The Summer King Bundle 3 Stories - Jennifer L. Armentrout Page 0,24

even further as he dipped his chin. I drew in a sharp breath. He was closer now and his scent…. Goodness, it reminded me of lazy summer afternoons. Being so close to him again was like standing next to a heater.

Tanner cleared his throat. “My liege, Ms. Jussier is here on behalf of the Order. She will be helping us with the missing younglings.”

“Is that so?” he replied wryly.

My eyes narrowed. “Yes, that is so. Tanner contacted the Order and I was sent to handle the meeting and now since it’s over, I’ll be on my way.” I turned from the Prince to Faye, who was currently staring at me like I’d lost my mind. “I’ll be in touch, Faye.”

I didn’t make it very far.

Actually, I was only able to turn halfway by the time I felt the Prince’s warm fingers curled around my left wrist. Like before, the contact of his skin against mine was a jolt to the system. It was almost like he was charged with electricity, but I didn’t think that was possible.

“Do you understand how serious it is that these younglings are missing?” he asked, speaking low enough that I didn’t think anyone else could hear him.

“Yes.” My gaze skittered over his shoulder. We had an audience, a rather large, curious audience. Unnerved, I tried to pull my hand free and failed. “Of course I know it’s important.”

“But do you care?” Those odd, striking eyes latched onto mine.

A shiver danced over my shoulders. “Yes, I care.” Offended that he would even ask that question, I tugged on my arm again, getting nowhere. “Can you let go of me?”

“Why would you care when the entirety of the Order does not?” He didn’t let go.

“How do you know they don’t?” I fired back even though he was mostly right.

“The fact that you’d have to ask that question makes me doubt your intelligence,” he said. “Then again, I already have good enough reasons to doubt that.”

My mouth dropped open. Literally. “Did you just say that to me?”

“I am confident that I spoke in your native language and quite clearly.”

Anger flashed through my system. “You don’t even know me.”

“Oh, I know you.” His voice dropped even further, eliciting an unwanted, confusing as hell shiver from me. “I know exactly what and who you are.”

My fingers curled into a fist. “I don’t even know what you’re suggesting.”

“You know just as well as I do that the Order doesn’t give a damn what may or may not have happened to a few Summer fae.” As he spoke, the space between us seemed to have evaporated. “And you stand before me, claiming that you do while you won’t even admit that the people you work for couldn’t care less.”

I opened my mouth and then closed it. Damn, he had a point. A good point, but that didn’t mean I was apathetic. “I do care. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have taken this file. I wouldn’t have told Tanner and Faye that I would see what I could find out. If you actually did know who and what I am, whatever the hell that means, you’d know that I wouldn’t lie.”

Faye’s audible sharp inhale warned me that my voice had risen even though the Prince’s hadn’t, and at least she could hear me.

I didn’t care. Frustration and irritation had long since replaced the healthy sense of fear. “And seriously, dude, can you let go of my arm?”

The Prince ignored my request yet again. “You are nothing but lies and façades.”

My entire body jerked at that comment, striking too close to home for comfort. “Let go of me.”

He held my gaze as he slowly lifted one finger after another, releasing my wrist. That bitter knot was back in my throat. The Prince had let go and his heavy lashes lowered, shielding his powerful gaze, but I swore I could still feel it. “My apologies,” he murmured. “That was uncalled for.”

A feather could’ve knocked me over right then. He was apologizing? The Prince? “Yeah, it was.” I swallowed hard, taking a step back from him.

“Even if it is true,” he added.

“Wow. Way to ruin an apology,” I muttered. “Not that you probably even know why you just apologized.”

“I do. It hurt you. Those words.”

“What? You can smell that, too?”

Those heavy lashes lifted, and the intensity of his gaze pierced me. Suddenly I thought back to the day I woke up in the hospital, to those eyes. “I can sense many things.”

Oh.

Oooh.

I had the distinct impression