Night Fae (Dark Fae Kings #3) - Meg Xuemei X. Page 0,11
sit next to me?” Northton asked, jerking my attention away from the bar.
I blinked at him in confusion. Why did he want me to sit beside him?
“Lady Evelina will sit between the Summer King and me,” Rydstrom said in his velvety voice, “according to the seating arrangement that my Captain of the Guards sent you earlier.”
Brigantia snapped her head toward Rydstrom, displeased with his protectiveness of me, before glaring at me with all the venom she could manage.
“As you wish,” Northton said with an amiable smile. Then I realized that he had called me because he wanted me to focus on the here and now instead of getting distracted.
Everyone took their seat at the director’s instruction, and I perched on the chair that a mage pulled out for me between Rydstrom and Baron.
A stream of mages swiftly brought us drinks, each mage serving one of us.
A mug of Irish coffee waited in front of me. Baron had Assam tea, brewed strong with a lot of cream in it. The Summer King had developed a taste for potent black tea while he trained me in the underground facilities of Rydstrom’s club. Without comment, I watched him add five spoons of sugar into his mug before he allowed the serving mage to take away the silver tray.
Black coffee was parked before Rydstrom, and Northton had the same.
It appeared that the mages had discovered our tastes beforehand.
A tall glass of blood red wine was placed on the table in front of Brigantia. The Winter King was sipping jasmine green tea in a delicate Japanese teacup. He had never liked green tea before. His taste buds must have changed along with his sparkling personality since I saw him last time.
“So, this is the peace talk?” Brigantia mocked before Director Northton could speak. “Why is a lowly member of the Winter King’s harem allowed to sit at the table with the ultimate monarchs of Elfame?” She turned to Rowan with a scathing look. “You would allow this insult to go on, too, King Rowan?”
They both sat across from us while Northton took the seat at the head of the table. The seats were arranged to prevent a direct hit from the Dawn Queen to me. As soon as she attacked, Rydstrom would go on offense and Baron would shield me, as they’d mapped out.
“Lady Evelina isn’t one of my harem,” the Winter King said regretfully. He gestured at Rydstrom and Baron with hostility. “They took her before I could make that happen. They outmaneuvered me, but it isn’t over yet.”
“Then you deceived me while I was in your Winter castle, King Rowan,” Brigantia scolded. “I regarded you as my closest ally.”
“I’m your only ally, Queen Brigantia,” Rowan said icily. “As you can see from what’s happening here. You don’t want to push me to their side.”
He didn’t act very love-struck with her now. When he stared at her, there was no heat or any adoration for her in his cornflower-blue eyes. It was as if the Winter King had split personalities, and the one in front of us was his third persona.
“You had that wee thing in your castle, and you didn’t give her to me,” Brigantia hissed, unwilling to let go of her sourness. “You sent me one of your courtiers instead and told me that she was the impostor. How dare you lie to me? How could you trick me like that, Winter King?”
Rowan had used glamour to disguise one of his court ladies as me and given her to the Dawn Queen to torture. In the magical hologram the dark prince of Hell had shown me, I’d watched the queen drill iron nails into the Fae courtier and pin her to the wall like a helpless butterfly. The Winter King had played a part in that woman’s horrific ending because she betrayed both him and me. He was just as cruel as my evil sister.
The coldhearted bastard flicked his gaze toward me, and I glared back, showing my icy hatred and loathing for him. He had wanted my reaction to his presence, and now he had it. For a second, he flinched, and then his face hardened to icy steel. A trail of frost puffed out between his sculpted lips.
“Perhaps the girl was too good at duping me,” the Winter King said acidly. “She held her own and concealed her power from me. And then the treacherous Summer King and Night King interfered with my plan. They’re insufferable and unforgivable and shall