Faye handed over the photo of her cousin to Tanner, and he closed the file. Rising from the desk, he walked it over to me. “We appreciate anything the Order can do.”
Nodding, I took the file and stood, hoping that none of the Order members recognized these young men. If they did, it probably meant they’d met a tragic, unfair ending.
The meeting was officially over. Faye and Tanner were quiet as they led me out of the office and down an empty wide hall. Upon entering the building, I’d been escorted through the front and not the amazing courtyard, and it looked like they were leading me to the front once more.
As we neared the cafeteria area, I began to see more fae. Some lingered outside the wide archway, others walked to and fro, in small groups or alone. Most didn’t pay any attention to me. Others looked on in curiosity while some stared with outright distrust as we made our way to the grand, brightly lit lobby that truly reminded me of an upscale hotel.
“Please contact me directly, whether or not you have any information,” Faye said as we passed several occupied couches and chairs.
“I will.” I reached into the pocket of my purse, searching for my phone. From here, I was going to have to Uber it back to headquarters over on St. Phillip Street. I glanced over at Faye, and could see the worry etched into her face. The concern tugged at my heart. Lord knew I had this same kind of wretched experience of living through the disappearance of someone you loved and not knowing what happened to them. The desperation was the worst, the need to do everything and anything to find them, but not knowing if what you were doing was right or would even help.
Faye was experiencing all of that.
Stopping, I reached over and placed a hand on her arm. The contact surprised her as she swung her head toward me. “I’m sure your cousin is fine.”
Faye held my gaze. “I hope so. After losing his father….”
A slight frown pulled at my brow as Faye trailed off. She tilted her head slightly as a hush descended over the lobby and then she turned back to where we came from. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Tanner turn back as well.
“You should leave now, Brighton,” she whispered.
An acute shiver danced over my shoulders and the tiny hairs along the nape of my neck rose as I stared down at her dark, bowed head. Don’t turn around. Keep walking. That’s what I kept telling myself. I was done here, and Faye was right, I should leave now.
But I turned around, because some primal instinct inside me already knew who had arrived. And some insane, disturbed part of me just had to see him.
The Prince had entered his lobby, dressed very much like he had been Saturday night. Dark pants. Dark thermal. He wasn’t looking at Tanner or Faye or any of the other fae.
Pale, ancient eyes fixed on mine. He didn’t recognize you. That’s what I kept telling myself as a wave of goosebumps spread along my flesh.
I took a step back. Wrong move. Oh God, total wrong move.
The Prince’s eyes narrowed.
Tanner murmured something in his native language, and the Prince spoke. I didn’t understand a single word he said, but his voice was deep and booming and yet quiet somehow.
The fae turned to stare at me, because the Prince… the Prince hadn’t taken his eyes off me.
My heart hammered in my chest as I opened my mouth to say what, I had no idea, because the words turned to ash on the tip of my tongue as the Prince strolled across the lobby, heading straight for me.
Chapter 9
My first reaction to seeing him was the realization that there was a good chance I was going to have a massive heart attack. Dead before thirty-one, right here in the grandiose lobby of Hotel Good Fae.
Which, I guessed, was only a little bit better than dying alone at home, suffocated by stacks of dusty books and piles of handwritten maps.
My second, and probably the most troubling of reactions, was that rollercoaster dip in my stomach in response to seeing him, followed by an acute wave of shivers that had nothing to do with who he was.
Goodness, he was just… I couldn’t find the right words other than he did some really stupid things to my hormones.
Somehow I managed not to go into cardiac arrest or punch myself as he stalked toward me with the graceful prowl of a predator. I was a hundred percent human with absolutely no special abilities, but I could still feel the leashed power rolling off him, filling every nook and cranny of the lobby. It was base survival instinct, I figured, alerting the human mind that they were in the presence of a predator.
He didn’t recognize you. I repeated that all the way up to the moment he stopped in front of me. He doesn’t know it was you he had his hands on—
“What are you doing here?” he demanded.
Throat dry, I blinked once and then twice. “Excuse me?”
His pupils seemed to constrict in response to my voice. “I asked why you were here, Brighton.”
Air caught in my throat at the sound of my name. “You know my name?”
The Prince tilted his head to the side and the look that crossed his face made me think he was questioning my intelligence.
Okay, that was a stupid question. But in my defense, other than Saturday night, when I was confident that he had no idea that was me, I’d only seen him twice before, both times brief. And we’d never been introduced. Ever. And I couldn’t even be sure that I had seen him in the hospital. That could’ve been a hallucination. Or a weird dream. Like the dream I had Saturday night, when I’d been in his lap and he’d been—
Oh my God, my eyes widened as I felt heat blast my face. I was so not going to think about that when I was standing in front of him. Because it was weird. Totally weird and stupid, but I swore I could feel the warmth from his hands on my sides and his lips—
Good God, I really needed to stop thinking.
Those pupils seemed to constrict even further as he dipped his chin. I drew in a sharp breath. He was closer now and his scent…. Goodness, it reminded me of lazy summer afternoons. Being so close to him again was like standing next to a heater.
Tanner cleared his throat. “My liege, Ms. Jussier is here on behalf of the Order. She will be helping us with the missing younglings.”
“Is that so?” he replied wryly.
My eyes narrowed. “Yes, that is so. Tanner contacted the Order and I was sent to handle the meeting and now since it’s over, I’ll be on my way.” I turned from the Prince to Faye, who was currently staring at me like I’d lost my mind. “I’ll be in touch, Faye.”
I didn’t make it very far.
Actually, I was only able to turn halfway by the time I felt the Prince’s warm fingers curled around my left wrist. Like before, the contact of his skin against mine was a jolt to the system. It was almost like he was charged with electricity, but I didn’t think that was possible.
“Do you understand how serious it is that these younglings are missing?” he asked, speaking low enough that I didn’t think anyone else could hear him.
“Yes.” My gaze skittered over his shoulder. We had an audience, a rather large, curious audience. Unnerved, I tried to pull my hand free and failed. “Of course I know it’s important.”
“But do you care?” Those odd, striking eyes latched onto mine.
A shiver danced over my shoulders. “Yes, I care.” Offended that he would even ask that question, I tugged on my arm again, getting nowhere. “Can you let go of me?”