“You are looking… tired, my dears,” Queen Marguerite crooned after a moment. “Not sleeping well?”
Sebastian tightened his grip on my hand. “You know as well as I do why we didn’t sleep well, Mother.”
The queen huffed a laugh. “Now, now, Sebastian. Why so tetchy?”
A long moment passed before the vampire prince grumbled, “Apologies, Mother. I’m just… hungry.”
She raised a manicured brow. “Is that so?” Tilting her head, she stared at me. “Your human looks well enough to provide for you. Perhaps you should rectify the situation. After all, it wouldn’t do for my son to be out of sorts for his own ball.”
The fingers wrapped around mine tightened to the point of pain, and I barely held in a gasp.
“Is that an order, Mother?” Sebastian ground out through clenched teeth.
She eyed him carefully, drawing her bottom lip through her fangs. “At this time, consider it a… recommendation.”
Sebastian’s grip on my fingers loosened slightly. “I will take it under advisement, Your Majesty.”
The queen narrowed her eyes. “I won’t hesitate to insist on this, my son, if I feel you need it. You must be on your best behavior. General Triboulet is here to speak with you about the… situation in the south.”
I gulped, wishing I was anywhere but here. If his mother commanded it, would Sebastian break his promise and bite me? I didn’t want to find out.
“I’ll find Triboulet and deal with him, Mother,” Sebastian said, his voice as cool as hers. “Is that all?”
The queen’s dark eyes swept over us, and an entire minute passed as she studied us. My heart pounded in my chest and I fought the urge to shift beneath her sharp gaze. Eventually, she sighed, waving a hand in the air. “It is.”
Sebastian’s hand tightened around mine once more. He did not speak, practically running as he moved me away from the queen. My slippers slapped on the cold stone floor as I hurried to follow him toward the long tables laden with refreshments.
I thought we were going to stop to grab something to eat, but instead, Sebastian pulled me past the tables into a shadowy alcove.
Here, the music was quieter, and the air was lighter. The queen’s gaze was off me, and with the crowd between us and her, I felt like I could breathe again.
Letting go of my hand, Sebastian turned and punched the wall. I stared at his heaving back.
The vampire prince muttered something inaudible under his breath, his body so rigid that his shoulders appeared strained. Even though his words were too low for me to hear, his posture spoke volumes.
I remembered what he said earlier.
I haven’t had choices in centuries.
Reaching out, I placed a tentative hand on his shoulder blades, right above where those enormous wings erupted from his back. They twitched, and he sucked in a deep breath, but he did not turn around.
“Sebastian?” I asked quietly.
The vampire prince inhaled. “Yes, Luna?”
His words were hoarse and sounded strangled as he pressed his forehead against the stone wall.
I bit my lip, but I kept my hand on his back. “Was she right? Are you… hungry?”
A shudder ran through him. “Yes,” he admitted hoarsely.
The word hung in the air between us, and I sucked in a breath. My heart raced with the implications of what he was saying as my eyes dropped to the Binding Mark on my wrist. That thin red rope seemed to be taunting me.
He was hungry, and I was his Tethered partner. How long could he go without eating? What did that mean for me? He promised he wouldn’t bite me without my permission, but that was before we knew about the Tether. Were things different now?
Before I had time to process all the questions, however, heavy footsteps sounded from nearby.
“Have you seen the prince?” A low, deep male voice boomed over the faint trickles of music.