Forbidden Honor (Dragon Royals #1)(15)

Her tone was icy. I doubted she’d wondered very hard.

“I’m sorry.” I glanced past her to the men sitting in the parlor.

I recognized one of them—Pend Deragon. The King, which would also make him Jaik’s father. After King Terin and his family died in the Scourge, the four royal dragon families had stepped into his place, dividing the kingdom into three dukedoms, which united here at the capitol of Rylow.

But what the hell was he doing in our house?

I dropped a curtsy, belatedly.

There were two other men with him, both dressed just as richly. Alis introduced Hanna and me to them.

“Lord Teris, Sir Henrick,” Alis told me. “My ward, Honor Hannaby.”

Lord Teris, one of those three dukes who’d saved the kingdom along with Pend…and also Talisyn’s father. Hopefully he didn’t know his son had finger-fucked me in the library the night before. I squeezed my lips tightly together, somehow worried that the thought would leak from between them. It was insane to think he might know, that he might care—but I didn’t understand why else he might be here.

Teris simply looked bored, though. I wondered why they were all here as suddenly, Alis tucked her hand through the crook of Henrik’s arm.

“What a lucky young woman,” Henrik told me with an oily smile.

“Alis certainly is,” I said brightly. “Well, not young. But lucky! To have Hanna and me!”

Alis’s icy smile grew icier. To the men, she added, “Honor is a comedic genius.”

I laughed out loud. No one else was laughing, which was always awkward. I folded my hands in front of me and tried to look demure, about two minutes too late to fool anyone. I just wanted to have my soup and cake and to get to my own bed. I could play nice for five minutes for cake.

I made it through dinner and endless small talk and was about to say that I was headed to bed when the servants brought out sparkling cocktails. Long wisps of gold, smoldering flames flickered from the tops of the tall glasses.

“What are we celebrating?” I asked as I took my glass. I always wondered about our tradition of handing drunk people things that were on fire. I took the wisp and blew it out before dropping it on my plate.

Alis looked toward Henrick with faux adoration in her eyes, the same way she used to look at my father, and my stomach flip-flopped. He smiled at her, gave her a little half-nod of approval. Then she said sweetly, “Henrick and I wish to take this opportunity to announce our engagement to you two.”

“Engagement?” Hanna asked, her voice hollow.

My little sister looked stricken. She stood from the table, crumpling her embroidered napkin in her hand before she dropped it to the floor. “You’re marrying again?”

“It’s been four years since your father died, Hanna.” Alis sounded impatient.

“She’s allowed to have feelings about it,” I said, my voice coming out irritated. “You should have told her in private.”

“I don’t need yet another of your endless opinions, Honor,” Alis told me.

“Just like that?” Hanna demanded. “We meet him tonight and you’re marrying him…”

“Next month,” Alis said coldly, answering a question no one had asked.

“Why so quickly?” I blurted out. Was she pregnant? I had no doubt she’d redouble her efforts to drive my little sister away and claim her inheritance for herself, instead of merely frittering it away as quickly as she could while she held the keys.

“There are no doubts when it is true love,” Henrick said, catching my mother’s hand.

I snorted. I couldn’t help it; I’d seen one man destroy his happiness by trying to provide my stepmother with hers. This fool should have doubts.

Alis fixed me with a cold look, then her gaze swept back to Hanna, only growing icier. I felt the chill in my stomach, which hardened as if it were freezing over.

“How could you?” Hanna demanded. “You never really loved Father.”

“It’s been four years,” Alis said again. “It’s not fair to expect me to go through my life without ever finding love again, Hanna.”

Alis had a point, though I hated to admit it.

“You’ve never been sorry he was dead, though,” Hanna said.

The words jolted me, bringing back a memory of my stepmother standing outside my father’s room, the night he’d died. She’d just left it, and she’d stopped with her hand still on the doorknob. She hadn’t seen me. She’d stopped and smiled.

Hanna was right.

My hatred for her had blurred into my grief then. But now, with a cooler head, seeing that same smile on her face now while she hurt Hanna… Had Father really died of a heart attack that night?

“Don’t talk that way to me,” Alis warned her. “You’re allowed your feelings, but you’re a young lady. You must manage yourself.”

“Or someone else will manage you,” Henrick warned.

That was it. I hated him too.

“I don’t like him,” Hanna told Alis.

Alis looked bored in the face of Hanna’s ire. “You don’t even know him. He doesn’t deserve that. Stop being ridiculous in front of our guests.”

“Stop being ridiculous all of the time!” Hanna exploded.

Alis slapped Hanna across the face.