The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 439

Liora’s POV

Ambrose wore a black, finely embroidered doublet over his white shirt. His dark hair was swept back without a single strand out of place, and the cologne he wore was just subtle enough not to be overpowering while still being noticeable standing this close.

If I didn’t know what sort of monster he truly was, then I would have called him handsome. Charming, even.

But I knew the ugliness he had hiding just beneath the surface of his good looks. It wasn’t hiding anymore, not to me. Every time I looked at him, all I saw was this twisted, grotesque form, like one of the gargoyles perched on the roof of his precious castle.

“Get away from me,” I snarled, moving to walk around him. “I’m not in the mood for your antics tonight.”

Ambrose casually stepped in my way again. His eyes shone as he slipped into the familial mindlink we shared with such ease that it made my stomach twist into knots.

“While your biting tone is rather endearing in private, cousin, you should probably watch how you speak to me when we’re in public together.”

I met his gaze without flinching. “And why is that?”

He leaned a little closer. Just enough to make it look like we were having a casual conversation to outsiders.

“Because I could tell this whole room that you’re wolfless,” he said. “And I don’t think you want that.”

I stared at him. I knew he wasn’t bluffing; he would happily expose me to every single one of the members of the royal pack, forever staining my reputation. Wolfless Liora, the princess with no real claim to the throne.

It didn’t exactly roll off the tongue.

“Fine,” I said out loud through clenched teeth. “But I’m not going to pretend I like you.”

Ambrose’s lips curved. “Fine by me. I prefer it when a woman has a little fire in her, anyway.” He reached out and took my hand, pulling it toward him so that I nearly stumbled. “Makes me excited.”

I gasped as he made my fingers brush the crotch of his trousers. Thankfully, I managed to pull away before I touched it fully, my fingertips tingling just from the brief contact. Although, judging from the look in his eyes, I was pretty certain Ambrose only chose to let me go in that moment and it had nothing to do with what I wanted at all.

Still smiling, he stepped aside, gesturing toward the table at the front where my parents sat. “After you, darling.”

I grit my teeth and walked past him. In the corner, I spotted Callum again, his eyes following my movements. I subtly shook my head, and he nodded, seeming to understand. Later. We would talk later.

Neither of my parents looked at me as I took my seat alongside my mother. Only Belinda lifted her head, smiling sweetly. She leaned forward, looking at me around my father. Her eyes flicked over my gown, and she nodded approvingly. “You look fit to be a bride tonight, Princess,” she said.

Her words seemed kind enough on the surface, but we all knew exactly what she meant.

I ignored her and took my seat.

The banquet was mostly uneventful. Food came out in courses, first Cornish game hens sitting in a buttery sauce, then roasted vegetables, then thin soups to cleanse the palate and aid digestion before dessert. I ate a little, but the food mostly just tasted like ash in my mouth.

For all intents and purposes, it would have been a normal banquet, were it not for the way my father kept staring at the crowd with those strange, blank eyes.

I thought back to what Marcus said about a spell. If it was true that Belinda had some kind of unnatural hold on my father, then I hoped Marcus would find answers tonight.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify