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“I don’t think that’s true,” Fina said. “You’ve been nothing but kind to us.”
Yeah, I thought, you didn’t see how I spoke to the king. It was men I repelled. Sometimes on purpose, and sometimes not. I didn’t trust them—they always wanted something from me, either sex, or court favors.
“I’ve just…” I swallowed, fighting back a sudden prickle of tears behind my eyes. “I just don’t have any friends like you two at home. I never have. So, just, whatever happens with this Choice, I hope… I just hope we can stay in touch.”
“Oh, Reyna,” Fina said. “Of course we will.” She pulled me into a hug and smoothed her hand up and down my back.
“Of course!” Adora said. She tugged me away from Fina to give me a hug, which made me laugh, breaking the tension building in my chest. “You can’t get rid of us now.”
I pulled back. “Thanks. Both of you. Really.”
“Do you need me to fight Rona for you?” Adora asked.
“She would kill you,” Fina deadpanned. “Like, she’d kick your head off in one move.”
“I can hold my own,” Adora huffed.
I laughed. “No, no, no one needs to do anything. I’ll be fine. This will all be over soon, anyway.”
“Yeah, once I marry the king,” Fina said with a grin.
“Not if I get to him first,” Adora teased.
I laughed again, feeling a little dizzy, like the bubbles in my wine were fizzing around in my chest. At home, Griffin was my only comfort, and my sole supporter. He was the closest thing I had to a friend, but it was only now that I realized how different it was to be friends with other women. I hadn’t known this was what I was missing out on.
Then my wolf snapped into sudden alertness, like a scent had caught her attention.
“Funny,” a deep voice rumbled, “I thought this competition was about competing. I didn’t expect to see you three spending time with each other instead of the council members.”
We all turned to face the king.
My heart pounded hard in my chest. Even though Fina and Adora were flanking me, the king’s dark gaze only landed on me. It was like he was able to erase the rest of the world with his attention.
There was such an effortless handsomeness about him—he wasn’t dressed as elegantly as the other council members, but his mere presence was overwhelming and confident and strangely attractive. My wolf longed to show submission. Not that I would ever do that—not until I absolutely had to. And that would be hopefully never.
“I expected,” the king continued, “that you might behave more like those two. Meeting people. Learning how things work in my pack.”
Over his shoulder, Rona and Wynona were sneering at each other. Rona had a court member on her arm, headed to the dance floor, and Wynona, despite standing next to a councilmember, looked like she was a breath away from shifting and lunging at Rona.
“Ah, Your Highness,” Fina said, “we were only—”
“Your Highness,” I cut in as my irritation grew, “would you rather we posture for dominance on the dance floor like those two?”
“Perhaps I would,” the king said.
“To think that Ladies of the Court would behave so childishly would be to insult our lineage,” I said curtly.
At my side, Adora inhaled sharply through her nose. My wolf whined internally, as my instincts fought my mind yet again.
The king made a low sound in his chest, somewhere between a growl and a laugh. The hair on my arms stood on end. He leaned closer and his eyes flashed gold—for a moment I thought he would shift right there and force me to show submission.
But then his face broke into that strangely familiar wolfish grin, showing his sharp canines. “My apologies, my lady,” he said as he straightened up. “Next time I’ll be sure to mind my business.”
He turned on his heel and strode away.
“What in the gods’ names!” Fina hissed. “Are you crazy?”
Adora stood there with her hands clapped over her mouth.
