darted out to lick my lips at his murmur, his gaze darkening and the tension building between us as he watched the movement.
I leapt in surprise at Noah’s sudden clap, followed by Zeke’s booming laugh as Liam cursed at him.
“Let’s go, party people!” Noah chirped, guiding me to the door by the elbow he had grabbed again. “We don’t have time for this dilly-dallying.”
I blinked at him and shook my head. “You’re crazy.”
He winked at me, his grin cocky and self-assured. “You love me.”
I laughed and looped my arm through his as we began to make our way towards the throne room. “I really do.”
In the space of only a handful of weeks, the throne room looked like a completely different place.
Deep mahogany wooden flooring had replaced the ruined carpets and been polished into a glorious shine that bounced the light around the space. The heavy curtains, which had been shredded by the shattering windows during the fight, had been changed for light, airy drapes that complimented the new silver and white colour scheme of the room. The windows themselves were whole once more after I had figured out how to use my magic to manipulate the glass back into full form, saving the expense and waste of building them from scratch.
The throne was the only element that remained untouched. Still on top of the stripped-down dais, I had entirely refused to touch the thing, though I knew that everyone expected me to sit on it eventually.
The set up for the ball was as simple as I could persuade the staff to settle for. Tables had been arranged around the sides, piled with food and drink that I knew I would be sending down to the nearby villages when this was over. A quartet of musicians had been set up near the newly repaired doors, playing beautiful, lilting music that echoed around the space at a slightly louder volume than the low chatter of the guests.
And there were certainly guests. The hall was teeming with people, all dressed in their finest clothes, and the air was heavy with tense anxiety. All eyes turned to us as we entered, the doorman returning my grateful nod with a timid smile as the music stopped and the murmuring voices died into an expectant silence.
I walked through the room, the crowd parting for me and my mates flanking me protectively as I sucked in a steadying breath. Nerves were fluttering through my stomach like butterflies with barbed wings, but I steeled my spine and lifted my chin as I stepped up onto the throne platform and turned to face the people.
“Welcome, everyone.”
I let my eyes move deliberately over the crowd, pleased to see the diverse mix of people that I had hoped for. To the dismay of some, though not all, of the nobles who came to call on me in those first few days after the Queen’s death, I was determined to balance out the power, and the wealth, of the realm. As well as rebuild the physical damage in these last weeks, I had spent time in the villages nearby, building bridges with the people and hearing their stories as well as helping them rebuild their livelihoods in any way I could. Many of them had already known me from my childhood here, and it had been easy to reform connections and invite many of them here tonight.
The guys, forced to stay inside the castle walls due to the unease they unwittingly caused any witches they came across, had hated how often I had been gone. The friendly faces smiling back at me now, though, meant that it hadn’t been in vain and that my plan here might actually fall into place without too much resistance.
“I am so pleased to see so many faces here on this special night,” I continued loudly. “And I want to express my deep gratitude to the staff who have worked so hard to make this event happen.”
