Curse of the Wolf King - Tessonja Odette Page 0,71
courtship, dancing together far more than is considered proper at balls, dining together, walking together, stealing kisses in public. Then more than kisses.”
My throat closes up, nausea wrenching my gut. “We drew enough suspicion to attract the attention of a reporter running the city’s gossip column. She…followed us one day and caught us in the middle of…”
I swallow hard.
Elliot stops and places a hand on my arm, gently turning me to face him. “You don’t have to explain more than that,” he says. The steadying warmth of his palm makes me realize how badly I’m shaking, and it isn’t from the cold.
“Everyone found out,” I whisper. “All my friends, my family, Oswald’s father. Oswald promised to fight for me. But…he didn’t.”
The king’s brows knit together, and I realize his hand is still on my arm. It keeps me rooted to the moment while memories of the past rush through my mind. I can still see the words I found in the gossip column a week after it had already revealed my tryst with the viscount. Just when I thought rumors couldn’t hurt me more, this one made the killing blow, for every letter spelled out a vicious lie.
“The viscount decided to save his reputation instead,” I say, anger heating my core. “He spread word that I had tempted and seduced him. That our dalliance meant nothing and his heart belonged to the princess. He married her at the end of the month and his sins were quickly forgotten. Mine, however, lasted long after. My reputation was ruined, my family scorned, and suitors stopped courting my little sister. Friends verbally attacked me, publicly humiliating me one day when I was walking through town.” I seize up for a moment, remembering the way the girls circled me, shouting insults that anyone passing by could hear. There was no fight in me then, just frozen terror. The eyes of those girls are the ones I see when I’m dragged back to my memories. Their voices are the ones that resound in my head.
Breathing deep, I focus all my awareness on Elliot’s hand, letting the past disappear into the recesses of my mind. “That’s why we moved here as soon as Father got the chance.”
Elliot is quiet for a few tense moments. “I’m glad you were able to get away from that.”
“But I didn’t, did I?” Tears well in my eyes at the words. “Imogen knows. Her mother knows. My father knows. Nina is kind about it, but everyone else makes sure to remind me of my follies time and time again.”
He clenches his jaw and I wonder if he’s fighting the urge to do the same, to tell me I’ve brought ruination upon myself. That I should have known better than to lift my skirts. Just like Marnie said. Just like Father said. Just like all my so-called friends said. “How badly do you wish to scold me?”
His grip grows firmer, his shoulders rigid. “Scold you?” He retracts his hand and turns away from me, running his fingers through his hair with a growl. There he stands for a few silent moments, hands on his hips. When he whirls back to face me, his eyes are wide, cheeks blazing crimson. “Scold you? Why the freezing hell would I scold you? I’m…furious at those…those stupid humans. You’re a woman in your own right. No one else has any say in judging you, least of all what you do with your passions or your body.”
I’m taken aback. No one has responded to my story this way, no matter how much I cried genuine tears or expressed the depth of my heartache. Not even Nina reacted like this. She showed pity, yes, but not anger on my behalf.
As my eyes lock on his, taking in all their fury and indignation, I feel seen in a way I never have before. “You really believe that?”
“Of course I do.” He pulls his gaze from mine and begins pacing back and forth, his gait uneven from his frantic movements. “Humans and their pathetic ways, always trying to lord over everyone else’s private business with inane rules of propriety. It’s mating, for ice’s sake. Mating! That involves two. Well, several, for some fae, but it certainly doesn’t involve an entire town nor require anyone else’s permission or approval. I’ll never understand your kind.”
With every word, the warmth of having been seen melts away. Not that his rant invalidates his irritation; I just now realize it isn’t personal. He may be