Crown of Moonlight (Court of Midnight and Deception #2) - K.M. Shea Page 0,86

my chair, feeling uneasy with this new level of sharing we’d achieved. “None taken?”

“Bottoming out? Hah!” Birch snorted with laughter. “The only reason we aren’t all scared stiff of Leila is because she’s still losing land like a leaky pot.”

“Scared of me? What do you all have to be scared of?” I asked.

“They’re talking about the way you beat the crap out of everyone in the races—even Birch’s cheating rider,” Solis said with relish. “And you got your Court under your thumb in a season and married the Wraith—that was enough to make Fell scared of you, even before he nearly wet himself when you trotted out the Night Realm at the hunt.”

“I am not fully scared of her,” Fell announced. “Rime is still more powerful than she is! I’m just suspicious. I mean, come on! She’s a half fae who came out of nowhere! Even if she is Linus’s kid, who could do everything she’s pulled off and survive? She must have a motivation of her own—she’s going to try to take us all out!”

“Yeah.” Birch scowled in my direction. “And she’s trending on social media. I don’t even know what that is, but it has to be some kind of human wizardry!”

Fell and Birch are just volunteering these suspicions? This is next level weird.

Concerned that either I was losing my mind or everyone else was, I looked to the Paragon.

He was chilling, holding his cup of tea—which I wasn’t entirely sure he’d ever sipped. He smiled when he met my gaze. “Try some treats, Leila,” he encouraged. “And allow me to compliment you on your trending status! Your popularity with the local humans has put the Curia Cloisters in quite the kerfuffle!”

“Thanks.” I reluctantly put an éclair on my plate, but I wiped my fingers off and didn’t even try to eat it.

“I knew you’d be a force to fear once your engagement was announced and you survived the wedding,” Rime announced. “That means Rigel approves of you. And I don’t know that he’s ever acted on anyone else’s behalf before—not even Lord Dion.”

“I barely have any power in my Court.” Verdant dabbed at her dewy eyes. “It’s only because the spring stags favor me. My nobles think it’s my fault the Autumn Court bullies us—but none of them helped me when I tried to fight against the horrible hunt!”

“It’s because magic is dying,” Rime said. “The faster magic dies off, the faster our realms shrink. In a decade or two, even my siblings and I won’t be able to strengthen our wards.”

“Yeah, but do you have to hide your own child?” Birch asked. “I get to see my daughter once a month because I can’t let my own Court know she exists—someone would have killed her by now.”

“You have a kid?” I shrieked. “And why are you telling us this?”

“Leila, are you displeased with my hosting skills?” the Paragon asked in a wheedling voice. “Eat—please!”

I swung to the Paragon. “Why are you not shocked by this? Who cares about food at a time like this—” I stopped mid-tirade and stared at the Paragon.

Everyone started talking like this once they started eating and drinking, and the Paragon’s been an excellent host, making sure everyone has plenty of tea and that he provided their favorite treats…

“You bespelled the tea—and the food!” I shouted.

The Paragon innocently fluttered his eyelashes at me—and, I gotta say, it was creepy beyond words to have a dude who looked like he was in his eighties fluttering his eyelashes at me. “How could you accuse me of something like that?” he asked.

Next to me, Solis snored.

King Fell grabbed his russet hair and groaned. “If I trip up even once, my Court will eat me alive. They follow me only because they know the other monarchs are scared of me.”

I pointed to Fell. “That. That is how I can accuse you of this. What’s in the food—and the tea?”

“Nothing harmful,” the Paragon innocently said. “It’s only one of my stress relief tea mixes. I call it ‘Get it Off Your Chest.’ It’s a very refreshing and therapeutic mixture. Aphrodite must have chosen it because she felt everyone could use the stress relief.”

“Solis is the only one who looks remotely less stressed,” I sourly said.

“That’s because he’s a sleepy drunk,” the Paragon said. “Watch out for Verdant—she’s a sloppy drunk. Cries the whole time.”

“Drunk?”

The Paragon winced. “I wish I hadn’t said that.”

“You got them drunk!”

“Not technically,” he said. “I didn’t add any alcohol. It’s just the spell