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I closed the door and turned to Aradia, who shot out her hands to engage the lock where she stood.
My smile faded. “Did you really need to crash in on her like that? You must know that talking to her that way doesn’t work.”
“Someone needed to set her straight, and it didn’t seem like you were going to,Alpha.”
The sarcasm in the enchantress’ voice didn’t sit well with me, but Aradia had been in the palace longer than anyone else. I had to respect her wisdom—even if I didn’t always agree with her.
“Iwassetting her straight,” I insisted, heat rising to my cheeks. “But Stralia can be very delicate. She needs to be handled with care.”
“I hope for your sake that Zephyrine is made of way more grit than that,” Aradia chirped. “I would see about those wedding arrangements sooner rather than later. I have a sense that things will not go as planned if you wait too long.”
I swallowed a thickness in my throat. “As soon as the fae is ready to undertake her role as queen, we will go forward with the plans.”
Aradia bowed, but her wise eyes told me that she didn’t believe my excuse at all. She knew me too well and saw I was holding off, not because I was worried about Zephyrine, but because of myself.
Chapter3
Zephy
We’d been sitting in the ballroom for almost fifteen minutes, waiting for this trainer already, and I grew more irritated with each passing minute. That wasn’t surprising—I’d been nothing but annoyed since we arrived. My hands twitched dangerously, longing for something to do.
On a whim, I gathered a small gust of wind floating in from one of the open windows to collect the dust bunnies, hiding in the remote corners of the ballroom, and swept them into a tornado frenzy, making them dance and Maywin giggle.
“Stop that, miss!” she chided me through her snickers, and I allowed the dirt to settle, the wind slowing as I dropped my hands.
“This is stupid,” I grouched again at Maywin, who darted her eyes nervously toward the door of the grand ballroom. “I don’t need lessons on how to behave as a noble. This Axel isn’t going to teach me anything I don’t already know. And to set me up with a male trainer, on top of everything else? Are they purposely trying to insult me?”
Maywin wrung her hands in her lap in front of her, smoothing her skirt like she wanted to shush me, my voice rising an octave with each complaint, but I refused to keep it down.
“You should probably do whatever the King asks of you,” Maywin told me softly. “He probably thinks it’s for your benefit. Don’t you want to be the best queen you can be for Ironhelm?”
I wasn’t sure that I did, but I didn’t bother to burden my already over-wrought friend with the thought.
“It’s still ridiculous,” I insisted, folding my arms over my bosom and tapping my foot impatiently, the sole of my running shoe squeaking against the freshly waxed floors. “Where is he, anyway? Didn’t Grisella say ten o’clock? He’s almost a half hour late! This is bull—”
As if on cue, heavy footsteps reverberated from the hallway, cutting off my curse word, and I raised my head to greet the trainer with annoyance. But when he appeared, my heart stilled, the sight of him shocking me for inexplicable reasons. For half a second, time fizzled, and I found myself staring at his face, an odd sense of familiarity overtaking me as my gaze locked on his brilliant cobalt eyes. The olive of his skin and the darkness of his hair only enhanced the dazzle of his intense irises, which bored into my soul as they met mine. As if I’d released a lightning strike, my body twitched, heat rushing through me to settle in the center between my legs, but I didn’t dare move.
He towered over me by at least six inches, possibly more, but it was difficult to tell for sure from the distance between us.
“Axel?” I stuttered, forcing myself to speak, shame overtaking me for the intense, physical reaction I had toward him.
He smirked, the mirth barely touching his eyes, but there was an unmistakable glint of interest there, even though he was trying desperately to hide it. His stare lingered on me, twisting my stomach.
Or maybe I was reading too much into it.
“Yes,” he replied shortly. “We have a lot to cover. Let’s get started.”
More embarrassment washed through me at the way he was speaking to me, but I reminded myself that I was the superior here, even if he was the male. I was going to be queen, and he had no right to speak to me like I was the underling. Forcing my stare away, I glanced at my companion and exhaled, regaining my composure.
“This is Maywin,” I introduced the maid, eager to take the scrutiny off me, but Axel didn’t look at my servant.
He continued to stare at me, causing my insides to wither and twist again.
He shouldn’t be staring at me like that. And I shouldn’t be looking at him, either. Why is he being so freaking bold? What’s wrong with him?
Again, he smirked at me as if to challenge his stare, and I managed to find my voice this time.
“Are we going to do this or what?” I asked, struggling to find my confidence again. His grin broadened, and he ambled toward me with far too much cockiness.
