Chapter 80: Chapter 80

LENORE

Killian was not happy about this. He understood that it had to happen, but he still wasn’t happy about it.

A knock came on the closet door and I glanced at it before calling out, “Come in.”

Killian stepped inside, his expression tight, but the moment I saw him, my mind betrayed me. All I could think about was earlier—when he'd stripped out of his briefs right in front of me…

He was glorious. And huge. And curved.

Heat rushed to my face, awareness pooling low in my stomach as the memory of his size refused to leave my mind. Pull yourself together, Lenore! Goodness! My face burned hotter and when he raised his brows at me, I quickly returned my attention to the vanity’s mirror before he suddenly developed the ability to read minds. Then I busied myself by assessing the elaborate pineapple updo the maid standing behind me had put my hair in for the banquet.

…How is it going to fit though?

I instinctively pressed my thighs together, and steam might as well have been rising from my head.

“Leave,” he said and the maid immediately bowed before disappearing like she’d been waiting for permission to flee. I didn’t turn around until Killian’s reflection appeared behind me in the mirror, and I gave him a small smile while his gaze dropped to the heels next to me which I was yet to put on.

Then he lowered himself to the ground, picking up one of the heels and holding it out for me to slip my foot into. He still had a grim expression on his face and I sighed before shifting on the upholstered stool to face him.

“It’s going to be alright, Killian.” I hope. “I won’t leave your side. And if you have to step away, I’ll stay with Calley and Cameron.”

Apparently, Cameron wasn’t the only one invited to the banquet tonight—Killian and I had also been invited and that was the message Cederic had come to deliver earlier.

Killian didn't want me anywhere near his father ever again—he’d been enraged at the mere thought—and I had no desire to go either, but we didn’t have a choice. Cederic’s message had made it clear attendance wasn't optional, so while I was terrified of being in the same room as the King again, I couldn't let Killian risk punishment for disrespecting him. And even if we hadn't been invited, there was no way I’d leave Cameron alone among pack representatives who hated our father, or near a King who wanted to use him as a power booster for the second prince.

Killian just hmmed and my shoulders sagged before I slipped my foot into the heel.

“We’re not going to stay for the entire banquet,” I added while he laced the heel.

Fabien had said so earlier—that we just needed to show our faces, hear whatever the King wanted to announce, and get the hell out of there. He’d also said it would be better for the King to realize his mind control had broken by seeing me standing beside Killian. Because sooner or later, the King would find out.

Everyone had agreed with that—Killian too, even though he didn’t say so, but I knew he would have preferred to hide me from his father, maybe even from the world, for as long as he could. He would have preferred to let his father believe I was dead for as long as possible to keep me safe.

He simply hmmed again and I tipped my head to the side before gently nudging his shoulder with my free foot. That made him look up, but when he still didn't say anything, I decided to give him something else to focus on.

“Will you give me a tour of the palace after we leave the hall?”

His forehead creased and he shook his head. “In the morning. There’ll be a lot of people moving around tonight.”

“Okay,” I said, smiling, and his thumb brushed over my ankle as he stared at me like I was everything.

“You look beautiful.”

My face grew warm, my smile widening. I was wearing a black gown that hugged my figure before falling into a soft, flowing skirt that brushed the floor. The plunging neckline was framed by delicate embroidery that traced the edges of the fabric, and tiny crystals were scattered across the bodice like drops of starlight.

“Thank you,” I said, reaching out to brush his hair back. “You look pretty beautiful yourself.”

He was wearing a black suit tailored perfectly to his broad frame, and silver accents traced the edges of his jacket. He looked every bit like the prince he was—powerful, untouchable, and far too handsome.

“You owe me a file,” I added and he raised his brows.

“What?”

“A file on you. With your high school grades and your diner order and whatever else Fabien can put together on you.”

Realization dawned on his face and the corner of his mouth twitched, making warmth flutter in my chest. “I told you I didn’t go to a traditional high school,” he muttered.

“Then I want to know what Madam…” I trailed off, trying to think of a suitable vampire-sounding tutor name. “...Mirabelle thought of you.”

His smile widened a fraction. “Her name was Mrs Oxborn,” he answered and it took me a moment to remember that was Fabien’s and Calley’s last name.

Their mother was his tutor?

“That’s not fair. She’s going to lie for you.”

“Hey.” There was mock offense on his face. “I was the smarter of the two kids she taught.”

I tilted my head. “Who was the second?”

“Fabien.”

“Ah…” I averted my gaze. I didn’t know Fabien that well, but he seemed more rational than Killian sometimes, so—

“What’s that look for?” he burst out and I moved to turn my head all the way around. “No, no, eyes back here. What was that?”

He grabbed my arm, yanking me toward him, and I couldn’t stop laughter from bubbling out of me. When I righted myself on the stool, returning my attention to his face, he was beaming at me. There’s the smile I want to see.

“If I lose sight of you for more than five seconds,” he said, “I’m setting that hall on fire.”

I shook my head, still smiling. “Please give my brother a warning before you do that.”

“Eh, I’ll try,” he replied, far too casually, and I smacked his arm, drawing a small laugh from him. Then I cupped his face and pulled him closer, capturing his lips with mine.

He made a low sound against my lips before his hand moved to the back of my neck, angling my head to deepen the kiss, while the other grabbed my thigh. His tongue stroked mine, drinking me in as if he was starving for me, and I tangled my fingers into his soft hair, pulling him as close as the space between us would allow.

“I adore you,” I said when we finally parted, and he grinned, his eyes ablaze with an intensity that made my knees weak. I gave him another quick kiss before he grabbed the other heel and as he helped me put it on, the fact that the banquet was being held because of the upcoming tournament came back to mind. “Oh, the invitations—”

“Are dealt with… hopefully.”

My brows furrowed at that and he heaved a sigh.

“The spell on your invitation is broken,” he said and the relief that flooded me was immeasurable, “but I don’t know if the ones on the other invitations are broken too. Aurel is going to get some of them, so I can check.”

“If they are…” Excitement rushed through me. “Can we start letting people know tonight?”

“Absolutely not,” he answered and I paused, the excitement draining from me. “It’ll definitely get back to my father if we do and then he’ll find some other way to keep them here.”

“Oh… When can we let them know then?”

“Give me some time to come up with something, my sweet. But you should know not all of them will believe me when I tell them the tournament is a lie,” he said and I swallowed.

He was right. They definitely wouldn’t believe me if I was the one telling them either.

Ugh. “Let’s just do what we can.” Though I wanted to get other representatives out, Cameron was still my priority, so if anyone wanted to stay and participate in the tournament… I don’t know.

“Fabien told me he saw Sennet cornering you,” he said, snapping me out of my thoughts, and I frowned as I remembered my encounter with him.

“I think he wants us to be… close?” My frown deepened, and Killian’s did too. His hand was still around my leg even though he’d finished with the strap of my heel, and his grip tightened slightly. “He heard me call you Killian while I was talking to my sister, so he asked me to call him by his name too. Oh—Fabien said I should mention he approached me before.”

“I was there the first time,” he said and my eyes widened slightly. “I burned his face.”

I blinked, then remembered the prince’s face sizzling while he was talking to me and I gasped—not because of what Killian had done, but because I hadn’t even known he’d been watching us. I couldn’t believe I thought he and the second prince were close back then.

“I’m back, asshole!” came Aurel’s voice from the bedroom, making me glance toward the closet door. When I looked back at Killian, he had an exasperated look on his face.

“He’s with the invitations,” he sighed, getting to his feet. “I’ll be back in a couple of minutes, my love.”

Warmth unfurled through me as he headed for the door. My love… It had surprised me the first time he said it—when Cederic came earlier—and now he said it again as if it came naturally to him. I didn’t even think he knew he was saying it.

Then I grabbed my phone from the vanity’s table and the warmth turned to nerves when I saw the time was five-fifty PM. The banquet would start by six and though Killian didn’t want to go early, the fact that we would be leaving for it soon was unavoidable.

I couldn’t wait to get it over with.

“Okay,” I muttered, taking a deep breath, before getting to my feet and grabbing my clutch purse from the closet island. After taking a look at my dress in the full-length mirror, I headed into the bedroom, and just as I figured Killian and Aurel were in the study since they weren’t here, someone knocked.

“It’s Cameron.”

“Come in,” I called and the door opened to reveal my brother in a three-piece suit. Grinning, I tipped my head to the side. “Well, you look dashing.”

“What can I say? I have an eye for these things,” he replied and I snorted before he gave me a small smile. “...Are you okay?”

I let out a harsh breath and walked over to the couch by the bed, dropping onto it and patting the seat beside me. “Just a bit nervous. I’ll be fine when it’s over,” I answered while he made his way over and sat next to me.

He hadn’t told the people back home what the King had done to me because he honestly didn’t know how, and I was grateful for that. Our siblings and Aimee would have been terrified, and they didn’t deserve to carry that fear when my father—the reason I was here—would hardly give a fuck. I was going to eventually tell them about it, but it wouldn’t be anytime soon.

Him—my father—coming to the city to try to get me out instead of Cameron still confused the hell out of me, and I hated knowing that if I called him right now to ask why, the conversation wouldn’t go anywhere. There was also the fact that if we actually had a relationship, everyone would have figured out pretty quickly that the King had done something to me—he wouldn’t even have walked out of the audience room with me still in there.

“So…” Cameron started, and I turned to him, raising my brows. He set his mouth in a hard line and stared at me for a couple of seconds before saying, “The prince told me he’s your mate.”

“Oh,” I muttered, smiling. “He is.”

“He also told me how you guys met.”

My smile vanished instantly. “Oh! Uh…” I grimaced while Cameron gave me a blank stare. When did he even tell him that? Was it while I was unconscious? “Sorry... I was afraid you'd hate him.”

"It's not like I was his biggest fan to begin with, Lenore."

I shifted uncomfortably. “I didn’t want to make it worse.”

A muscle in his jaw twitched and he looked away from me. “Are you going to stay here after the tournament deal is settled? With him?” he asked and I furrowed my brows slightly.

“What do you mean?” It was a simple question, but it felt like he was asking whether I was really sure about choosing Killian.

“He’s the vampire prince, Lenore,” he said, his expression hardening as he faced me once more. “And look, I know… I know you care about him, but if you stay with him…” His shoulders sagged. “You’re always going to be in danger.”

I swallowed. I knew being with Killian would put the King’s target on me—especially after we ruined his plan to make Sennet stronger through the sham tournament. But I wouldn’t let some selfish man’s actions dictate my relationship with Killian.

“Killian and I could leave the city after dealing with the tournament,” I answered. It wasn’t a perfect answer—it wasn’t even a good one—because the King would definitely come after us, but we’d deal with that when the time came.

“...Do you think the people who want him dead are only in the city?” Cameron asked, and my stomach dropped.

Shit.

“He has several enemies, Lenore. Not just vampires, but werewolves and witches too,” he answered, sending a knot of discomfort tightening in my chest. “Some of them have already tried to go after him and have failed. What do you think they’ll do when you appear at his side?”

I… Well…

When I didn’t answer, he heaved a sigh and continued, “And what do you plan to do about his immortality?”

“...I don’t know,” I muttered, fiddling with my fingers.

Immortality was a double-edged sword—it was a gift because it freed you from death and sickness, but it was also a curse because you would have to watch every person you loved die. If I chose to be turned, I’d watch my family die. If I chose not to be turned, Killian would have to watch me grow old and die.

Either choice would break me.

Cameron took my hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Like I said, I know you care about him, but I really need you to think about it. You’re my little sister, Lenore… I don’t want you spending the rest of your life terrified about who’s going to come after you next…” He held my gaze, and the knot in my chest tightened further. “And I sure as hell don’t want you getting caught in the crossfire that comes with his life.”