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He couldn’t be serious.“I am a commoner with human blood. Last night, you thought I’d planned to kill you. If this is your revenge, it is a harsh one.”

“No revenge.”His lips thinned.“Last night, you withstood my power. That is enough to prove your worth. As for your human blood, I find that is a boon. It will increase your fertility, and if I do not produce an heir within the next year or two, my brother will challenge me.”

Ria shuddered at that. His brother’s ruthless cruelty was a barely concealed secret.“But I am no one.”

Toren eased even closer.“Yet you argue with me, your king.”

The growl in his mental voice should have alarmed her, but there was a sensual edge to it that had her heart pounding with something other than fear. He liked her defiance, though he must not realize it was more fear than bravado. Insecurity rather than confidence.

“I will not exist to serve your every desire,”Ria found herself saying.“Nor would I consider leaving my child to another to raise.”

Victory lit the harsh, cold lines of his beautiful face, and she knew at once she’d made a misstep.“In such cases, the heir’s mother is granted her own apartments in the palace, complete with a personal guard. You never need fear your father again.”

“You didn’t address my first point.”

“Neither I nor Mehl would touch an unwilling partner, but the purpose of this alliance is quite clear. We will spend much time abed.”The finger beneath her chin shifted in a slight but somehow wicked caress.“Afraid?”

Ria jerked her chin upward, away from his touch. Now that they’d made mental contact, he didn’t need physical.“I am no virgin. Sex itself doesn’t scare me.”

A slow smile crossed the high king’s face, and she thought she might combust from the heat that speared through her.“Then perhaps you will give us one night to convince you.”

Chapter6

Two Kisses

Mehl couldn’t see Toren’s face, but the expressions tracing across Ria’s told a story all its own. Fear and desire were obvious—less so her curiosity. Yet even when she pulled her chin away, her body leaned toward Toren’s. It was her insecurity that would cause the most trouble with convincing her to accept, but there was a spark in her eyes that promised great reward if they managed it.

Not by trickery or force, however. What she needed was truth.

“It seems the lady Ria has agreed to consider the arrangement,” Toren announced aloud. “King Mehl, would you escort Lady Ria to the receiving room to begin discussions while I finish with court business?”

Mehl inclined his head, almost smiling at the quick, worried glance Toren cast his way before offering a shocked Ria his arm. It was a delicious scene, the way the nobles gaped at their High King leading a tailor’s daughter onto the dais after naming her lady. There had been some dissatisfaction when Toren had married him, a bodyguard from a low-ranking noble house some hadn’t even heard of. A mating alliance with a commoner? The whispers would go on for decades.

Well, it was time something shook up the complacent fae court. Better this than the vicious rule of Toren’s brother.

Toren shifted Ria’s hand to Mehl’s arm in a smooth, practiced motion.“Do not go too far in your convincing, not without me. No more than a kiss or a caress.”

Mehl’s body stirred at the imperious command and the mental image it prompted, but he kept himself under control.“I would not.”

“Good.”Toren grimaced.“Be gone before I regret this.”

Mehl took his husband at his word and swept Ria out the door behind their thrones as quickly as he could without causing a stir. Her fingers trembled against his arm, but she allowed him to lead her down a long corridor to the formal receiving room used for more confidential consultations. It was a neutral, rather impersonal spot, but private. Aside from the guard who stood outside the door in case of just such a meeting, there was no one to see them enter.

As soon as the door clicked closed behind them, Ria retrieved her hand and strode to the center of the room. “This is madness.”

He smiled at the stiff line of her back and the lost wonder of her whispered comment. “Is it, my lady?”

Ria spun to face him. “I am not a lady. Not a titled one, at any rate.”

“You are now,” Mehl countered, his smile unwavering.

“That makes no sense.” Her lips pinched together, and she lowered her gaze. “Your Majesty.”

Mehl moved closer—but only a little. Too much haste would only scare her more. “Toren named you lady in front of the court, so you are. You’ll have to ask him about the specifics of your new title, however. We haven’t had a chance to discuss it.”

“Did you discuss…” Her throat worked. “His offer? He didn’t say much aloud. I can’t imagine that Your Majesty would be pleased if you knew the full extent of it.”

“Please drop the formality,” Mehl said. The last thing he wanted to hear from her lips was another cold Your Majesty. “I was not born to the title and do not prefer it. Mehl alone will suffice.”