Page 39 of A Veil of Gods and Kings

He skimmed over me, frowning. “Subtle. Did you need something?”

Shit. I was not doing a good job with this. “I wondered if you would like to spend some time together today?”

He raised an eyebrow. “No.” He crossed his arms. “Any more questions?”

I clenched my teeth. “Your father wrote to me again and wishes for me to send him a letter each month explaining what we’ve done together.”

Apollo burst into a laugh and slapped my shoulder. “Good luck with that.” And then he turned and walked out the door.

Damn him to the underworld.

I curled my fingers into fists and strode back into the palace.

I dropped onto a settee and blew out a breath. “Ouch,” Emrin said, shifting his legs.

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

Epiphany leaned over, offering me a bowl of cherries. I shook my head.

My sitting room sat bathed in afternoon light, the marble columns patterned with slashes of shadow and illumination, the carved leaves along the edges of the ceiling glowing. I sighed.

“What is it?” Epiphany said.

“It’s Apollo. He’s avoided me for the three weeks he’s been here. Aside from the rare lunch or dinner, he is never here.” I removed my crown and swept my hands over my head. “I don’t know how to make sure he’s not sending some horrible missive to Zeus when he refuses to spend time with me. And I have no idea what to write to his father next week.”

Emrin chuckled. “Your son is as much of an asshole as you implied, and I’m shocked that even a deity could be as useless as he is.”

I socked him in the arm. “Not helpful.”

“But true,” he said as he snagged a cherry out of the bowl.

I kicked my head back. “Yeah.”

Epiphany tapped her finger over her knee. “I might be able to help with that.”

I shot my eyes over to her. “Can you?”

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “Temi and I get along well. If I had more time to spend with her, perhaps she’d intervene for us. But—” She grinned and pinned me with a look.

“But what?”

“To do that, it may cut into my studies.”

“Pip,” I groaned, dropping my face into my hands. The fuchsia robe I wore draped against the settee. “Your studies matter.”

Pip flittered the ribbon around her waist. “Let’s not act like they do.”

Emrin frowned. “Of course they matter.”

She dropped the bowl of cherries down onto a table with a thunk. “We’re grooming me to get married. That’s my entire future, and I won’t sit here and pretend otherwise to make you both feel comfortable. Me missing language lessons won’t change that.”

I eased forward on the settee and snagged her hand within mine. “Pip.” I stopped speaking until she met my gaze. “You don’t have to get married if you don’t want to. Father just wants to see you safe”—I swallowed—“before everything that will happen in the next year.”

She bowed her head, a curl falling and tumbling against her curved cheek. “I know. I understand. The point I’m making is—I could offer more practical help to our family and our kingdom now by spending time with Temi.”

I considered that. Emrin jangled the ring on his finger against the wood edge of the back of the couch. What would Father do in this situation? He’d have a plan that could handle Apollo himself. If only I could get a letter to him. I sighed. “All right. But just for a limited time. I mean it; your education matters.”

She folded her hands together in her lap, a smirk snaking up over her lips.