Sweep of the Heart (Innkeeper Chronicles #5)(39)

13





What an eventful first day for the spouse competition! Long lost family, first impressions of the spouse candidates, and a flurry of guests keeping the innkeepers on their toes.





Let’s take a closer look at the man in the center of it all.





I stood on the balcony in Kosandion’s private quarters and watched Resven struggle to contain his irritation at my presence. Being included in a very private discussion of the Dominion’s state secrets wasn’t in my plans, but Kosandion requested my attendance during the breakfast, and here we were.

I had built the Dominion suite to remind Kosandion of the Palace. The trick wasn’t to replicate his home but to nod at it subtly with the right shades and familiar contours. New experiences were an essential part of travelling. I tinted the colors slightly warmer, relaxed the geometric harshness, and threw a few unexpected shapes, like the asymmetric arches. The asymmetry showed in their haircuts and clothes, but a lot of the Dominion architecture was old and incorporating the new trend would give the suite some freshness.

My original design didn’t incorporate a balcony, but after watching Kosandion contemplate the orange ocean during dinner, I moved his suite to Kolinda’s door.

Once an inn’s branch reached a new planet and the inn opened a door leading there, it would begin to root through that space, claiming a section of the world. Some rootings were tiny, barely enough for the human-sized door. Others were vast. Kolinda’s rooting covered over one square mile. Gertrude Hunt’s door opened onto a small island, a chunk of jagged rock that thrust from the depths of the ocean, and the entire island belonged to us.

I had oriented the Ocean Dining Room to the south-west, to take advantage of the sunsets. Kosandion’s suite now faced directly south, giving him a beautiful view. I provided him with long balcony rising high above the water and equipped it with an array of patio furniture. He was only a hundred yards from the Ocean Dining Room, but an outcropping of rock hid it from his view, assuring his privacy.

I had installed a carefully calibrated barrier that put an impenetrable invisible wall along the balcony’s perimeter. It shifted into a slightly less protective mode when anyone entered the balcony, so Kosandion got the sea breeze and sounds but not the monsters that hunted within the cool orange depths. Gertrude Hunt was swimming in alien beings’ energy, like a glutton at a cake contest, and maintaining the barrier resulted in minimal drain.

Kosandion was on the balcony now, sitting in a comfortable chair with a breakfast spread on a patio table before him. The sun had risen above the jagged dark peaks on the horizon. The Sovereign watched the ocean, tracking a massive sea serpent as it slid under the surface, its spines the only warning to its potential prey.

His inner circle arranged themselves around him. Resven rested in a large, padded chair in front of me and to my right. Miralitt sat on my left, one leg over the other, as close to the transparent rail as she could get. Between them, in an identical chair, perched Orata, Kosandion’s head of PR, although that was likely an inadequate title considering her duties and their importance. She had come through the portal this morning to deliver the voting results and would go back before the day officially started. Orata was curvy, young, and fashionable, with a purple tint to her medium-toned skin and silver-blue hair, and every time I looked at her, I thought of Prince Lotor from the Voltron anime.

In my defense, I had woken up twice last night, one time because the Dushegubs had climbed onto each other trying to escape the Pit and the other because the Murder Beaks had a fight, and I had to treat the injured parties while Sean confined all of them to separate cells within their flock arena. I could’ve used a couple more hours.

“The ratings are as follows,” Orata announced, barely glancing at the holographic screen in front of her. “Behoun is in the lead with ten points over their closest competitor.”

Team Smiles, the ones with the enthusiastic female candidate whose name I kept forgetting. They represented Behoun, the fourth planet added to the Dominion.

“The people like Amphie,” Resven said. “They like her education and pedigree.”

Orata nodded. “Indeed. They especially like her enthusiasm. Key words mentioned most are earnest, relatable, and attractive. She’s trending well with parents.”

“A nice girl. The kind you take home to meet the family,” Kosandion murmured. “A safe choice.”

He looked away from the sea serpent and pondered his plate. I wasn’t the only one who had noticed his love of the ocean. Orro had outdone himself. I didn’t know you could even make a pancake in the shape of an oyster shell and turn an egg into a pearl within it.

“Your breakfast is getting cold, Letero,” Miralitt murmured.

Kosandion gave his plate a mournful look. “It’s almost too pretty to eat.”

“You need to keep up your strength.” Miralitt held his gaze, making it clear that she wouldn’t drop it until he took a bite.

Kosandion picked up a delicate two-tined fork and tried a small piece of the pancake. “Delicious. Continue.”

“In second place, Prysen Ol with the Kai,” Orata said. “The people view him as intelligent, dignified, and wise. He also trends well with parents. They feel he would be a patient and attentive father. His lowest rankings are in the under-twenty-five demographic. They find him boring.”