Narissa let her shoulders rise and fall in nonchalance. She had perfected the art of showcasing indifference. “Lord Solarius returned to House Celestine at his brother’s request. The invitation was not extended to me.”
Reif’s brows pulled together into a frown. “Is that a fact?”
“So it would seem.” She wiped her hands on a towel and eyed the concoction she’d crafted. It would need to cool before she could ladle it into the proper vials. Her gaze flicked back to her cousin and the unfortunate topic at hand. “I imagine his siblings will always take precedence.”
Reif made a derisive sort of noise, his boots clicking soundly across the floor as he approached her workspace. “I’m inclined to disagree with you, Narissa. Last night, for the entirety of the evening, Lord Solarius couldn’t manage to keep his eyes off you.”
Only because she was incredibly drunk and he didn’t want her embarrassing behavior to stain their marriage.
Narissa blew out a breath, sending a ruffle of her wavy hair fluttering into her face. She flattened her palms against the wooden table and leaned forward, glaring up at Reif. “While I appreciate your reassurance, dear cousin, your pitiful attempts at matchmaking are nothing more than a waste of breath. Lord Solarius does not desire me in that way.”
Maybe he did once. But that was before he got what he wanted then renounced her completely.
“If I am destined to be in a loveless marriage, then I will make the most of it.” She gathered up some wilted winter rose petals and deposited them into a small glass jar for safekeeping. “But I will not go so far as to humiliate myself by thinking he values me.”
Solarius may have claimed her feelings mattered, but his actions that morning spoke otherwise.
Reif rapped one knuckle along the edge of her worktable and when she looked over at him, his mossy green eyes were shrewd and gleaming. “There is one thing that will serve you well, so long as you don’t forget it.”
“Oh?” Narissa tilted her head to one side, planting both hands on her hips. “And what’s that?”
Because of course she needed advice from her cousin on how best to win the heart of her husband, a male who clearly could not stand the ground she walked upon.
“Solarius Starstorm is quite possessive in nature. He does not like to share, nor does he want anyone touching what belongs to him.” Reif smiled broadly, as though he’d made some sort of revolutionary discovery.
Narissa was not impressed. She suffered him a very loud, drawn-out sigh. “What are you suggesting, Reif?”
He bent forward conspiratorially, his whisper grating and full of absurd bravado. “Only that if you entertain the attention of another male, it won’t be long until Lord Solarius arrives to defend what’s his…which is you, of course.”
Unfazed, Narissa stared at her cousin.
“That’s it? That’s your masterful bit of guidance?” She rolled her eyes to the ceiling, then raked her fingers through her hair. How horribly unoriginal. “You think I should try and make him jealous?”
It was quite possibly the most male scrap of guidance ever—impractical and utterly useless.
But Reif’s response gave her pause.
“Not quite.” He held up one finger with a solemn shake of his head. “You should make him realize what he has before it’s lost to him.”
Narissa wasn’t entirely sure if that was a compliment, but it certainly sounded like one, so she decided to accept it. “I’ll consider your suggestion, Reif. Thank you.”
He inclined his head. “Freshen up and come to dinner, I’ve invited some guests from House Terensel. They should be arriving any moment.”
“House Terensel?”
But before Narissa could ask who was joining them for dinner, Reif was already strolling back down the small corridor and she was left alone with her thoughts.
Outside, the sky was alight with hues of crimson, gold, and blush. The sun would dip across the western horizon quickly as it so often did in the throes of winter, and twilight would descend before giving way to the midnight hours.
Solarius’s words prodded at the back of her mind.
“I shall return before nightfall. I promise.”
Narissa scoffed, stalking from the potions room to her bedchamber, already knowing this would not be the only time Solarius failed to keep his word. She would simply have to prepare herself for the inevitable pain that followed his string of broken promises.
CHAPTER NINE
The sun was bleeding across the sky, smearing hues of gold with indigo as nightfall approached, and Solarius was keenly aware that he was breaking his promise to Narissa.
