But Prince Thorne . . . he smiled.
My stomach dipped.
The smile he bestowed was not tight or cold. It was wide and real, showing a hint of teeth and softening the icy, unreal beauty of his features.
“She meant no offense. That I can assure you,” Claude promised, and I almost laughed at the irony of him having to defend me. “She sometimes speaks passionately and . . . without thinking.”
“No offense taken.” The blue of the Prince’s eyes had brightened once more. “Quite the opposite, to be honest.”
I shook my head in disbelief, but he did seem . . . pleased, and that was just, well, somehow more disturbing.
“Your understanding is appreciated.” Claude took his seat. “I swear to you that my treatment of her is not what left her skin bruised.” A muscle flexed along his jaw. “But I will get to the bottom of it.”
“Glad to hear that.” Prince Thorne’s fingers tapped along the table again. “And my request?”
His request? More like his demand.
“I will be leaving the day after tomorrow to meet with my armies to escort them here,” Prince Thorne continued. “It will take several days to make the journey, but while I’m here, I want her with me.”
Claude refilled his brandy. His knuckles were bleached white as he gripped the glass and took a drink.
I started to sweat, anxiety building.
“I have no problem with your request,” the Baron announced.
“What?” I gasped, twisting toward him.
“Perfect.” The Prince nodded at Claude, then rose, turning to me. He smiled. “Our arrangement is agreed upon then.”
Having not agreed to anything, I took a step back, bumping into the table.
His smile deepened. “You have an hour to ready yourself.” He prowled past me, stopping as his arm brushed mine. He looked down, lashes lowered. “I so look forward to seeing you later.”
Stunned speechless, I watched the Prince of Vytrus stalk out of the dining hall. I couldn’t even move as I stood there, my skin flashing between hot and cold.
“How could you tell him that was okay?” I faced the Baron. Then it sank in, finally breaking through the anger. Hyhborn could take what they wanted, even from a caelestia. “You didn’t have a choice,” I admitted, but he could . . . he could’ve at least said that he wasn’t okay with it.
“He gave a choice, Lis. Even if it didn’t sound like he was, you know that he did.” Claude stared from beyond the now-calm candlelight. “He could’ve simply compelled both of us into agreement.”
Yes, the Prince could’ve done that. “Does that matter?”
“It should always matter,” Claude stated softly, drinking.
It had mattered last night, but that had been different. “This is absurd!” I shouted, throwing up my hands. “I cannot— ”
“Who?” Claude asked. “Who bruised you?”
I couldn’t believe he was focused on that when he had basically handed me off to a Hyhborn prince. “That’s not really important at the moment.”
“I beg to differ. I want to know who.”
“It isn’t— ”
“Answer me!” Claude yelled, smacking a hand onto the table and causing me to jump. He took a deep breath, looking away. “I’m sorry. I know I’m not perfect and there is so much that I could do better when it comes to you— with all of this.” He gestured to the hall with a wide sweep of his arm as his gaze returned to me. Several moments passed. “But especially you. The gods know I want more for us— for you, but I know why you stay, Lis. I do.”
I fell silent, a knot lodging in my throat.
“The fear you have of being back out there— you and Grady living off the streets? It’s a horrible thing to live with, one that I’ve been lucky enough to never know.” He laughed, but it was without humor. “But I’ve capitalized on that fear. I’ve benefited from it when I should’ve done the exact opposite.”
I . . . I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I hadn’t known that he . . . he realized. That he knew. The knot expanded.
“I wish I could say I’m a better person, but I know I’m not,” he continued, jaw working. “However, I have never raised a hand against you— against any of my paramours. That is the one thing I could take comfort in providing you. Safety. Security. Because that is why you stay.”
I clutched the back of a chair as my throat thickened and my eyes stung. “You . . . you have given me that.”