The Realm

by Leigh Walker

  “We were worried you thought you were too good for us,” Thalia said. “Glad to see you lowered your standards for the evening.”

  “Ha ha.” I had a sip of wine, which warmed my insides. “Tell me, what have you heard? Was Maya writing out the guest list for her wedding this afternoon?”

  “Actually, she was worse than that.” Dae shook her head. “After you left, she went on and on about what the wedding was going to be like—the appetizers, what she wanted her gown to look like, what His Highness would look like in a tuxedo, how all the settlers would freak out over such a gorgeous, lavish event. It was a bit much.”

  Joely snorted. “That’s the understatement of the year. She’s already completely convinced that she’s going to win, and she’s gotten so obnoxious about it. Princess Blake sat next to her at breakfast, and now Maya thinks they’re BFFs.”

  “I just wonder if she’s going to take Mira’s advice and tone it down.” Thalia shrugged. “But it didn’t look like she was going to start listening tonight—not with that dress she had on.”

  “What did it look like?” I had another sip of wine and braced myself.

  “It was black, skintight, and cut all the way down to here.” Dae put her hand flush on her navel. “She’d better not move too much, or it’s going to rip right off of her.”

  “Not that she’d mind.” Thalia frowned.

  “Well, at least we all get our own dates over the next few days. We’re lucky that we’re not first, you know? This way, we can learn from Maya’s mistakes.” Joely cheerfully poured herself another glass of wine. “We should stay optimistic. Right, ladies?”

  “Right.” Dae and Thalia clinked glasses.

  “Right.” I forced a smile.

  Joely smiled warmly. “You know, it was really fun getting to meet Blake and the other girls today. I hope we get to spend more time with them.”

  “I’d like that. I miss them, being over here.”

  “We can be your friends, too, you know.” Thalia nudged me. “I understand you’ve been through this contest thing before, but a girl can’t have too many allies.”

  “True.” I smiled at them. “I’m glad I came down for wine. I thought you all might not want to talk to me after what happened last night.”

  “About that…” Joely looked at the other girls, then me. “Mira had a word with us about it this afternoon, and so did Rhys.”

  “Oh? What did they have to say?”

  “Mira was very strict about the whole thing. She said it won’t ever happen again, and going forward, anyone who spends unauthorized time with His Highness is off the show.” Joely’s mouth twisted. “Rhys said he was sorry he spent time alone with you and not the rest of us. He said that you needed him for something, and that you were a bit…” Her face turned red.

  “A bit what? Go on, say it.”

  “A bit forward. He said you grabbed him and kissed him, that it was one-sided.” She looked miserable. “I feel terrible telling you that, but that’s what he said.”

  “How interesting. That’s not exactly how I remember it.” I drained my wine glass. I wanted to tell them the truth—that he had kissed me—but I didn’t. Rhys was presenting himself in a certain light, and that was his business. Of course, the way it impacted me was my business. But perhaps this was to my advantage—the other girls wouldn’t know the truth, and they might be less apt to pounce on me.

  “How was it?” Dae asked. “The kiss, I mean.”

  “It was…” I struggled to find the appropriate description. Hot. Deep. Filled with longing, at least on my part. “Nothing special.” The less they knew, the better. I looked up to see Duncan heading down the hall, his lanky stride languid. I hoped he was going to take a long walk off a short pier.

  One of the kitchen maids came in wheeling a tray. “Ladies, I took the liberty of having some desserts prepared for you.” There were chocolate croissants, carrot-cake cupcakes, and thick slices of red-velvet cake with cream-cheese frosting.

  “Oh my goodness.” Thalia clapped her hands. “This is amazing—thank you!”

  I accepted a piece of the cake and another glass of wine. What Rhys had told them, along with what Duncan had said to me earlier, made eating my feelings seem like an excellent idea. These werewolves were certainly getting under my skin.

  “What’s the matter, Tamara? Have I made you upset because of what I said?” Joely asked.

  “You didn’t say anything I didn’t expect to hear.” This was another lie, but there was no reason to tell the truth at that point. “I’d like another slice of cake, please.” Two desserts in one night was a sure sign that I was going off the rails, but it was safer to eat myself silly rather than find Rhys and yell at him in the middle of his date.

  “Ah, ladies, good evening.” Maya came in and leaned dramatically back against the doorframe. Her eyes had a starry, faraway look.

  “You’re back already? How was your date?” Dae smiled. “You look like you had fun.”

  “Fun isn’t the word for it.” Maya’s hair was mussed, her cheeks hot pink, and her lipstick smudged. “I have an announcement to make. I’m in love.”

  I put my cake down, suddenly feeling nauseated.

  “Love. Wow. That’s a strong word after a first date.” Joely offered Maya a glass of wine. “Come and tell us all about it.”

  Maya accepted the glass and joined us on the couch in a flourish. I tried not to stare at the amount of bare skin she exposed—I didn’t want to picture Rhys close to her, smudging her lipstick like that. I shuddered as she took a sip of wine and prepared to inundate us with the gory details.

  “First of all, our dinner was to die for. The chef prepared mutton leg, and you should have seen His Highness! He was in his glory with such fine roasted meat.”

  I scowled as she talked. The jury was in—Maya disgusted me. The way she spoke of anything, even food, made me gag. Perhaps I was allergic to her, too.

  “And then we had cake, and champagne of course. His Highness said nothing was too good for me.” She tossed her hair, her eyes sparkling and skin flushed. “Then we went for a romantic moonlit stroll on the grounds. He held my hand the whole time then put his arm around me.” Maya leaned forward, her dress straining against her. “And when he kissed me—let me just tell you ladies, I’ve never been kissed like that before! He took my breath away. He’s so tall and handsome and virile…”

  She chattered on and on, and I emptied the bottle of wine into my glass then motioned for the maid to bring me another. Maya continued, “His hands are so strong, not to mention his lips. Our kiss was so swoon-y, I almost fainted. And dinner was amazing. Can you imagine, eating candlelight dinner with the man you love every night? Living here in the palace, with a servants waiting on you? I’m so glad he has feelings for me, too, I don’t ever want to go home…”

  After an hour of being regaled with Maya’s tale of love and lust, I took my leave, wearily heading toward the stairs. Duncan was lurking in the lobby. He saw me and snickered.

  “Why do I see you everywhere, all of a sudden?” I frowned at him. “Make yourself scarce, wolf. No one likes a hater.”

  “Come now, missus, you’re just being sour.” Duncan sidled closer. His pale-denim eyes inspected me. “I wanted to check in with you to see how you were feeling, especially after listening to that nitwit who had the date tonight.”

  “You think Maya’s a nitwit? I might like you more than I thought.”

  “You shouldn’t.” He smiled lazily. “Because that nitwit, the one Rhys went out with tonight? She’s exactly what I was talking about earlier. She’s fancy, too. I’ve caught her looking at her reflection in the castle windows any chance she gets. She’s a prime example of what could go wrong here. A girl like that’s got no place in the Realm.”

  “Amen.”

  “But you see, I’m not looking for your agreement—I’m seeing if you understand. She’s like you. And the way she acted tonight, throwing the date in your face, acting like she’
s better than the other girls—as I see it, you’re getting a taste of your own medicine.”

  “Duncan, you are quite cruel to me. Explain yourself. No one casually hates someone the way you seem to hate me.”

  The werewolf shook his head. “I don’t hate you. But I don’t like you, either. And I think if you really care about the Realm, you should know how the wolves feel.”

  “So you speak for others, not just yourself?”

  “I’m looking out for all of us—there is no I in pack, my lady.” He straightened his spine. “I told you before, Rhys is my friend. I only want what’s best for him. I’m keeping an eye on you. I heard you earlier, when you were talking to the other girls—you said your kiss with Rhys was ‘nothing special.’ How would he feel if he knew the truth?”

  “I don’t know how he feels about anything. But that wasn’t the truth, and it certainly wasn’t any of your business.”

  “You deny your words, then?”

  “I deny that I meant them.” I curtsied to the wolf. “And I deny you the privilege of speaking to me any further. I’ve had enough of dealing with unpleasant creatures for one day.”

  “As have I.” He bowed in return. “Good night, Lady Layne.”

  I wanted to tell him to go gnaw on a bone, but as I’d done with Maya, I kept my mouth shut. I might have to take my temperature—I wasn’t acting at all like myself. I was clearly coming down with something. Or maybe it was just that pesky allergy. I needed to do something about it, fast.

  Awkward

  Over the next forty-eight hours, I sat through hearing about Joely’s date then Thalia’s. Though they were both more reserved than Maya in their respective postmortems, the stories they told still hurt. He’d kissed them both. Joely described it as electric; Thalia described it as swoon worthy.

  “I suppose you should enjoy the afterglow.” Maya pouted. “But just remember that he kissed me first.”

  “Actually, he kissed Tamara first,” Thalia reminded her.

  Maya lifted her chin. “But I had the first date.”

  “And I had the second,” Joely said, rolling her eyes. “Big whoop.”

  Maya’s eyes glittered. “You know, it is a big whoop. You may have kissed His Highness, but he chose me first. It means something. I’ve never had someone look at me the way he does.”

  I winced.

  “Everything okay?” Dae asked in a quiet voice.

  “Yes, of course. Perhaps I have a bit of nerves, is all.” My date with Rhys was that night. I hated hearing from the other girls about the way he looked at them, how strong his lips were, how his hands felt pressed against their hips. I’d thought the same things, but I’d believed Rhys’s smoldering glances and searching kisses were meant for me and me alone. Listening to the other girls, I realized that I had been, of all things, naive.

  I felt myself getting riled up and took my leave. I wanted to know the truth about the wolf’s feelings, but it was likely out of my reach. I would be alone with Rhys that night, but I wouldn’t be able to speak to him candidly. The cameras would follow our every move, and I had to play the part of a hopeful candidate. Appearing jealous and angry on our very first date wouldn’t sit well with the audience in the settlements.

  I wasn’t sure what to expect from the werewolf. Mira was waiting until we’d all had our one-on-one dates before showing us any of the footage. All I knew for certain was that each of the girls who’d already had a date had kissed the king. That night, it would be my turn.

  But will he try to kiss me, too, or have I been banished for the sake of ratings—or worse, what he perceives as bad behavior? All I’d done was try to stop the gossiping by going to Mira first. He could eventually forgive me for that…I hoped. Or had Duncan bent his ear about me and my fancy ways? Was Rhys through with me already?

  Or should I be through with him, for lying to the other girls about our kiss?

  I spent the better part of the afternoon preparing for my date. Giuliana worked tirelessly to make me look my best. “I believe your powder-blue gown suits the evening, my lady. What do you think?” She pulled it out of the armoire and held it up. The dress was stunning, with a fitted lace bodice and tight-fitting straps. It was belted at the waist with a fine blue ribbon, and the skirt fell gracefully to the floor.

  “I like it.” I nodded. “It should be fine.”

  “Fine? It’s much better than fine—it’s dazzling!”

  “Yes, right. Dazzling is what I meant.”

  “Oh, but aren’t you excited?” Giuliana hung the dress up and went back to smoothing my hair. “You don’t seem as happy as I was expecting.”

  “Well, that’s because I suppose I’m not.” I frowned at my reflection in the mirror, even though my makeup was flawless. “I have the fourth date. I think I’m pretty far down on His Highness’s list.”

  “Nonsense.” Giuliani’s eyes were wide, scandalized. “I heard from some of the kitchen staff that you’re the clear favorite. And isn’t it true, my lady, that the king has already told you so?”

  “Not exactly.” I slipped Elsa a bite of sweet potato, and she happily gobbled it up. Beast came closer, and I gave him a treat, too. “We danced at Princess Blake’s wedding, of course, and had a fun evening together. But that seems like a long time ago.”

  “Are you worried about the other contestants?”

  “Well, of course I am. They’re not exactly ugly, are they?”

  “They’re pretty enough. But that’s not what matters most.” She shrugged as she started a small French braid at the crown of my head. “None of them are you. You are refined, a lady, a member of the royal court. As far as I’m concerned, they’re no real competition. You cannot imitate a true work of art.”

  “Ah, Giuliana, that’s very kind of you. But I don’t suppose King Rhys shares your same devotion. From what I’ve heard, he’s been quite taken with the other girls. He’s kissed them all, as I’m sure you’ve heard.”

  “I did hear about it, but I also know for a fact that that Maya Briones is too big for her britches—she’s been bragging that the king kissed her, but she kissed him first. Nan in the kitchen saw it for herself.”

  “Hmm. Well, they said the same thing about me.”

  Giuliana leaned down. “But it wasn’t true, was it? I’ve seen him staring, my lady. I know he’s carrying a torch for you.”

  I sighed. “I appreciate that, but I don’t know anything anymore.”

  “Let him show you how he feels tonight.” She smiled at me, eyes sparkling. “I bet he won’t be able to resist you—not in this dress.”

  “We’ll see,” I said, but I couldn’t help smiling at the girl. She was a vampire, but she seemed so young, with the utter certainty of youth.

  I wasn’t certain of anything anymore. Duncan had turned my head upside down and inside out, as had Rhys’s kiss, followed by his icy disregard for me. I felt like Alice in that old story, Alice in Wonderland, that my mother had told me about. The girl went down the rabbit hole, and everything she knew went topsy-turvy. My cheeks were flushed, and my pulse was racing. I couldn’t decide if I was excited about or dreading the evening, but it sort of felt like both.

  Tamara Layne, nervous about a date. The world had gone mad, indeed.

  “There you are—perfect.” Giuliana secured the braid and grinned. “Just remember who you are and where you come from. The other girls are decoys, my lady—red herrings. You were born to wear a crown.”

  I didn’t see Rhys as I made my way down the stairs, careful of my long flowing dress and spiked heels. Mira waited in the foyer with the entire film crew, under glaring lights. The television host wore a red taffeta gown that brushed the floor. Mira’s hair was swept back from her face and flawless, her lips lacquered to a high sheen.

  “Ah, here she is—Lady Tamara Layne, Goodwill Ambassador to the Realm, member of the Royal Court. Isn’t she stunning?” Mira gushed to the cameras. She turned to me when I reached the bottom of the stairs. “How does it feel to be
going on your first official date with the king?” She stuck the microphone in front of my face.

  “I’m nervous, actually.” I laughed. “I’m so excited—I feel a bit flushed.”

  “Why, Tamara! I’ve known you for ages, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen you anxious.” Mira looked genuinely surprised. “Tell us what’s going on.”

  “Well, I really like King Rhys. I’m excited to get to spend some more time with him.” I’d decided that in order to look good on the show, I had to be as sincere as possible—I had to let myself appear vulnerable. And although I hated to admit it, especially to Mira and the other candidates—not to mention the millions of viewers at home—I did like Rhys. Or at least, I used to before he started being cold to me and kissing all the other contestants.

  “I think it’s wonderful, Lady Layne. I think there’s really something between you two, and I can’t wait to see you with His Highness. He has a very special evening prepared.”

  “Really? What are we doing?”

  “First, you’ll have a sumptuous dinner, and then he’s taking you to the barn for a private lesson.”

  “What sort of lesson?”

  Her eyes sparkled. “A dance lesson, my lady. He said you love to dance.”

  “Oh. That’s very kind.” I blinked, surprised. I’d thought waltzing was a little too stiff and civilized for the werewolf king.

  “Ah, here he is. Your Highness, you are looking dashing as ever this evening.” Mira beamed as Rhys strode toward us, tall, muscled, and impossibly handsome in a dark ceremonial tunic. His hair was back in a low, thick bun, and his skin glowed with the good health obtained by spending hours upon hours outside. Or perhaps it was the stage makeup. Either way, he looked incredible. My stomach did a somersault, and I inwardly grimaced. I’d never been this nervous in my life. Werewolf allergy. I prayed there was an antidote.

  Rhys’s face lit up when he saw me, but then he seemed to close down again. He bowed to us formally. “Mira, hello. Lady Layne, good evening. Thank you for accepting my invitation.”