Page 19 of The Never Queen

“I hated every minute of that.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” he says. “Get off of me.” He catches me around the waist and rolls me over, pinning me to the ground. I laugh at the sky.

“You are the worst brat I’ve ever met,” he says.

“You love it.”

He blows out a breath. “You are the bane of my existence.”

“Sure. Sure. I believe you.”

He gets to his feet and holds out his hand to me. I take it so he can lift me up, then he swats my ass. “Get back to the treehouse and clean up.”

“Or you’ll what?”

“No cock for you for a week.”

I drop my mouth open in mock distress. “You wouldn’t.”

Hands on my shoulders, he steers me to the path. “Don’t test me.”

“Oh Vane. You know, testing you is my favorite pastime.”

He laughs again and pushes me forward. “Much to my dismay.”

9

KAS

Now that our banishment has been lifted and our titles reinstated, first as princes, now as kings of the Neverland fae court, Bash and I visit the palace often to conduct our duties and to repair our reputations. We’ve tried to do it all respectfully, chatting with small circles in the courtyard, or visiting the scribes in the library, or the cooks in the kitchen, sampling their foods and complimenting their talents.

Our relationship to our royal lineage has always been fraught with conflict, uncertainty, and frustration, but we take our role as their rulers seriously.

So when we step into the fae palace, I’m almost relieved to feel the warmth of the surrounding fae. They bow to us, as is customary, before calling out hello or waving a greeting. I had half expected that Doren had poisoned the entire court against us, even though it’s only been a few days since we last visited.

Though I’m sure it doesn’t hurt that we have Peter Pan, the star god, with us.

Half the fae court is in love with him, even more now that he’s been revealed as a divine entity from the glittering sky. The stars, the constellations, the movement of the planets, all of it has always been extremely important to us and our culture. So while our family has either snubbed Pan or outright fought him most of my life, all of that was quickly shoved aside for the much greater opportunity of existing in his orbit.

Pan, for his part, continues to remain distant and aloof behind us, letting us hold the show as best we can next to his godliness.

While most of the fae court considers themselves day creatures, a good portion prefers the night, so the palace is always full of energy and laughter. It was one of my favorite things about growing up there. Bash and I could always get up to some trouble, no matter the time of day.

Down the hall, there’s a shuffle of movement and an approaching flurry of noise. I spot Lanez at the head of a group of four fae fast approaching us.

Lanez is now Chancellor of the Court and has been indispensable as she’s reoriented us in the life we were banished from.

“Your Majesties!” she calls. “So good to see you.” She hurries forward in a rainbow cloud of billowing fabric. Her pink hair is braided into several small braids, then woven in and around one another at the crown of her head. She has the pointed ears of her line and the smaller, more rounded wings of her maternal family.

Despite the late hour, she looks put together, even though I’m absolutely sure she only had a handful of minutes to prepare. If she was roused from bed to greet us, I admire her ability to do it well, and quickly.

Breathing heavily, she says, “I wasn’t expecting you.”

Her assistants come to stand behind her, their arms clasped behind their backs, awaiting orders.

“Lanez! You gorgeous burst of sunshine.” Bash bends down and kisses her cheek, and Lanez blushes. “So happy to see you. Apologies for our late visit. We were wondering if we could speak to Doren.”

“Oh.” A flicker of emotion pinches around her eyes. She hasn’t ever come right out and said it, but I have a secret suspicion she does not like Doren. It makes me like her even more.