I turned at the unfamiliar male voice.
My eyes met a gaze the color of sky itself. Beneath soft, light blonde hair and perfectly arched brows on pale skin, golden lashes spread like a fan.
"Would you like to go inside?" His voice was kind, elegant, polite.
His face reminded me of something—the large portrait hanging in Rowen Castle's lobby. Lady Elise, the former Duchess.
I quickly bowed deeply. "I salute Your Majesty, the King of Oberon."
My head struck his chest in my haste.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty!"
I stepped back, embarrassed, keeping my eyes lowered.
*I can't believe I made such a mistake.*
"Hehe."
Instead of reproach, laughter.
"Raise your head."
When I hesitated and complied, sunlight illuminated his face brilliantly. He seemed to emit light itself.
Valquiterre withdrew a large golden key from beneath his clothing and unlocked the terrace bars. He extended his hand as if to escort me, but nervous and uncertain, I kept my hands clasped below my waist.
He withdrew his hand. "It shouldn't be that difficult. Aren't you and I close?"
I blinked at the strange statement.
"Doesn't Kaian talk about me?" he asked kindly.
The awkward tension broke. I smiled at his friendly mention of my husband.
"The Duke speaks highly of you."
"As expected. What does he say behind my back?"
"That you're the person he trusts most in the world."
"I called him brother, and he became my loyal subject." Valquiterre's joke felt natural, comfortable.
*Strange. I'm at ease with him.*
The legendary King Oberon, Valquiterre, and Kaian were half-cousins through their twin-mother aunts. I'd heard they resembled each other, but looking at Valquiterre's light coloring—so reminiscent of Princess Elise in the portrait I saw daily at Rowen—I couldn't see the resemblance to my husband.
*Kaian would never speak like this. So warm. So open.*
My first impression of Kaian had been cold, frightening. Even when I showed him a mirror once and remarked that he always looked angry, he seemed unaware of it. His words were often sarcastic or scolding, as though my responses didn't matter.
But after the crocodile hunt, after he'd saved my life, things had changed. He was better, though still naturally reserved.
Valquiterre, despite sharing a mother's bloodline with Kaian, seemed his complete opposite.
"I thought Kaian would have cleared up the gossip about you," Valquiterre said as we walked.
"Not at all. The Duke truly respects Your Majesty."
"A Vermont noblewoman defending Temnes? It must be true then." He paused. "Though it bothers me a little that you mention Vermont at all."
Something in his tone made me reconsider. Kaian had been furious when servants called me the Duchess of Vermont yesterday. Yet here was the King—who'd ordered our marriage in the name of reconciliation—casually mentioning it.
*It was his command that led to my marriage to Kaian. I owe him gratitude.*
The discomfort vanished, replaced by appreciation.
We walked deeper into the hanging garden in silence. Then Valquiterre suddenly turned.
"We've met before."
"Yes?" I blinked. Vermont's daughters weren't active in capital society. And though called the northern debutante, I'd been overshadowed by Irena.
"At Rowen Castle. Last month. You were swimming at dawn."
My eyes widened. "The man in the hat?"
"When you didn't recognize me, I was disappointed." He smiled. "I introduced myself as Bark. But you never gave me your name."
*I was embarrassed,* I thought defensively. *And you were an intruder in my private space.*
"Your Majesty was at Rowen Castle hunting at Promhunt under the King's orders," I said carefully. "Yet you were at the castle while the Duke was away hunting."
Valquiterre's eyes widened slightly before he laughed—genuinely amused. "You're questioning me?"
"I don't believe I did anything wrong, Your Majesty."
His laughter continued, shoulders shaking with genuine mirth. "Very well. But you must keep my visit secret from Kaian. He'll be angry."
"Why were you at Rowen Castle?"
"Rowen holds many childhood memories." His expression grew soft, nostalgic. "After calling Kaian to hunt at Promhunt, I found myself missing the place. I thought I might meet him on the road, but we must have crossed paths elsewhere. I arrived to find the castle empty and almost left. I only stayed a moment."
"I see."
"But this must remain our secret." He studied me. "You were an excellent swimmer, by the way. Not something one can practice in frozen Valmonde."
"The Duke taught me."
"That man? Kaian has loved that place since childhood." Valquiterre tilted his head thoughtfully. "He's shown you something precious then."
My heart warmed at the idea.
"I have a confession of my own," I ventured carefully. "Please keep it secret from the Duke—I've been practicing swimming there, wanting to surprise him."
Valquiterre's expression brightened. "He taught you but hasn't seen you swim?"
"Not yet."
"Excellent. Let's exchange secrets for secrets." He seemed genuinely pleased. "You can call me Bark when we're alone. No... actually, call me Valquiterre. That seems more appropriate."
I hesitated. It felt wrong, somehow.
"Where have you been since early morning?"
A familiar voice. Large hands pulled me against a familiar chest.
"Kaian," I breathed, my heart leaping with joy before I remembered my manners. "You should greet His Majesty—"
"He broke etiquette first," Kaian said coldly, not releasing me. "Addressing my wife without formal introduction, in my absence."
Valquiterre smiled calmly. "Someone else's wife? Am I a stranger to you, brother?"
The possessiveness in Kaian's grip tightened.
"No," he said quietly. "Which is precisely why you should know better."
The tension between them crackled like electricity. I felt caught between two forces—one my husband, one my king.
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