Page 43 of Undertow
“Also, this isn’t a contest to find out who could be the most spoiled of princes. We alltrainin the royal family.”
Darren snorted. “Amelia went through hell to be considered suitable to be queen. She wasthrilledto give so much of herself to serve the nation, but it was rigorous. You all need to understand there will be nothing less for your sons. Unless they can’t keep up with what my babysisterdid when we weren’t even an Alpha family?”
And with that mic drop moment, the meeting was pretty much over.
We did need an actual plan and timeline since it was going to mess with people’s lives and for years, but… Everything took time.
Most hung around to talk about everything between each other and probably get some more of the castle’s fabulous food before they all started flying out. I needed air, so I slipped out almost immediately, having to swallow a yelp as my arm was grabbed and I was dragged down a hallway.
Without thinking, I twisted my arm and slammed my other hand into the chest of the person.
“Fuck, Sagan,” Kole chuffed after he crashed into the wall.
“Don’t grab me like that,” I muttered but held my hands up and backed away.
He narrowed his eyes at me. “I just pulled you off to—”
“Don’t gaslight me,” I snapped. “You put your hands on me and I should always be on guard. Use your fucking words, Kole.”
He chuffed a few times but then sighed. “You’re right. I didn’t want anyone to overhear us, but I could have handled that better.” He glanced at my arm. “Are you okay? Did I scare you?”
I chilled too. “Everything is going to be too tense for a while.” I snorted when he seemed confused. “A coup was thrown in my own castle when I arrived home, Kole. Yeah, I’m on edge. Rightfully so.”
“Fucking elders,” he grumbled. He rubbed his hand over his head. “I’ll explain the rest later and—I don’t know who told you what but—nothing happened with Elira. It’s not even—it was nothing. We were just talking and—I don’t know which maid or guard came to snitch or who they were working for, but—”
“No, you take responsibility for this,” I said firmly, holding up my hand to him. “I don’t care if it was the most innocent thing ever and you didn’t actually touch her.”
His eyes went too wide. “Of course I didn’t. I wasn’t fucking a woman I barely know after your parents’ funeral, Sagan. Who does that?”
Me. I did that with a man and didn’t even know who he was still.
Yeah, that was a hard pill to swallow and took a lot of steam out of my outrage. He would be beyond pissed if he knew what I’d done.
And rightfully so.
Yes, I was in heat and he’d been—it would have been a mess and dragons gave passes for that situation.
But I still would have been devastated.
You wouldn’t have done what he did and given you reason to walk away.
I sighed and rubbed my hand over my face. I repeated the optics to him and how it all looked. “You cannot—you’re not stupid, Kole. You’re the heir of an Alpha. I know you’ve had training that everything you do matters.”
“Look, I shouldn’t have left without checking in with you first, but you were being so—”
“So consumed withgrief?” I drawled.
He ignored that and went on. “I want to know who this supposed witness was and talk with them.”
“What? Are you—what will that matter?”
Anger filled his eyes. “I have a right to face my accuser, and I want to know who the rats are in this castle.”
“You are unbelievable,” I whispered, unable to hide my disgust. “There’s no rat when it reachedmy earswhen it’s my castle. That’s being loyal.” I turned to keep moving down that hallway since it would take me outside, but a voice to my left stopped me.
“The staff wasn’t the only witness,” a deep voice said. “I saw too. And you weren’t exactlyquietas you complained that the princess wasn’t—”
“You’re just saying this to try and break us up and so you have a better chance with her,” Kole snapped.
