Page 4 of Straw and Gold (A Realm of Revelry #2)
Killian
I stood in the room my soon-to-be wife would occupy for her stay in my kingdom.
Fedir leaned against the doorframe, flicking his hunting knife between his fingers.
The last few maids fluffed the pillows on the enormous four-poster bed and stocked the dressing table with a brush, hand mirror, and hair pins.
“The sun sets,” Fedir taunted.
I glanced out the west-facing windows, a pit forming in my stomach. I turned over my shoulder. “What are the chances she doesn’t show?”
Fedir tossed his knife in the air, catching the handle and placing it back in his boot. “Zero, Your Majesty.” He folded his arms and grinned mercilessly. “Word is, a carriage traveling from Moonstone Wood has arrived at The Miller’s Daughter in Cenmar. And two Ravenfae were in it.”
I scowled, grunting in acknowledgement. The maids took that as their cue to exit, swiftly shuffling out the door, each leaving a smile for my rake of a Captain.
Fedir stepped further into the room, nodding in silent approval at the comforts I’d made for Morella.
“It’s only three months, Killian,” he murmured, tracing his hand over the golden brush at the dressing table.
“Three months is all I have left, so you’ll excuse me if I don’t want to spend them with a stranger.”
“Will you bargain with her?” he questioned softly.
“I don’t know.”
“You might as well.”
“What if there’s something wrong with her?” I shook my head in exasperation. “What princess would agree to this?”
He shrugged. “In her letters, she seemed sane.”
I turned on him. “You read them?”
“One or two over the years.”
“I told you to burn them.”
“I did burn them…eventually.”
“You’re a bastard.”
He laughed, grabbing my shoulder. “And you were a fool to get rid of them so easily. There might have been all kinds of scandalous secrets in those letters.”
He moved to leave, but I stood in his way. “What did the letters say?”
“Oh,” he drawled, “this and that. She likes to spin.”
“Spin?”
He nodded, picking at his teeth. “On a spinning wheel. She claims to be very good at it.”
I huffed. I’d heard as much from her mother when drafting the contract. “What else?”
“I really don’t remember. This was years ago.”
“If she’s not insane, what else is wrong with her?”
Pausing a moment, he gasped, snapping his fingers. “What if she’s ugly?”
I gave him a skeptical look.
“Like really, really ugly. Absolutely hideous. Think about it…a Ravenfae Princess is basically a bird, correct?”
“Raven,” I amended.
“Right, and she probably has a beaked nose and beady black eyes. In fact,” he continued, standing tall and laughing, “I’ll bet you fifty marks she has the feet of a crow!”
“ Raven ,” I rebuked.
“Whatever. Point is, you and I have never actually seen a Ravenfae. Fuck, this entire kingdom and over half of Revelry hasn’t—your contract negotiations with the Ravenfae Goddess was done by letters, even.
So, what if she’s half a bird and then here comes along a contract of marriage to a far-distant king?
” He tsked and shook his head. “Sounds like the best offer she’s going to get. ”
I nodded slowly. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Two hundred marks says you’ll find her unattractive.”
“I don’t want your coin if you’re wrong.”
“I’m sure I’m not. I do want your coin, though, if I’m right.”
“Fine,” I said in exasperation. “Just go await the carriage and bring her to the throne room when she’s ready so we can get this ceremony over with and get to the drinking.”
He bowed out of the room replying, “Tick tock, my king.”
My heart softened a little as he left and my mood lightened.
Yes, if she was hard to look at, this would be much easier.
I would let her down gently and after a few months of marriage, I’d convince her that we were just not compatible.
Maybe then I could set her up in a nice country house nearby and she could be taken care of for the rest of her life, regardless of what happened to me.
I took a deep breath and pulled on the lapels of my gold embroidered jacket. Morella’s room was ready and beautiful. I wanted to make her life comfortable in the castle while she was in it, and hoped the hapless girl would find some peace in the beauty of the castle and its lush grounds.
I swept my hand through my red waves, borrowing a pin from her table to tuck them away for the ceremony. I was ready to meet my betrothed and start the process of letting her down easy.