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Ella glanced back at me, worry evident in her gaze. “I hope Bayleon and Bastian will be all right with Kai shadowing them. He’s done an amazing job leading our warriors, but I know he’s still trying to get used to our way of life here.”
I gave her arm a gentle squeeze, offering a reassuring smile. “It’ll be fine.”
Kai had been an adversary of our kingdom before becoming a king. Since then, the Frost Court had experienced incredible growth and now welcomed an assortment of Shadow fae and half-fae from the mortal realm. The Land of the Fae was no longer a place only for purebloods; half-mortal individuals were now allowed to exist here, and our realm had never been more powerful.
As we neared the two thrones, I beamed at Ella, loving how beautiful she was with her baby bump.
“How many people have you brought to the Land of the Fae?” I asked her, carefully leading her to one of the royal thrones.
Ella sat down and grinned as I took my seat next to her. “Honestly, I have no idea,” she admitted, “but I know it’s been thousands. It’s all so amazing. Our kingdom is changing every day.”
It certainly was. I could only imagine what the Land of the Fae would be like in another five hundred years. Our magic was constantly evolving. Ella quirked a bemused smile at me, and a spark of mischievousness lit up her dark brown eyes.
“What is it?” I asked, intrigued by the expression on her face.
She shrugged and turned her gaze to the Great Room entrance where Bayleon, Bastian and Kai were walking through the door.
“It’s something I wanted to discuss with you earlier,” she said in a hushed voice, moving closer to me. “But with everything going on, we never had a chance.” I couldn’t help but think I knew what was coming. I raised my eyebrows, inviting her to go on. She widened her grin, taking a quick glance over at Bayleon and Bastian before refocusing on me. “Have you told them you love them yet?”
My pulse raced and I grabbed her hand, clasping it firmly. “Shh . . . not so loud!” I cast a nervous glance toward the men, but luckily, they were still deep in conversation. “And no, I haven’t told them anything,” I muttered, keeping my voice low. “What would be the point? There’s already so much tension between them and me.”
Ella shook her head. “That’s because they’re in love with you, too.”
The air grew heavy in my lungs, and I felt my body freeze. Though I was aware Bayleon and Bastian held immense loyalty to me as their princess, and now their queen, they’d never once said they loved me like that. Even if I could sometimes feel their emotions toward me, which I was sure I had, they were noble men; they would never blur the line between duty and feelings. Moreover, there was the issue of loving them both. There was no way I could ever choose one over the other.
My gaze shifted to Ella’s face. “How do you know they’re in love with me? They’ve never admitted it to me.”
Her smile softened a bit. “And they probably never will. But I heard it straight from Bastian when he asked me to dance at the Winter Solstice Ball.”
My heart raced. “What did he say?”
Ella glanced at Bastian and her lips curved into a faint, sad smile. “I asked him point blank if he was in love with you. His response took my breath away. Even more so when I saw how his eyes lit up when he looked at you.” I was barely breathing, waiting for her to go on. Ella met my gaze with a soft, sorrowful expression. “From the conversation, I don’t think Bayleon or Bastian have expressed their feelings for you yet to each other. But Bastian said you’d never choose him over his brother and that he didn’t deserve your love.”
I felt a sharp stab of pain in my chest and I clutched it with my hand, praying the ache would fade away. Ella’s words were like a dagger to the heart.
I could see the two men growing nearer from the corner of my eye, but I couldn’t bring myself to look at them yet. I wasn’t ready. Ella placed a warm, comforting hand over mine and closed her eyes. The faint sound of music floated outside the Great Room, and the light from the giant crystal chandelier danced across the walls.
“You’re a queen now, Lia,” she said softly. “We’re in the Great Room of your Blossom Court palace, and tomorrow is the Equinox Ball. Everyone is going to be here to celebrate with you and Kale. So maybe it’s time to talk to your guys. If you don’t, it will only make you more miserable.”
I sighed. “And what exactly do I say to them?”
Ella squeezed my hand gently and opened her eyes, looking back at me with determination. “The truth, Lia,” she said before Kai stepped up to the thrones and held out an arm for her.
She glanced back at me again before taking his arm and was whisked away down the two marble stairs toward Bayleon and Bastian, who watched us silently. For the past couple of months, the silence had gotten more frequent.
Ella looked back at me one last time before they left, and I silently nodded in agreement. Once the Equinox Ball was over, I would talk to them. I was never afraid of the thought of going into battle and fighting till the death, but conveying my feelings was going to be the hardest thing I had ever done. How could I explain that I loved them both? It was selfish to feel the way I did; selfishness was never a quality I had previously connected with myself.
“Do you wish us to accompany you to your chambers, my queen?” Bayleon asked.
I looked at them both, their eyes obscured by their silver face masks. It had been a long time since I had seen their eyes.
“I’m ready,” I replied, joining them.
We made our way out of the Great Room and into the main foyer of the palace, a tulip magnolia tree at its center with colorful pink and purple petals in full bloom. My heart raced as we ascended the marble staircase and walked down the private hallway to our designated rooms. The guest quarters were on the other side of the castle, so it was pretty silent.
When we arrived at my door, I took a deep breath and spun around to face them. My heart racedandmystomachtwistedas I gazedat them. Iwantedtoreach outand feelthe warmthof their skin,togazeintotheirmidnight-blueeyes and experienceourconversations likebefore.Bayleon and Bastianhad bothchanged—itwas as though they were two completely different people. All the conversations we used to have, all the laughter that used to fill the air between us—it was gone now, and I felt so powerless. I could only wait for them to speak, but they were entombed in a heavy silence.
Finally, I forced myself to break it. “Have you two discovered anything about the strange magic we felt in the mortal realm yesterday?”
