Capture the Crown (Gargoyle Queen #1) -Jennifer Estep Page 0,86
stepped in front of me, cutting off my view of Reiko and creating a long shadow that engulfed me. I looked up. A man was standing on the opposite side of the table. He was tall and muscled, with tan skin, dark amethyst eyes, and wavy hair that gleamed like liquid gold. No hint of stubble dared to darken his sharp, pointed chin, and he had the same angular nose and cheekbones as Maeven.
A short, formal midnight-purple jacket draped perfectly off his broad shoulders. Gold buttons marched down the front of the jacket, while the Morricone crest done in gold thread stretched all the way across his chest. Bold of him to wear such a large crest. That sort of thing was usually reserved for the ruling royal, especially at a formal dinner.
Then again, I doubted that Milo Maximus Moreland Morricone cared much for the niceties of protocol.
I had seen his likeness more than once, so I knew exactly who he was. Even worse, the crown prince’s power blasted over me, and my fingertips started violently tingling again. He seemed to be just as strong in his lightning magic as Maeven was in hers, although her plethora of amethyst jewelry gave her a clear edge. Still, Milo was easily one of the most powerful magiers I had ever encountered.
Milo didn’t bother greeting the queen or his siblings. Instead, his cold gaze flicked over me, the new person at the table. He must have thought I was one of Delmira’s friends because he turned away, dismissing me as unimportant. He gestured with his hand, and a woman stepped into view.
She was stunningly beautiful, with pale gray eyes and rosy skin. Her red velvet gown brought out the matching highlights in her long auburn hair, and a gorgeous gold-and-ruby choker ringed her neck. That must be Corvina Dumond, Milo’s fiancée.
My fingertips tingled yet again, and they also grew cold and wet, as though I had dipped them in a bucket of ice water. Corvina was rumored to be a powerful weather magier, as were most of the Dumonds.
“Sorry we’re late,” Milo said, although there was no true apology in his deep voice.
“Oh, yes, Mother Maeven. Please forgive us,” Corvina chimed in.
Mother Maeven? Blech. Corvina was laying it on a bit thick, but I didn’t envy her position. Having Maeven as a mother-in-law was a terrifying prospect. I would have been bowing and scraping and doing everything I could to earn her favor, lest she decide to kill me and marry her son to someone else.
The queen stared at the younger, twenty-something woman, and Corvina’s smile quickly cracked and slipped off her face. No doubt many a noble had wilted under that icy, inscrutable glare.
“I do not know how things are done in other families,” Maeven said, her voice deceptively light and pleasant. “But in my family, one is not late for a formal engagement.”
Milo rolled his eyes, but Maeven ignored her son and kept staring at Corvina, as though she blamed solely the younger woman for the couple’s tardiness.
Corvina dropped into a deep curtsy. “My apologies, Mother Maeven. We were busy with the wedding planning.”
“I am your queen, not your mother,” Maeven said in that same deceptively pleasant voice. “Surely simple familial lineage is not beyond your grasp.”
Several amused chuckles rang out. Courtiers enjoyed few things more than seeing someone cut down with cruel words.
Corvina snapped upright. An angry flush stained her cheeks, and she opened her mouth, but the queen kept giving her that same icy stare, and Corvina had the good sense to pinch her lips together and bite back whatever insult she’d been about to hurl at Maeven.
“Come,” Milo said, breaking the tense silence. “Let us sit.”
He pulled out the chair across from mine, and Corvina dropped down into it. She made a big show of arranging her skirt, but rage glittered in her eyes, making them gleam like gray stars.
Arrogant old bitch. I didn’t even have to reach out with my magic. Corvina’s vicious thought pounded into my mind with the same red-hot rage that was hammering in her heart.
Calm, calm, calm, Corvina muttered in her mind. Must stay calm.
Then another, softer thought whispered in my mind. This farce will be over soon enough.
Now that was interesting. Corvina could be thinking about the dinner, but her words sounded snide and sinister, as if she was talking about something much more important than the meal. Could Corvina be plotting against Maeven?