Something loudthumpsat my back. Kyff’s eyes widen. Before I can turn to see who has arrived, a hand wraps around my throat.
Kyff’s warning shout echoes through my skull. I roll, using my attacker’s own weight to flip him over my head, onto his back.
A feral growl erupts as my brother Aeron scrambles to his feet and drops down into a fighting stance. His black hair has been trimmed since the wedding, and he looks fitter, broader across the chest. Good for him. So many men let their stomachs go round when they find a wife.
I mirror his position, unable to hide my smirk. “I take it you found my gift?”
Aeron lunges like a snarling beast. I sidestep and stick out my foot at the last second, sending him headfirst onto the marble. Gods, I love beating him.
“Remember what I said about letting your emotions get the better of you?” I throw over my shoulder toward Kyff. Aeron always was the hot-headed one, and I used it to my advantage every time we sparred.
Aeron’s fist slams into my gut, putting an end to my gloating. “My bed is fucking ruined!”
Oh please, it’s not ruined. All I did was leave a few leaves of Toxicodendron under his sheets. He’ll be itching himself, bathing in oats, and walking around covered in pink healing ointment for days.
Aeron tackles me to the ground. His fist smashes my jaw.Fuck, that hurts.“You’ll be drinking dinner tonight, little brother.”
I spit blood onto the ground. It feels like I’ve been kicked by a fucking Pegasus. “Worth it.”
Aeron rolls off me and flops onto the marble, a reluctant grin tugging his lips as he stares up at the cerulean sky. “Gods, I’ve missed all of you.” He gives Kyff a brotherly knock on the knee, and the little boy beams. “Stratiss is so fucking dull.”
At the mention of his new kingdom, my frustration at this whole situation returns tenfold. How easy it is to fall back into routine and forget his betrayal. I catch the end of my hand straps and tug, unraveling the black material. “Then maybe you shouldn’t have gotten married.”
Aeron’s smile falters.
He promised we’d refuse our marriages together. He promised, and he’d failed me. I toss the wrap onto the ground between us and unravel the second one. Together, we could’vetalked sense into Boris. Alone, I have no chance. Aeron let me down, and now I’m in a bigger mess than ever.
I toss my second wrap next to the first and have to help Kyff find the ends of his so he can do the same. A shadow stretches over us, stealing my sunlight. I blink against the brightness until Princess Leeri’s face slowly comes into view. Rhainn launches to his feet, his book falling away, tumbling onto the marble.
“You must be Prince Aeron.” Leeri holds out a hand to my older brother. “I’m Princess Leeri. Senan’s betrothed.”
Aeron stands and takes her proffered hand. “It’s a pleasure, princess.” He gives me a wide-eyed, startled look. Fucking brilliant. Yet another brother smitten with the woman.
Leeri turns to me and props her hands on her slim hips, her friendly smile slipping into something harsher. “If you boys are done playing, I would like to borrow my fiancé.”
“For what?” Anything she has to discuss can be said in front of my brothers.
She gestures to the guards who’ve stopped to gawk at her—and there are quite a few. Why can’t she fall in love with one of them instead? Run off, get married, and leave me the hell alone.
“Come with me, and I’ll tell you.”
I roll to my feet and follow her like a good little dog. It’s hard not to notice the way her eyes flick down my bare torso or the way her cheeks flush as she tucks a strand of glossy hair behind her ear. “Do you… um… Do you train often?” she asks, her skirts swaying with each step toward the castle doors.
“Often enough.” Training keeps the darkness at bay and gives me a foe I can actually defeat. Plus, it gets Boris off my back about “hiding” in my room.
She stops suddenly, right in the middle of the balcony. “I’m sorry. I just…” She reaches a tentative hand toward me, tracing the line of my bicep to my elbow.
Bile inches up my throat as she draws her fingertip along the vines creeping up my shoulder interlaced with silver-white blooms. As much as I don’t want her to touch me, embarrassing her in front of so many people isn’t an option. “These are stunning,” she says, her eyes flicking up to meet mine. “Why moonflowers?”
Because they’re my girl’s favorite.“No reason.”
“You must like them to have them inked on your skin.”
“They’re the same as any other flower.”
She touches the bars on the birdcage that stretches from my ribs to my spine. “And this?”
“It’s a cage.” Clearly.