I frowned. “Your what?”
His lips sealed, and he shook his head. “Nothing, but if she thought she was getting a private date with me tonight, she’s wrong.”
The prince stayed true to his word. Despite Lady Endalaver trying to persuade the prince to leave on a private date, Prince Norivun refused, repeatedly telling her that this was all he planned for the evening, and that was that.
And each time she tried to manipulate him or pouted prettily, he brushed her off and reminded her that this date was still within the rules of the Trial.
I kept my distance from both of them, still in disbelief at how quickly things had heated between the prince and me on the balcony, but it didn’t stop my satisfaction every time the prince refused her.
Once again, the prince’s protectiveness and possessiveness stirred my thoughts. Never mind the way we reacted to each other physically.
All this time, I’d thought his protectiveness was because he saw me as an asset, someone he must keep safe at all costs because of what I could do with the orem. He needed to keep me protected so I could save the continent, but that hardly explained his fierce desire. Each time he’d kissed me, he’d nearly look possessed. As though a succubus had ensnared him and demanded that he claim me.
I nearly snorted at that thought as the music continued around me while those remaining in the dining hall danced or chatted. Such a thought was ridiculous. The only time something that extreme happened was when . . .
My eyes turned to saucers as my heart jolted.
A fae male had found his mate.
My lips parted, and my breath stopped.
It felt as though the realm tilted off its axis.
I reached a steadying hand for the wall and gripped my wineglass tightly. The only time a fae male naturally acted with such extreme behavior was if he’d found his mate.
My heart pounded more as blood thundered through my veins.
Near the wine table, Prince Norivun spoke with several males beside him while Georgyanna pouted in the corner.
My heart beat even harder.
No, surely, no. That couldn’t be the reason.
But . . .
Wide-eyed, I stared at the crown prince. My mind exploded as the epiphany I just had smashed all of my thoughts. Could that be the reason for the prince’s behavior? To find one’s mate, the perfect half to one’s soul, would elicit such a reaction in any male fairy. Males were known for feeling the bond sooner than females. Often times, the females wouldn’t feel the full effects of the mate bond until . . .
My throat bobbed in a swallow. Until the bond was sealed during the first bedding.
Oh Blessed Mother.
My heart pattered wildly as I thought back to all of my reactions to him. It wasn’t unheard of for females to catch glimpses of the bond. Longing. Fierce attraction. Desire. Being soothed in his presence. Coveting his company.
And I’d felt all of those things. A mate bond would explain why I was able to feel that for the murderer of my family.
My gaze shot to Norivun again, but his attention stayed on the male he was speaking to.
Mother Below, it made sense, perfect sense. Because another reason the crown prince would refuse to truly court Georgyanna, despite her repulsive personality, was a mate bond. Males were fiercely devoted to their females once the mate bond reared.
I swirled away from the remaining fae in the dining hall and rushed toward the outdoor balcony. I needed air, fresh air to clear my head.
Outside, I gasped in the night wind, but it didn’t stop memories from swirling through my mind. All of the things the prince had said, things alluding to how he felt before he cut his sentences short . . . How many times had he done that?
He’d done it just tonight when he’d spoken of Lady Endalaver. “In that case, Lady Endalaver is about to realize what happens when someone messes with my—”
The word he’d been about to say was mate, but he’d stopped himself, because he knew I’d still been ignorant of the bond, and he was waiting for me to feel it.
Or the time when he’d been in the healing infirmary. “When the time comes that you know, your question will be answered.” He’d been speaking of the mate bond then too—the bond that I’d been still ignorant of.
It was said that mate bonds were strongest when both parties came to accept it within their own time. No pressure. No outward forces. No wonder he hadn’t outright told me then, and it had sounded like riddles.
But now . . . I’d come to realize it existed.
“Mother, help me,” I whispered. I squeezed the balcony harder, my grip so strong my knuckles turned as white as snow.
I need to get out of here.
I abruptly pushed away from the railing and rushed through the dining hall. I fled from the room as swiftly as the northern winds, not even stopping to find Sandus.
How? How, how, how has this happened?
The gods could be cruel when they wanted to be. Mate bonds were created by them. Their way of interacting with our fates.
“Insufferable tyrants. The lot of them,” I whispered angrily as my footsteps flew down the hall toward the Exorbiant Chamber.
The more I thought about it, the more convinced I was that I was right. It felt as though I’d been punched in the gut. My sister would never be able to accept the prince even if he was my mate.
I rounded the final turn to the prince’s wing, and the lights dimmed. My hurried movements continued until the lights flickered. Off then on. Off then . . . out.
I ground to a halt as my rapid-fire thoughts of the prince abruptly stopped.
Silence surrounded me as darkness prevailed. What just happened?
My breaths came in loud pants as I turned in a circle. The hairs on the back of my neck rose. Dear gods, I’d been so consumed with my epiphany that I was fleeing through the castle alone.
“Sandus?” I called hopefully. I reached out, feeling for the stone wall just as a sound came from behind me.
I whirled around but couldn’t see anything. Then the sound came again.
“Hello?” My heart began to pound as I swirled slowly in place. Darkness everywhere.
A chilling sense of foreboding slid through my veins. I couldn’t see anyone. Shadows dipped everything into darkness, and only the faint moonlight through a high window provided any light, yet I felt something.
“Hello?” I called louder.
The sound came again.
Dear gods, someone or something was here. My nose twitched as a faint, pungent scent tickled my senses just as the absolute conviction that I was about to be attacked slammed into me.
Instinctive magic erupted inside my gut, and a ring of fire burst to life around me, creating a protective barrier and providing light.
A scream of pain cut through the darkness, but when I whirled toward it, a flash of something appeared in the air, and then . . . nothing. Although—
I sniffed. The lingering scent of something rotten permeated the air.
Boot steps reached my ears, then Sandus careened around the corner. “Lady Seary!”
“Sandus!”
“You’re not to venture through the castle without me!” My guard was seething when he reached me, his eyes wild as I released my fire, allowing my guard to come to my side.
“I know. I’m sorry! I was—” But I couldn’t continue. I couldn’t very well tell him that my thoughts had turned into a spiraling tornado, and all reasonable action had left me when I suspected the prince was my mate.