I tried not to let my mouth hang open at this, instead waiting for him to continue speaking. He let the silence hang between us until he was sure I wasn’t going to make a mess of things and then continued.“We happened to read your most recent article, the one that focused on us.”Heat coursed all through my body, and I prayed that I wasn’t blushing in a way that made me look stupid.“After our initial shock at seeing such a candid and unauthorized account of our personal life on display for the entire nation to read,” he threw these words out at
I managed to choke down a respectable quantity of dinner, and I was a bit sorry that I missed out on enjoying it. The roast was delicious, perfectly herbed, and juicy. We’d been served succulent vegetables and delectable desserts, all of which dried to ash on my tongue. I was eating with a monster. I was positive of it, and I was furious with him that my conviction of that was waffling.Once dinner was over, I gratefully retreated back to my bedroom. I hadn’t once seen Theo since the mousey man had taken him away, and he still wasn’t waiting for me when I got back.I collapsed to the bed, nearly ready to cry myself to sleep, when someone knocked
I awoke the next morning with my convictions restored. I had to get to Crescentshire and interview the Luna Queen. I didn’t even have the time to luxuriate in the fact that I had slept in a palace last night—like a palace for real.Nobody said that I couldn’t leave to go about my job, and after everything that I had talked about yesterday with both the king and the Dowager Queen, I had full confidence that if they knew I was going out for another interview, they would let me. I just wasn’t positive that they would be thrilled I was interviewing the Luna Queen.Surely, if she were guilty of the wrongdoing, she would simply deny it, and that&
The ride home passed mostly without incident. The security that I had been issued at the palace turned out to be a man who might have been my father’s age if I had one. He was the ranking guard within the palace hierarchy, creeping up on his retirement years.He didn’t have much to say, but he treated me kindly, touching his hat to me before leaving once Theo opened the door. Theo pulled me inside and started to hug me, but Charles pried him off, instead taking me in his arms and nearly squashing me.He covered my face in kisses and swung me around until I felt slightly sick to my stomach. “I was so unbelievably worried,” he said. “Wh
We touched down in Crescentshire at nearly bedtime, thanks to the time change. Being so far away from the city and its pollution, the air outside was cool, crisp, and loaded with the sticky, sappy scent of early spring. Here, we parted ways with Gwen. She took a rideshare back to Brindle Cove while the rest of us continued on to our hotel in Crescent Shire.The moment Charles and I found ourselves alone, he grabbed me, wrapping his strong arms around me and holding me so my back was against his chest. He palmed my breasts, and a purring growl rumbled deep in his chest.“You smell so unbelievably good.”
“What can I do for you?” I asked Queen Yarrow.She folded her hands primly on top of the desk and stared me straight in the eyes. “The first thing I need you to do is to believe me,” she said.“I’m listening,” I replied.She sighed and sat back, still upright but leaning onto the back of her chair. “Very well, then. I have a question for you before I begin rambling.”“What questions exactly did you need me to answer?” I pressed my lips
The Queen stopped speaking for a few long minutes, clearly composing herself. I waited patiently for her to be ready to speak again because I could only imagine how overwhelming reliving all of this had been for her.No matter what the king wanted me to believe, the evidence in the Alpha Archives completely corroborated Queen Yarrow’s story about abuse and poisoning. And if she was living in secret in the home of a disgraced alpha, then she was hardly living the sort of high life that would come from the money the sort of crimes I had uncovered would have built for her.She had no wealth, just her life.
“Can you do me a favor?” I asked Theo. We were still driving through the countryside on the way back from Queen Yarrow’s. “Rather than taking me straight back to the hotel since Charles isn’t even there, can we find a temple for the moon goddess? I’d like to pray for guidance.”“Sure,” he said. “You know? It’s funny. When I first took the job, I didn’t pick you as the devout sort. But you really seem connected with the moon goddess.”“Maybe it seems silly, but she speaks to me,” I admitted. “Not just in a feeling but in dreams and such. Like real conversations.”