Arranged: An Array Series (Book #1)(29)

“Regardless of my fuck up, there are reasons why I did what I did. If I had it my way, I’d make your brother the king, but I can’t do that; your mother would agree. That’s Tellivan law. That leaves your bastard sister, Hara, out too. I’m an only child. You are the only legitimate child. Where does that leave me, George?”

I clenched my jaw. It left him with no one besides greedy Lords to eat up the throne.

Father set down his glass with a hard thud. “You have one week to find another bride, or Ava will be your Queen.”

“And if I flatly refuse?”

“Then she marries someone else.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Because you don’t adhere to my requests, and I need to light a fire under your ass to make things happen.”

“What are the requirements?” I asked, feeding into this. This wasn’t going to happen if I had anything to do with it.

Father made for the door but didn’t turn around. “She must be wealthy, in good standing, sociably, and demand reverence.”

“I’ll start right away.”

He looked over his shoulder. “You better. A week isn’t shit.”

With that, he slammed the door. I sat back, sipping my brandy. I was fucked. Where the hell would I find another tolerable wife in such a short amount of time?

∞∞∞

I drained every ounce of energy I had on Garrett’s man. I needed to get it out—the anger, the frustration, everything that made me feel like I was about to fail Ava. I promised to keep her taken care of, but my father was being an asshole, and that asshole was a king.

I swung down hard with my sword against one of the Elite Eight; Max, I think his name was. He’d sent a few questioning looks at my brother, who stood there, arms crossed, watching us. Max peered at Garrett again, and now he was pissing me off. I veered my foot behind his knee and pulled, bringing Max to the ground.

“Keep your eyes on me, soldier,” I growled, stepping back to let him get up. Max stood, brushing dirt off his pants. The rest of the Elite Eight were jousting around us, kicking up dust.

“All right, great job, men,” Garrett shouted over the field. “Max, why don’t you go tell the men that message I passed along to you earlier.”

I threw down my sword, hearing it clink against the hard ground. Bringing my hands over my head to catch my breath, Garrett watched his men leave the practice grounds and turned to face me, eyebrows raised.

“Were you practicing for our next great attack?” he asked.

“No.”

“What was that then?”

“It was nothing,” I grumbled, walking over to a wooden bench. I picked up a white cloth and cleaned off my weapon.

“You going to tell me what happened, or do I get to guess?” Garrett inquired, crossing his arms, like he used to when we were kids.

“Father wants me to rid myself of Madelyn as a potential for my wife.” Garrett blinked, and I shrugged. “Are you going to say something or just stare?”

“I was waiting for the rest,” Garrett replied. “You didn’t fight my man like that just because you have to get rid of Madelyn.”

I sat down, setting my sword in my lap. “He is trying to make Ava my queen.” Garrett’s brows deepened, but he said nothing. I rolled my eyes and placed my hands on my knees. “Are you going to help me or not?”

Garrett shrugged. “What do you want me to do?”

I scowled at him. “Fucking help me. If Ava becomes Queen and her life is miserable…I’m going to make your life a living hell.” Garrett remained motionless. “Still not doing it for you? How about I make you my head of security and army. We’ll make Telliva your permanent residence.”

Garrett groaned. “I don’t want to get involved with this.”

“With Ava?”

“Yes, I’m not looking to get tangled up in her life.”

I let out a snicker. “Brother, you got knotted into this mess the day you assigned the Elite Eight to keep her safe.”

Garrett rubbed his forehead and groaned. “I did it to protect the girl.”

“Or because you cared for the girl.”





Ava





Chapter 12





Four crystal chandeliers cast the light from countless candle over the ballroom. Cheery music flowed through the air as I stood at the entrance, observing the various colors of dresses and suits. I remembered escaping this room as a child, dodging the pinching of cheeks and the requests to dance with Lords’ sons.

“It’s so lovely.” Madelyn beamed at my side. “I’ve never seen anything like this at home.”

“Nothing but the best to show off for Her Majesty’s birthday,” George groaned. Nudging his arm, I grinned.

As I peered back into the ballroom, Garrett caught my eye, and my breath hitched. He was dressed in a gray coat with a matching vest and dark blue slacks. He was the most handsome man I’d ever seen… and he was walking straight toward us.

“Ladies,” Garrett greeted as he bowed. A strand of his dark hair fell across his forehead when he straightened. “You both look captivating.” He acknowledged his brother and mumbled something to him. George nodded, rolling his eyes.