Chapter 15 #2
His linen pants were loose, but very thin.
One wrong gust of wind, and everyone in the room could see everything the man was packing. I quickly averted my gaze, not wanting to give him the attention he was seeking.
“I wouldn’t miss it,” Drustan purred, bowing quickly to his father as he walked past his throne. “Halfling.” He nodded to my friend before stepping directly in front of me, blocking the rest of the room from my view. “Vanessa.”
Good god.
I leaned to the side, pretending I was focusing on something in the crowd.
“Hey.” I nodded at him as dismissively as possible.
Drustan chuckled as he stepped between his father and me, standing tall and tucking his hands behind his back.
I couldn’t tell if I was relieved or annoyed.
Relieved, because Ilia couldn’t address me as easily, but the alternative was his son.
With Drustan standing so close, I could capture whiffs of his spicy scent.
Was it a cologne? Was it just what sirens smelled like?
Was their body odor enough to lure humans like me in?
His deep, amber eyes staring at me in the drapes of Fergus’s party flashed in my memory.
The thrill of being trapped against a wall by a large body like his.
The heat coursing through my veins when his lips skimmed my cheek.
The contrast of the cold stone on my back in comparison to his large body pressed against my front.
The intensity of his eyes.
Next to me, Drustan shifted on his feet.
Get out of my head, siren. I demanded in my thoughts, just like I practiced.
He simply chuckled at me. Perfect. Keep focusing on the helpless, horny human. On his other side, his father turned and made a simple hand gesture toward the musicians, and the music shifted again.
Something calmer, melodic. Soft.
I really liked it. It reminded me of the harmony I would hear in the air whenever I set foot in this realm. But I haven’t focused on it since I stepped foot in Lydhavn, too intent on cautiously taking in my surroundings.
I found myself studying the string instruments the sirens were playing.
They looked similar to what I was used to, but different as well.
They had artistic, intricate designs and swirls carved into the wood.
They were shaped differently, too. Instead of the classic figure eight, hourglass shape, they were more oval.
Part of me wondered if we could buy one in this realm, so I could take it home and play with it.
Audrey huffed a quiet laugh next to me. I glanced at her, and she nodded gently toward the musicians I was watching. “Classic Van.”
Ilia cleared his throat, and we faced forward again.
In front of us, near the feet of the dais, a siren woman pulled a small golden scarf out of her pants pocket.
She decided to wear a corset too, with skintight leggings that fell to her ankles.
A skirt with dramatic slits cut up the sides of her legs, creating two panels of fabric in front and behind her.
With her black hair secured out of her way in a braid down her back, she tied the gold scarf around her eyes. It complemented her dark brown skin beautifully.
I tilted my head at her.
She glanced around, and I never would have been able to guess that she couldn’t see with the blindfold on, because she started to navigate herself through the crowd with ease.
Avoiding bumping into people by anticipating their location ahead.
Resting her hand on their shoulder as she searched for… something.
“Her mate,” Drustan murmured to my side.
“Hmm?” I glanced at Ilia, wondering if he was going to scold his son for talking, but then I heard a low hum throughout the crowd. The sirens were starting to speak in low, whispered conversations.
“She’s looking for her mate. They all are,” the siren prince elaborated. I scanned the room, seeing a handful of other men and women starting to secure golden blindfolds over their eyes as well.
“How?” Audrey asked from my other side.
Part of me was low-key happy that she was talking to Drustan without any animosity, but it was also confusing. He was the enemy, as far as I could tell. But the fact that Audrey was being amicable toward him made me confirm that my “play nice” approach was probably the best one.
“By dulling one sense.” Drustan sighed, keeping his hands secured behind his lower back. “We can better search for the sounds of our mate.” I raised my eyebrows at that.
Interesting.
Fae could feel their mates’ heartbeats.
Nereids could feel their mates’ waves in the water.
Sirens could hear their mate.
It was all so…poetic.
“Your bonds are discovered through sound?” I asked.
“But…” I glanced to the side to see Audrey biting her lip in hesitation before continuing with her question, “What does that mean for deaf sirens?”
Drustan gave my friend an unimpressed look. “What do you mean?”
“If sirens find their mates through sound, what happens if you can’t hear?” Audrey clarified. Her eyes were wide with curiosity as she studied the crowd in front of us. Drustan rolled his eyes and faced forward, apparently done conversing with my friend.
Dick, I scolded him in my head—just in case he was lingering in there. Based on the way his hands flexed behind his back, I assumed he was.
“Sound isn’t just noise,” I murmured to Audrey.
“Sound has waves. Vibrations.” I drummed my finger on the side of my ottoman, demonstrating for her.
Drustan glanced down at my hand as I theorized with her, but I ignored him.
“I’m assuming that hearing isn’t exactly all of it.
Just like how Fergus’s people can intimately feel the waves their mate makes in the water, and how the fae can feel their mate’s heartbeat, I’m assuming sirens can also feel the vibrations their mate makes through their surroundings. ”
“Oh.” Audrey nodded but looked a little bewildered at the idea. “That makes more sense.”
Drustan continued to stare down at us, so I looked up at him to ask, “Does that mean the sound doesn’t necessarily have to come from a siren’s body or voice?
” I nodded toward the musicians in the small orchestra.
“Theoretically, anyone playing an instrument over there would be creating sound. That would mean that any step they take, any noise they produce.” I drummed my fingertips on my ottoman again, and his golden eyes tracked the movement.
“Any of that can produce vibrations sensitive enough for their mate to locate, right?”
Drustan’s lips parted, and a divot formed in his brow as he studied me.
“The human is sharp, I’ll give her that,” Ilia spoke, leaning back in his throne as he gave me a dismissive side glance, before focusing back on the ritual. His son didn’t utter another word; he pressed his lips together and faced forward again.
You’re no fun, I taunted him in my thoughts.
A dark-haired siren woman dressed in a simple shirt and linen pants approached the dais, holding a tray of drinks. Behind her, the blond siren guard who attacked me on my boat held another.
I couldn’t stop the frown that pulled at my lips, so I just let it happen.
I didn’t need to put on a show for this guy. I could make my disdain for him clear. What was he going to do to me here, with his king sitting amicably nearby?
“Your majesty,” the man said.
“Leon.” Ilia nodded toward him. A smile slid across Leon’s lips as he glanced at me and saw my frown.
This meant the brunet siren who attacked me was Sergei.
Leon’s blond hair was almost completely white.
Uncomfortably pale. The complete opposite of the siren woman who stood a couple of inches shorter than him, carrying a tray of beverages.
“Amber.” Ilia nodded, accepting the glass she handed him. She silently nodded before handing Drustan a mug as well, which he accepted silently.
When she went to give me one, I lifted a brow at her as I accepted it. “What is it?” Amber glanced nervously over at the king, and that was all I needed to know.
“Wine,” she replied, before meeting my eyes again, “Do you need something else?” I shook my head. It probably didn’t matter what beverage she brought us, I still wasn’t drinking it.
“Is tonight your lucky night, Leon? Or perhaps your sister Amber will find a match before you,” Drustan spoke before sipping his drink. Meanwhile, Sergei approached the king’s other side, and the two of them started conversing in hushed whispers as they studied the crowd in front of us.
“One can only hope.” Leon winked at me then, standing next to Drustan. “Are the outsiders able to participate as well?”
I lifted a brow at him and said, “Explain to me, in detail, exactly what you feel when I talk to you.”
“Oh my god.” I could hear Audrey smack a palm across her forehead at my words, but I held my ground. Drustan grinned widely. His eyes practically sparkled as he took a sip from his mug and waited for Leon’s rebuttal.
Amber frowned at me, giving the tray to someone who looked more like a servant than a ritual participant, and shared an irritated look with her brother.
“Come.” Leon gave me a narrow-eyed look of disappointment as he held his hand out for Amber to take. She obliged, sending Drustan a small smile as her brother escorted her down the steps of the dais and joined the party.
“You don’t like him,” Drustan murmured. I didn’t respond, because obviously. “…But you like me.” Drustan stood taller with his words, smug. I frowned, wrong.
“When was the last time a mated pair was formed during this?” Audrey asked. She sounded reluctant about it. Like she was desperate to save the mood after I essentially gave Leon the middle finger.
“A few years.” Drustan sighed. “Though other matches are often still made for those interested in a…fun night.” He sent a flirtatious wink down to me.
I scoffed before facing forward. So, no mating matches for a few years.
But people still go home together and “have fun,” as he so delicately put it.
Frankly, good for them.