Chapter 24
Chapter
Twenty-Four
“Did you have to announce it like that?” I grumbled to my father from the couch.
He was in my kitchen messing with the new coffee pot he’d brought. “You should have killed at least one of them long before now.”
“Killed?” I coughed. “Why would I kill a Lord?”
“Because they’ve grown far too arrogant.” He scoffed. “Not to mention their behavior toward you.”
Disgust laced his tone as he stirred some cream into the coffee he was making for me. “Trying to strongarm a fae princess.”
He grumbled something else I couldn’t make out. “That Ethan Lord is a real piece of work, isn’t he?”
My father sounded more human tonight than he ever had.
“He has been a thorn in my side for a long time now,” I admitted.
He handed me a steaming mug. “Try this. The coffee I make in this machine is world’s better than other machines.”
I took a sip and closed my eyes. “Mmm. That is good.”
Happiness shone on his face, and I wondered how often he’d experienced true bliss.
When he was here, he could take his crown off and relax.
He could bring his daughter coffee, and his daughter could make him tacos.
There was no artifice between us, but as much as I wanted to relax and hang out with my father, there were still a couple of large issues between us.
“I haven’t seen Mom around much.”
Cernunnos settled into his favorite chair and blew on the top of his mug. “She’s trying to give you space.”
“She never tried before,” I grumbled.
“Things are different now. May I make a suggestion?”
“Yes, but I reserve the right to ignore it.”
He sipped his coffee and studied me. “Have you tried making the first move?”
The suggestion made anger flood my system.
I took a beat to calm down and carefully set my mug down.
“I was a child. Mom was a goddess. Even though I see things differently now and know she made the best decision of all the bad choices she had, it doesn’t change how I felt then.
I can’t just throw those feelings away and pretend everything is butterflies and roses now. ”
He nodded. “I had a feeling you’d say that.
Your mother is a complicated woman. She will reach out.
Eventually. Keep in mind, Evie, she has feelings of her own.
To protect you, she had to go against her nature for years.
You were a weapon that could be used against her, and so she had to pretend the child of her heart was nothing more than an inconvenience, something she had to keep alive to avoid violating fae law. ”
“I will talk to her when she comes to see me. That’s all I can promise.”
My father nodded. “Now, let’s talk about why you were in Michigan and what happened when you were buried in the dirt with that other handsome Lord.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
“Absolutely not,” but I laughed just like he wanted me to.
“Now that they know who you are, they will approach you in a different way. Do not be surprised if you receive several marriage proposals.”
“Nothing new about that.”
Cernunnos’ brow furrowed. “What happened?”
I told him about the strange men showing up and the flyers and internet posts about my “single” status.
“Someone is playing a joke on you?” He sounded confused, just like I’d been when the first two showed up.
“No, I don’t think it’s a joke. I think it’s a way to manipulate me. Or tear Caelan and me apart.”
But even that theory didn’t quite fit. Why would someone do something that had no guarantee of working? To annoy me? It felt more sinister than simple.
“What happened to those men who showed up?”
“I flung them out of town using magic. They’re probably still alive.”
He let out a hearty laugh. “Good. They’re lucky that’s all they got.”
I picked up my coffee and took a sip, grimacing at the lukewarm temperature. My father rose and took my mug, refilling my coffee.
“Now,” he said as he sat back down, “I want to talk about my retirement.”
My father stayed another few hours, and I learned how to dodge giving answers to a fae king. The crown was still on the table, though I still had a ton of trauma thanks to the one Titania shoved on my head right before the magic shoved me into a magic tree to die.
I had zero desire to take over my father’s reign, and even though I was his only heir, taking his crown and becoming queen seemed so farfetched I had a difficult time wrapping my head around it.
As far as I was concerned, this was a problem for another day. We were all immortals, and there was time to push this to the back of my list.
I changed into pajamas, washed my face, and was about to slide into bed with a good book when my cell phone pinged with a message from Moira.
I may or may not have done a thing while you were gone.
I frowned at the screen. Is it more I changed my hair color or more I destroyed some property and broke multiple laws?
The second.
Do I want to know?
Nope! Plausible deniability. I’ll tell you when you come into work.
Will it get us killed?
You? No. Me? Shrug emoji.
I sighed out loud and fell back onto the pillow. I’ll be there tomorrow morning. You opening?
I am. Ash and Tess are off.
Stay out of trouble tonight. See you first thing.
I’ll do my best.
Shaking my head, I plugged my charger in and put my cell on the nightstand. Her reticence to tell me was telling in itself. Whatever she’d done had something to do with the Lords.
Thorvin was one of the better Lords, so if she’d glittered him and destroyed property, I couldn’t imagine what she might have done to the others.
In spite of my misgivings, I chuckled before pulling the blankets over my head.
Moira was a good friend to have.