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Something coiled inside me, nearly springing me closer to him. The idea of rubbing my body all over him like a cat in heat popped into my mind. Luckily, his sword was at my neck, preventing me from following through.
Wait.
Did I legit think luckily?
Something was very wrong with me.
Orla’s heels clicked against the smooth floor, but I refused to tear my attention away from him. If he struck, I’d take him with me. I had the dagger aimed at his heart, and I’d have enough time to finish him. We could be like fucking Romeo and Juliet, dying together … but without the romance.
“What in summer’s green grass is going on here?” Orla almost squeaked.
Lifting a brow, King Kieran answered, “I’m not sure. I was retrieving a handkerchief from my inside pocket when Princess Alina decided to draw her dagger.” He raised the hand that wasn’t holding his sword, and there he clutched a pale-blue handkerchief. “I thought she might want to wipe off the spit that’s sliding between her breasts.”
My face burned, and my heart skipped. The fact that he’d noticed the spit had reached my cleavage had me feeling all sorts of things, and I didn’t want to analyze what any of it meant.
Despite wanting to hang my head, I refused. I recalled a time I’d thought I’d put a bully in her place, and when I’d turned to leave, she’d yanked my hair for not giving her my lunch. The stakes here were far higher, and I wouldn’t make that mistake again.
“You can’t kill each other yet,” Quinley huffed and came to our side. She flicked her hands between King Kieran and me. “You have to wait until the first tournament begins—when everyone has been introduced.”
I snorted, and King Kieran flinched. He stared at me as if I’d done something strange.
Clearly, snorting wasn’t proper etiquette here, which made me do it again.
“What is she doing?” Leanna wrinkled her nose. “Is she dying before the trials even start? How would we handle that? We just formally announced her participation!”
“Maybe if the Winter King would remove the sword from her neck, it would help her to breathe,” Maeve said scathingly as she prepared to wield her own swords to protect me.
“I’ll remove it once she drops her weapon.” One side of his mouth tipped upward in a crooked grin.
That grin could easily be my undoing.
If I were interested in him, that was, which I wasn’t. I was merely admiring his rugged good looks. They wouldn’t make me lose my head … more.
I lifted my chin. Though, with a blade at my neck, I doubted it showed confidence. “After you lower yours.”
“Maybe you’re smarter than I gave you credit for.” He huffed. “Then let’s do it together. After all, two royals should be able to trust each other. Right?”
The question held a hidden meaning. He had a look in his eye that some of my foster parents had had when trying to trick me. But I was clueless about what he meant. “We should be able to, but we both know that’ll never happen.”
“Alina!” Orla laughed a little too loudly. “There’s no reason to be rude. All fae know the royals only have what’s best for their people at heart in any decision they make.”
I rolled my eyes. “I wasn’t being rude. I was being honest and answering his question.” I wouldn’t call her out on her stupid last sentence, which pretty much said we couldn’t trust each other, but in a more convoluted way. I preferred to be direct and simple, without fluff, especially when speaking to someone I didn’t like or trust.
King Kieran winced, but his face smoothed so quickly that I might have imagined it.
“Shall we?” He tilted his head. “Or do you want to continue to stand like this?”
We had witnesses, and if I didn’t oblige, this moment would become awkward. I sucked in a breath. “Fine. On the count of three?”
“Oh, we’re counting?” His eyes twinkled. “Is that how humans handle such matters?”
“Most humans don’t find themselves in situations like this. The ones who did, I stayed far away from, but unfortunately, I can’t do that here.” That was why I’d lived in the community gym, away from everything.
He leaned forward, pressing his chest harder against the tip of my dagger. He whispered, “It’s not only here at the tournament. Everyone’s like this in Talamh.” He watched my face, searching for a reaction.
I forced my expression to remain neutral. I didn’t want to give him what he wanted. But the only people in this realm who didn’t seem interested in harming me were my three attendants, Maeve and Dallas, and I wasn’t thrilled about that last name.
“One.” I lifted a brow in challenge.
