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Transforming back, I cup her cheeks and kiss her deeper until she sways into me. “Always, I will always be your balance, mate. Now, let’s go find my brothers and have that family night you wanted. Simon and his mate picked the film this time, didn’t they?”
Hand in hand, we head back to court. “Yup, a horror.”
I groan, and she laughs. “Are you excited about the coronation tomorrow?” I ask carefully.
“Yes and no. It’s still odd to know my father, but I need to be there, you know? I just worry about how everyone will react,” she says.
“We will not let them affect you or his day,” I promise, raising our joined hands and kissing her fingers as I hear Simon’s laughter. “Now, forget your worries for tonight.”
“Yeah, babe, it’s zombie night!” Reve calls, and I roll my eyes.
“If you’re lucky, I’ll eat you just like they would,” I murmur, making her laugh, and I know I’ve done the right thing. I will spend my life trying to put that light in her eyes and a smile on her face.
CHAPTERSEVENTY-FOUR
ALTHEA
Iknow the dress is important, since it’s our first appearance as kings and queen in a social setting. We were all personally invited by my father, and I admit I want to go to see him and my old court, which means dressing the part for the coronation. Luckily, I have a new fey bestie who seems to appear whenever she feels like it, and the night before, she did just that. I explained my situation, and she disappeared with a mischievous smile.
It’s now the morning of, and I’m beginning to panic, searching through the dresses that Nathair and the others bought for me, but nothing feels right.
“I don’t even know why I’m so worried.” I huff, turning away from the dresses in a panic. Simon is sprawled across my bed, watching me anxiously. “It’s just a coronation, right?” Turning away before he can answer, I slide more dresses off hangers and toss them to Simon to hold so I can try them on. “She said she would help, though, and she wouldn’t lie to me. She agreed it was important that I make a good impression on the council and the others, so where is she? Where is she?”
“Okay, breathe,” Simon says, dropping all the dresses. “She will be here, and panicking isn’t helping anything.”
My mates are huddled on the sofa, wide-eyed as they watch us, and Simon throws them a glare. “Pussies, at least help me calm her down.”
“Nope.” Reve holds up his hands. “That’s your territory. We called you in here for this exact reason.”
I whirl on them with a glare, fangs flashing. Lycus hides his grin, and I narrow my eyes further. “You think this is funny?”
“Draya, you will look incredible and beautiful in any dress,” Nathair says diplomatically, which is the same shit they have been saying all morning before they called Simon in for backup.
“Shut up,” I snap and then soften. “Thank you, my love, but shut up.”
“Erm, want me to kill someone for you?” Azul asks, looking genuinely confused as he rubs the back of his head.
How can I be angry in the face of that? “No, but thank you.” I sigh, turning to the dresses. “I can just pick one from here. I don’t even know why I’m so stressed.”
Simon takes my hands and turns me to sit on the bed. “Because this is the first time you are not only attending an event as a queen, and as a mated queen, but in honour of the father you just found out about. It is normal to be stressed.” He tosses my mates a glare. “And we can sit and talk through it if you’d like.”
“Yes.” Nathair nods. “Let’s go through every reason you are stressed, and we can counteract them.”
“Or you could just wear the dress I spent all fucking night making and had to bribe a troll to get awake juice for. Shut your pretty mouth and kick ass.” A familiar female voice chuckles, and we all turn to see Lilia sitting on top of my dressing table, swinging her legs back and forth. I didn’t feel her pop in.
“We really need to figure out how to stop that,” Conall mutters.
“You’re just jealous that I don’t need shadows to do it,” she mocks him. Another thing I love about my new friend is that she gives my mates shit, and despite the fact that they are incredibly handsome and powerful, she treats them all like annoying little brothers and prefers my presence without them. “Your fey godmother is here, so do not fret.” She hops down, and I spot a bag draped over her shoulder, almost weighing her down.
“You came,” I murmur.
Her eyes widen. “Of course I did. We are friends, and that’s what friends do. Friends would not let their friends walk into a very important coronation looking like ass.”
“She wouldn’t look like . . . ass,” Nathair protests. “She always looks beautiful.”
“Aww, that’s sweet, now shut up and get out,” Lilia says, making me grin.
“Yup, I’ll take that as my opportunity to escape.” Reve leaps up, winks at me, and saunters out. The others check on me mentally before following, leaving me with Simon and Lilia.
