The Shadow Queen (Ravenspire, #1)(20)
“You dare speak to him this way?” The girl with the short dark hair and sharp green eyes stepped toward Lorelai, but the huge, dark-skinned Eldrian boy put a hand on her shoulder to hold her back.
Kol met her gaze, and grief lurked in his. “My father died in the ogre war. My older brother and my mother also.” His gaze drifted from hers as he opened his cloak to reveal the Eldrian royal seal—a bronze dragon with emeralds for eyes and wings studded with rubies—pinned to the inside just above his heart. “I’m the king of Eldr now.”
She believed him. “I’m sorry for your loss.” And she was. But more than that, she needed to understand why the king of Eldr was in Tranke and whether that posed a danger to her people or to Leo, Gabril, and herself.
She waited until he looked at her again before saying, “What are you doing traveling through Ravenspire with such a small escort? And why would you bother stopping at a village like this when Nordenberg—which is a far wealthier town—is just north of here and its people are used to nobility—”
Leo nudged her with his elbow and whispered “manners” before giving Kol a huge smile. “Forgive us, my lord, for you have us at a disadvantage. My sister is frankly deplorable at conducting courtly conversation. The only thing worse than her ability to make appropriate small talk with royalty is her attempt to let a man lead her on the dance floor. Your timely interruption has saved me from the chore of attending dance lessons with her. My feet thank you.”
Stepping back from the Eldrians, Lorelai snatched Leo’s shirt and pulled him close so she could whisper, “We aren’t royalty here. We’re supposed to pass as peasants. That means—”
“We aren’t peasants. We’re the Heirs—”
“Not to him. We need to send them on their way and go meet up with Gabril and Sasha to make sure everyone in the village is all right.”
“This is getting weird,” the female Eldrian called out.
Leo flashed her a smile. “It’s our first time meeting royalty in the woods. We really don’t have a precedent to call upon.” Turning to Lorelai, he whispered, “One day Irina won’t be on the throne. You will, with me as your charming and loveable assistant. And when that day comes, you’ll need a working relationship with the king of Eldr. It might be best if he didn’t remember you as the girl who saved his life and was then unspeakably impolite.”
He was right. Plus, she wanted to know why the new king of Eldr was in Ravenspire instead of in his own country where he belonged, and she wasn’t going to get that information without trying to use a little bit of Leo’s charm. Mustering a smile, she let go of her brother’s shirt and stepped toward Kol again. Behind her, Leo whispered “courtly conversation” as she reached one gloved hand toward the king as if offering him a dance.
Kol took her hand in a gentle grip. She looked up and found his amber eyes fixed on hers, while the wind teased his red-brown hair and the sun glowed against his golden skin. The corner of his mouth quirked in a half smile, and heaven help her, every lesson she’d ever learned on proper etiquette for Eldrian royalty flew right out of her brain.
Leo made a sound behind her, and Lorelai realized she’d been stared into Kol’s eyes, her hand resting in his palm, for who knew how long while the king’s escorts frowned at her, waiting for her to break the silence.
She should bow—no curtsy. She was a princess. Princesses curtsied. She should curtsy and say . . . something.
The king’s half smile grew, and he opened his mouth as if to speak. Hastily, Lorelai swept into an elegant curtsy—no small feat considering her current attire—and said the first thing that popped into her head.
“You look most fetching today, my lord.”
The large Eldrian boy snorted. Kol’s eyes widened, and his smile froze. And Leo—curse his miserable hide—made the kind of strangled choking noise that meant he was trying desperately not to laugh.
“Oh no.” Lorelai pulled her hand from Kol’s, her skin prickling with heat from absolute humiliation. Maybe if she prayed hard enough, the forest floor would open up and swallow her. If there was any justice in the world, it would swallow Leo too.
“I . . . thank you?” Kol glanced at his escorts, but they were both smirking at him.
“This is your fault.” Lorelai glared at Leo, who stopped trying to swallow his laughter and sagged against the closest tree trunk so he could truly enjoy her embarrassment. “You and your stupid courtly conversation jokes, and now look what happened.”
“I myself have always found Kol quite fetching.” The Eldrian boy stepped forward and held out a hand twice the size of Lorelai’s. She gingerly placed her hand in his. “I’m Trugg and that beautiful but surly Eldrian is Jyn. We’re both grateful for your help.” His brows rose. “You can call me fetching as well, and then allow me to demonstrate my gratitude by—”
“That’s enough, Trugg,” Kol said. Trugg grinned at Lorelai, his teeth a slash of white against his dark skin.
“Why is the king of Eldr traveling through this part of Ravenspire?” Lorelai asked because even though she’d mangled her attempt at making a good impression as a princess—not that Kol even knew she was a princess—she was determined to get the information that mattered.
“I’m on my way to see your queen. We stopped hoping to find a decent meal and a bed in one of the mountain villages—a mistake I won’t make twice.”