Royal Ruse - Emma Lea Page 0,86

to stop talking now, Clarissa,” I said. “You are making a fool of yourself with the rubbish you are letting come out of your mouth. Frankie is amazing and you’re wrong, so very wrong about her. Everyone adores her, and she fits in here like she was born to it.”

Clarissa sneered but before she could say anything, the king stepped out onto the balcony flanked by two large bodyguards.

I bowed, as did Dorian, while Clarissa turned, wide-eyed, to look at him before fumbling into a curtsey.

“Your majesty,” I said, rising.

“Lord Lucas,” he replied with a nod at me and then one at Dorian. “Lord Dorian. I heard we had an unexpected visitor.”

I swallowed.

“Oh, your majesty,” Clarissa said with awe in her voice. “It’s so wonderful to meet you. I’m Clarissa Margate—”

“I know who you are,” Jamie said, smiling to soften his words, but his eyes were still hard. I didn’t know what was going on in his head, but I knew Danika would have a full dossier on Clarissa. “You wouldn’t have been allowed past the front gate if I didn’t know who you were,” he said, a warning and a welcome all at once. “Shall we go inside and meet everyone else?”

“Your majesty—” I began trying to find a way to get out of the not-quite direct order.

“I insist,” Jamie said, and I nodded, my heart clenching. This was the bit where Jamie found out I had been deceiving him the whole time and then he would throw me out if he didn’t imprison me for treason or something.

“Of course,” I agreed.

The queen looked at me with disappointment. The king’s gaze was unreadable. Nerves bubbled uncomfortably in my stomach and I felt the telltale signs of anxiety fizzing under my skin. My breath was short and my heart raced and I realized I hadn’t felt like this in weeks. I’d had the odd moment, but nothing like this. I hadn’t had one panic attack in the entire time I’d been in Kalopsia. I hadn’t had a single anxiety attack in the entire time I’d been with Frankie and yet, here I was, sweating proverbial bullets, and the reason? Clarissa.

We stood in what Frankie had dubbed the ‘throne’ room. Meredith and Jamie did indeed sit on throne-like chairs on a raised dais. It was the same room where we’d been formally introduced to them on our arrival and this was only the second time I’d been into it. Meredith and Jamie did not invoke the throne room very often, and that made this particular meeting more intimidating.

Just like the first time I’d stood in this spot, the other members of the court stood around and watched us carefully. I felt their censure. They all liked Frankie, even Elena who didn’t seem to like much of anything. I had a feeling they would not like Clarissa.

“Clarissa Margate,” Meredith said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. “What an…unexpected…pleasure.”

It didn’t sound like a pleasure, and Meredith had definitely emphasized the fact that Clarissa’s visit had been completely unexpected.

Clarissa at least had the grace to appear chagrined by her surprise visit.

“My security people don’t like unexpected,” Meredith went on, and I swallowed.

Was she still talking to Clarissa? Or did Meredith mean something else? Like maybe the unexpected lie that was being revealed by Clarissa’s arrival?

“Arrivals or departures,” Meredith finished, looking directly at me as if she was trying to communicate something telepathically.

Departures? What did she mean by that? Was she hinting that I would be making an unexpected departure?

“I apologize for my sudden visit,” Clarissa said, using the voice she always used when speaking with my mother. “But, as I’m sure you are well aware, when the heart is involved, it doesn’t always listen to reason.”

Dorian snorted and I would have too if I wasn’t too scared to move in case Danika sicced one of her guards on me.

Meredith quirked an eyebrow but said nothing.

Jamie sat there watching me and watching Clarissa, his face a mask. It was his king's face. I’d only seen it occasionally, and it had never been aimed at me. Usually he used it when speaking with a member of parliament, or someone who he didn’t particularly like but had to deal with for the sake of his fledgling country. It didn’t bode well that he was now looking at me like that.

“How long do you plan to stay?” Meredith asked when Jamie still hadn’t spoken.

Clarissa looked up at me and her face transformed into one I’d never seen before. If I