Page 47 of An Heir to Blood and Power

Magnus glanced at Nico, who lay his hand on my arm. Magnus said to him, “You haven’t told her fuckin’ anything, have you?”

Oh, man. I was screwing up again. “Hey, how about that NCAA tournament this year? It was wild, huh? And the Summer Olympics coming up? Going to be a show!”

Magnus was still staring straight at Nico, their line of sight above my head. “Have you told her about yourself? Or did you marry a woman without telling her jack shit?”

“I told her aboutmyself,”Nicolai said. “It wouldn’t beright to pull somebody into this kind of life without disclosure.”

“I don’t think there could ever be full disclosure. Look at what happened to Harry. No matter how much he tried to warn her, no one outside can really understand until they’re inside the fuckin’ snow globe.” He turned to me. “I hope you know at least a little bit of what you’ve gotten yourself into.”

I wasn’t going to let this guy think Nicolai had suckered me. “I know what’s going on. He explained it. But I got to know him before he explained it, which is why I married him.”

“Then he should’ve explained to you whoweare. It’s not fair to let you wander into these situations without knowing.”

“I thought we were talking about your grandfather and orange farms.”

“My grandfather’s fatherwasthe kingduring World War II.”

The music was really loud, too loud. “He was awhat?”

Magnus continued, “My grandfather was young, probably seven years old, when the Blitzkrieg overran us. If they had gotten ahold ofthe king or the crown prince,it would’ve been a propaganda coup. They could’ve held them hostage. So, the queen and the children went to America on one of the last planes out. His father,the king,rode it out in London with the government-in-exile.”

King?Like a—king?Countries didn’t havekingsanymore. “I—wow. Wait, when you say he was the—what?”

Odd thoughts sneaked into my skull.

The people at this party were all so beautiful, and tall, and young.

Ageless,maybe.

And gorgeously dressed. And slim.

It was all a little—eerie.

Otherworldly,even.

Inhuman.

My heart accelerated in my chest like a jet plane revving to take off.

CHAPTER 14

the fae high lord

LEXI

Nicolai slipped his fingers around mine and lifted my arm to press the back of my hand against his chest, where his heart tapped against the bird bones leading from my wrist to my fingers. He said to Magnus, “I didn’t tell her aboutyou.There was no reason to.”

Magnus’s furtive glance at me felt a little insulting. “You thought there wasno reasonto tell her aboutus,and yet youmarriedher?”

Us.

Nothim.

Not just Magnus.

Not just Nicolai.

Us.