Without hesitation, Lord Meck extended his arm. I placed my palm on top of his hand, and he escorted me to the dining hall. We were the first to enter with the rest of the party slowly walking behind us.
We continued to make our way to the far end of the table. I tried to step towards my familiar seat, but Lord Meck stopped me at the head of the table. He dropped my arm and pulled back the tall chair.
“Lady Amelissa,” he said, gesturing to the seat of honor.
I was stunned.
“I can’t.” I turned and glanced back at Prince Brion. He was walking in with Valeria, but his gleaming gaze was focused on me and my current predicament. “This seat belongs to the prince.” I’d learned enough about draekon protocol to know the highest-ranking guest should sit at the head of the table.
“The prince and I have already discussed the seating arrangement. Tonight, you are the guest of honor.”
I didn’t resist when Lord Meck placed a hand on my back and guided me to sit in the chair. He helped push the chair in before he claimed his seat to my left. Prince Brion arrived and sat to my right. Jasper and Min filled in the spots beside him while Valeria sat next to her brother.
I kept my eyes low, praying I didn’t look as embarrassed as I felt. I should have known what Nero meant when he let it slip that I was the guest of honor. I could only hope I wouldn’t make a fool of myself.
The first course was delivered, and everyone around me picked up polite conversation as they ate. I swirled my spoon in the soup, avoiding any extra attention until I was sure my cheeks did not burn red.
“Is something wrong?” Lord Meck leaned forward and put himself in my line of sight. “Do you not like the butternut squash?”
“No. I mean, yes. I do like the soup.” I demonstrated by putting a spoonful in my mouth. I tried to give Lord Meck my most reassuring smile, but I was afraid the effort fell flat.
“Lissa isn’t fond of being in the spotlight,” Jasper said from three seats away. “She always let Jem do all the talking when we were growing up.”
My eyes crinkled from the width of my smile as memories of my best friend flooded my mind. “I did not.”
“Yes, you did,” Jasper countered with equal amusement. “You rarely spoke to anyone in Caldiri who wasn’t one of your patients.”
“That’s because I always so busy,” I said, pointing at him with my spoon, “and you know it.”
Jasper chuckled, and I realized he was teasing me in order to distract me. My grin grew.
Lord Meck cleared his throat. My eyes landed on him.
He lifted an eyebrow. “Lissa?”
“My nickname,” I explained. Though, I was pretty sure he’d heard the prince use the name before. Perhaps it was Jasper’s familiarity he was questioning. “All of my siblings use a shortened name.”
“Oh? How many siblings do you have?” Lord Meck asked, wanting to keep my attention on him.
“Two. One brother and one sister.”
“Arlin and Alorie,” Prince Brion stated their names. He shrugged when I looked at him with a raised brow, wondering why he had jumped in to provide the information.
“Do they share your features?” Valeria asked, speaking to me for only the second time since I’d made her acquaintance. She’d always been too preoccupied with the prince to bother with me.
“Features?”
“Your unique hair and eye color,” she explained.
“Yes,” Jasper answered for me this time. “Lin, Lorie, and Lissa were quite the anomaly in Caldiri.”
Valeria’s eyes roved over me. “I can only imagine how handsome a man resembling you might be.”
I didn’t know if I should feel flattered or not, so I just nodded. “Arlin is very handsome.”
Beside me, Brion’s fingers twitched. I sensed his discomfort and understood he did not want me to discuss Arlin any further.
To my gratitude, Lord Meck saved me the trouble of changing the subject. “And his sister is equally beautiful.” He lifted his glass toward me.
I picked up my own and smiled before taking a healthy sip. I needed to be more careful when discussing my family. In fact, it might be better if I didn’t mention them at all. I didn’t know why, but I had the unsettling feeling that the truth of their involvement with the king’s enemies was very close to exposure.
Our bowls were cleared away and replaced with the main course. I ate the meal in silence, content to listen to the conversation around me. I didn’t want to risk saying too much again.
I’d been watching Valeria bat her long lashes at Brion from across the table when Lord Meck slid his chair back. Instantly, he had the room’s undivided attention.
“Lords and Ladies,” he began with a booming voice, “thank you for coming to this celebration. It has been an honor to host Prince Brion and his guests these past days and nights.”
Polite applause interrupted his speech. Prince Brion dipped his head toward the noble before moving to look at the rest of the table, murmuring his thanks.
Lord Meck lifted a hand and the applause stopped. “It has also been one of my greatest pleasures to meet Lady Amelissa, the prince’s secretary.” He gazed down at me, and I tried my best to smile. Attention was something I’d have to deal with as the guest of honor, but I prayed to the gods his speech didn’t last much longer. I fought the urge to hide my face behind my hands.
“I organized tonight’s event not only to say farewell to our beloved prince, but also to take the chance to ask this lady a very important question.”
A servant pulled back my chair. Startled, I jumped up and looked back at the man questioningly.
Lord Meck’s voice had drawn closer. “Amelissa.”
I turned to see he stood directly in front of me. “Lord Meck?”
He grinned, his handsome features illuminated with happiness. I didn’t understand what was happening… until he lowered himself onto the ground before me.
My heart began to accelerate, panicked.
“Amelissa,” he repeated, gazing up at me with confidence and affection. “I have never met anyone like you before, and I cannot bear the idea of you leaving tomorrow. You have brightened my days with your curiosity, intelligence, and unparalleled beauty.”
He reached into his jacket and withdrew a sipal encrusted bracelet. His family’s crest was embossed onto the clasp. “I know, now, I will never meet anyone like you the rest of my life. Will you stay with me and become my companion?”
26
I paced the length of the guest bedroom, still wearing the black gown from dinner. My fingers had pulled at my hair, and the floor was covered with the pins intended to keep the long locks in place. I was a frazzled mess, but I couldn’t calm down.
I’d refused Lord Meck.
Refused him… in front of all of his friends and family.
I’d just stood there while one of the kindest male’s I’d ever met offered me a lifetime of security and happiness, and I refused his proposal.
I would never be able to forget his crestfallen expression or the humiliation I felt when he walked out of the dining hall and left me to face the table’s astonished murmurs and disapproving glares.
I fell against the wall, bending over to hold my face in my hands. I felt sick to my stomach.
The bedroom door opened.
I whirled around to face the intruder, praying to the gods it was Lord Meck. I wanted the chance to apologize—to explain myself.
I was disappointed to see Prince Brion step into the room. He closed the door behind him, separating us from the tense atmosphere trying to seep in from the rest of Lord Meck’s mansion. Every citizen of Villam despised me.
My sadness morphed into anger. “Why didn’t you warn me?”
I remembered the prince’s sly smiles and amused looks. He’d known Lord Meck had been up to something, but he didn’t think to tell me. He’d let me walk into the dining hall blind, and now I’d wounded Lord Meck’s feelings, not to mention his pride.
“Warn you about what?” The corner of Brion’s mouth twitched.
I slipped off my shoe and threw it at him with uncharacteristic violence. I was too upset to control myself at the moment. “You know what! How could you let that happen? Why didn’t you try to stop it?”
Brion caught the projectile with ease. He dropped the expensive shoe to the floor. “Stop what? Lord Meck’s infatuation with you? Forgive me, but there was no stopping that. Your behavior towards him was nothing if not welcoming.”
I physically recoiled from the accusation. “This is not my fault.”
“Nor, is it mine.” Brion crossed his arms and smirked as he leaned against the wooden door. “Besides, I wanted the proposal to be a surprise.”
He ducked just in time to miss the other shoe.
Brion looked at the dent the heel left in the wood and actually chuckled. “You’re getting stronger.” I barely heard his whisper; my frustration and anger clouded my mind.
“That was humiliating, Brion.” I shook my head, trying to erase the evening’s memories from my mind forever.
“I believe Meck would agree with you.”
I looked around for something else to throw at the insufferable prince. He was enjoying my suffering, and I wanted to make him suffer in kind.
I picked up a pillow from the chair and flung it across the room. Brion caught it as it collided with his chest. His laughter only increased.
“This isn’t funny!” I yelled. I didn’t care if people could hear me. Brion’s reaction infuriated me, and I couldn’t take it anymore.
I crossed the room and poked him in the chest, shoving down the tiny voice inside telling me I was a fool for assaulting the powerful draekon.
“This is…” I poked his chest with my forefinger. “All your fault!” I gave him another jab.
Finally, Brion’s smirk fell away. He caught my hand in his before I could poke him again, and my skin burned from the contact.
“Enough, Lissa,” he rumbled. “No matter what you think, this is not my doing. I didn’t encourage Lord Meck’s intentions. You did that on your own.”
“I was only being friendly.” I ripped my hand away, refusing to take the blame for the situation.
Lord Meck treated me with kindness, and we shared a common interest. We’d only known each other for a few days.
Had my life really devolved into constantly wonder if a draekon wanted me as a companion? Just the thought of it was exhausting.
Brion scoffed. “Someone as beautiful as you should have learned by now males can easily misinterpret friendliness as flirtation.”
I ignored the way my pulse jumped when he called me beautiful. “Again, that’s not my fault. And you knew the misunderstanding was happening,” I accused, “yet you did nothing.”
“It is not my job to interfere in your love life.” The words sounded flat… and false.
“You are my friend.” I crossed my arms, avoiding eye contact, so he wouldn’t see me hurt. “You should’ve said something.”
“And what would you have done if I did?”
I sighed and looked back at him. His dark eyes swirled with amusement and another emotion I couldn’t place. “I would have told Lord Meck I wasn’t interested in being his companion.”
“His companion?”
“Yes,” I said. I didn’t understand the hint of another smile tugging at the prince’s lips. “What?”
Brion stepped around me and moved away from the door. “It’s interesting you qualified your statement by saying ‘his.’”
Hardly, I thought, but I turned around to follow him with my eyes and asked, “Why?”
Brion disappeared behind the changing screen. I watched the shadows as he undressed, only looking away when he began to loosen the waist of his trousers. I stared at the massive bed, tracing over the flowering vines on the comforter. He was too comfortable changing near me.
“It implies you are interested in becoming someone’s companion.” His voice floated over the screen.
I frowned. “No, it doesn’t.”
“Are you sure about that?”
His suggestive tone made my stomach clench, but I refused to back down. “I’m positive.”
“Hmm.” Brion stepped out from behind the screen. He only wore a pair of loose-fitting trousers—the kind I’d seen him wear as pajamas. Except, usually, he wore a shirt, too.
“Enjoying the view?”
I realized I’d been staring at his chiseled chest. I called on my frustration to combat my shyness at being caught ogling his physique. “You are insufferable.” I stomped towards the bathing chamber, determined to put as much distance between us as possible.
“And you, love, are predictable.” Condescension dripped over his words.
I whirled around, taking the bait. “Excuse me?” I chose to ignore his use of the word, love.
“You are predictable,” he repeated. “Say what you will, but I know you picked up on Meck’s interest. He spent every free moment with you, and I know you’re observant enough to have seen his reaction when you greeted Jasper upon the team’s arrival. However, rather than face the difficult situation head on, you brushed it away and convinced yourself nothing was amiss. You, Lissa, had many chances to dissuade Meck from proposing. You chose blind ignorance instead of brave action.”
White, hot rage surged through my limbs. “How dare you?”
The prince was undeterred. “You know, I actually thought Meck might change his mind once Jasper mentioned Jem. I doubt you noticed, but he turned practically green with envy when he heard you were so close with another young man.” Brion watched me with a smug expression, and I wanted nothing more than to smack it off his face.
I inhaled sharply, shocked by my violent thought. It wasn’t like me.
Still, I refused to let him win.
“Maybe he should be envious,” I snapped back, not knowing where I was going with my statement. My words started to outpace my mind.
Darkness flashed across Brion’s eyes, but his amusement returned. “Is that so?”
I wouldn’t back down now. “Yes. Maybe my relationship with Jem is something to be jealous of. After all, he is the only man alive I would ever consider tying myself to.”
I know I’d admitted as much on the day of my recruitment; Jem was the only man in Caldiri I could see myself with. We were best friends, and he was a good man. We would’ve had a good life together.
So why did the words feel like a lie? Was I no longer averse to the idea of spending my life with someone else?
It was a revelation I hadn’t considered—not until I used the words to anger Brion.
But why should it anger him?
I shook my head, not understanding my motivation. I was nothing more than a means to the end of the rebellion to Prince Brion. To think anything else would be foolish.
“I sincerely doubt that’s true.”
So did I. But I wouldn’t confess that to him.
“Why would I lie?” I licked my lips. The nervous action didn’t go unnoticed.
With a predatory gleam in his eye, Brion prowled closer. “Because I’ve seen how you watch me since we’ve been in Villam. You do not like seeing me give Valeria my attention.”
“That’s not true.”
“You do not like seeing another female flirt with me,” he continued, ignoring my rebuttal.
“Because it’s disgusting.” I stepped back as Brion closed the distance between us. “Valeria practically undresses you with her eyes. She might as well attack you in public.” I was exaggerating, but I couldn’t take the words back. I was forced to own them.
“So possessive.” He grinned, continuing to stalk me. The muscles in his shoulders flexed with each step.
“I am not.” I sounded petulant; I might as well have stomped my foot.
“What if I told you I want you to be possessive?”
My mind went blank. I blinked, unsure I heard him correctly. “What?”
I bumped against
the wall next to the door, feeling like a cornered animal with no means of escape.
Except… I wasn’t sure I wanted to escape.
Was my heart pounding with dread or anticipation?
I stilled as Brion finally reached me. He left little more than two inches between my chest and his naked torso.
On their own accord, my eyes trailed over the taunt, tan skin. I pressed my palms against the wall to keep myself from reaching out and tracing the outline of his muscles.
Get it together, Lissa.
“What if,” he repeated, only this time, his breath was ragged, “I told you I wanted you to be possessive?”
My throat dried. I swallowed two times before I could manage to speak. “I’d say you were trying to trick me.”
There was no way Prince Brion wanted me.
Brion’s thumb brushed against my cheek. Fire ignited behind his eyes, and I felt his fire’s warmth gathering in my chest, heating me from the inside out.
He wrapped his hand behind my neck, and I felt the other brush against my hip. “I’m not tricking you.”
Brion lowered his head and his firm lips collided with mine.
27
My world tilted. I was knocked off balance by the feel of Prince Brion’s lips. The hand on my hip slipped around my lower back, holding me steady.
Though I’d been caught off guard, my body knew how to react. My arms brushed against his as I wrapped them around his broad shoulders, pulling him tighter against me. Encouraged by my action, Brion increased the tempo of his kiss. My heart thudded against my chest.
I’d only been kissed twice, but I didn’t need countless examples to know there was something otherworldly about kissing Brion. With Jem I’d been timid and intoxicated, and I’d been equal parts shocked and fearful of my kiss with Prince Finn.
But with Brion, nothing ever felt so… right.
My mouth moved against him expertly as if I’d done so a thousand times. My fingers trailed up the base of his neck, threading through his hair. Brion growled. He bent, wrapping his arms around my waist and lifting me off the floor. I reveled in his strength and the control the elevated position gave me.
Possession Page 19
