The Lynx Who Purred for a Sidhe Prince (7 page)

proviso in the oldest texts that allows for inbreeding between

relations, and even encourages it, especially amongst royalty. One

particular point of the same law was that if the heir of a throne is too young, the eldest of his close relatives will act as a king until his coming of age. However, if the heir in question were to wed an older

relation, he would be able to become king and take the crown in spite of his age.”

“This copy of the Sacred Law doesn’t mention you wedding

Sterling. The translator must have gotten in wrong.”

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“But it must have mentioned a wedding of sorts anyway,” Corbin

protested. “How can you even suggest something like that? Winter

never meant any harm. He is family now.”

“Corbin, I understand your point, but now is not the time for such

emotions,” Byron replied. “As much as we appreciate Winter for his

own merits, we will never surrender Shea, and that means war. If

Winter can do something to prevent it, I would expect him to make

the sacrifice and act.”

In a way, Winter agreed with Byron. He’d always known that as

royalty, he’d be expected to marry one day, but even so, he’d

foolishly hoped it would be for love and not an arrangement. Byron

was right. Feelings didn’t matter here. Facts did.

“That might be true,” he replied, “but my uncle would never

marry me. There’s simply no way.”

“And it would defeat the very purpose of the arrangement.” Skylar

hummed thoughtfully. “Is there anyone else you can wed?”

Winter thought hard, considering the rest of his family tree. Most

of his older relatives were already married, and those single didn’t like him very much. He thought that he might have a cousin that

would be willing, but he hadn’t seen the man in five years. He didn’t know if the guy had taken a partner or not.

“I’d have to look into it,” he replied, doing his best not to think

about what he was agreeing to. He felt horrible about this whole

thing, especially with Corbin standing right there. Why couldn’t

Corbin be Sidhe? Winter would gladly marry him.

Winter shook himself, shelving that thought in a corner of his

mind reserved for impossible dreams. Corbin deserved better than to

be thrust into a world of political intrigue. Besides, the lynx might care about him, but the responsibility of a king’s consort was

overwhelming even for a Sidhe. Not to mention that such a position

carried a lot of danger. The Unseelie rogues were forever attempting

to overthrow the reigning royal family, and for a shifter to get into that sort of thing was pure madness.

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Why was he even thinking about it? It could not be. The best thing

he could do was to contact his cousin. The Sidhe had long ago

stopped marrying their kin, but the man would probably agree just the same. After all, there was no law saying they actually had to

consummate their union. They could both have lovers on the side if

they so desired. Personally, Winter couldn’t imagine loving sharing

his body with anyone except Corbin, and he’d never force the lynx

into being a side dish.

All these thoughts whirled in his mind, and he knew he wasn’t

being very coherent in response to Skylar’s query. “There is one man

who might accept,” he finally managed to say, “but I’m not absolutely certain.”

“Over my dead body.” Corbin’s voice was low and dangerous.

“You’re not marrying anyone else but me.”

Winter turned toward Corbin, shocked beyond words. It was as if

the lynx had read his mind and his desires. But Byron was, as always, the voice of cold reason. “It doesn’t work like that, Corbin.”

“Oh?” Corbin arched a brow. “And why not? If feelings weren’t

involved, why didn’t you just give Shea away and save us all the

trouble?”

Both Cunninghams tensed visibly. “Corbin, what are you saying?”

Skylar asked, sounding shocked. “We could never do something like

that.”

“Of course you couldn’t,” Corbin shot back. “You wouldn’t ask

your children to make such a sacrifice. Personally, I agree

wholeheartedly. And yet you’re asking Winter to do something that is

at least comparable, if not similar. How can you look at us in the face and say feelings have no place in politics when this whole conflict is based on emotions?”

Winter couldn’t believe the things Corbin was saying to the

Cunninghams on his account. The two older shifters remained silent

while Corbin continued to rant, “You two are like family, and I’ve

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49

respected you all my life. I never thought I would one day call you

hypocrites, but right now, that’s what you are.”

Corbin seemed on a roll, and God only knew what the lynx would

say next if Winter didn’t stop him. “Stop, Corbin, please,” he

murmured. “It’s hardly the same thing. Shea is their grandson. I’m

just a stranger.”

“That’s just it,” Corbin answered, his voice frustrated. “You’re

not a stranger, not after one year of being with me. With us.”

The “me” meant more than Corbin himself probably knew. As

long as Corbin cared for him, Winter truly felt like he wasn’t a

stranger here. To his surprise, Corbin’s heartfelt words reached out

the Cunninghams, as well.

“You’re right, Corbin,” Skylar said. “But you must understand we

cannot be objective where Layton and Morgan are concerned.”

“Of course I understand,” Corbin answered. “I never asked you to.

I trust your judgment. But I can’t accept this double standard set

against Winter.”

“Well, this leaves us in quite a quandary,” Skylar said. “Unless…”

The seahorse shared a look with his shark mate. They were obviously

talking in that way that only mates could.

“Unless what?” Winter prodded.

“Our sources say that your uncle never explicitly told your people

you were here,” Byron said with a small smile. “I expect he wouldn’t

have liked to explain why he was deliberately sending off the heir to the throne into danger.”

“Well, since my parents were assassinated, it was considered too

dangerous for me to remain at the palace.” The continuous reminder

of his parents’ murder made a cold chill flow through Winter. “I only rarely visited, and me being missing for one year would not surprise

anyone.”

“Well, we can use all that,” Byron said, “if you’re willing, of

course.”

Winter was beginning to get a headache. “Use it how?”

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“You said you didn’t want to wed your kin, and we agreed that it

was an unreasonable request on our part,” Skylar said. “But what if

you married a shifter instead? Like Corbin so eloquently put it, what if you married him?”

Winter felt like the two shifters were playing ping-pong with his

brain. “But…You said it yourself, that wouldn’t help.”

“Not for the purpose of you getting the throne, no.” Skylar seemed

thoughtful, as if musing over this new plan. “But with some work, we

can present it as a new alliance between shifters and Sidhe. Your

uncle never mentioned the conflict between us, and your stay here,

when it is revealed, will be an argument for the preparation of that

alliance.”

It was hard to believe that just a few moments earlier, Winter had

been considering this exact same thing in terms of an impossible

wish. The Cunninghams seemed to believe it was a valid solution, but

Winter honestly didn’t know if they could pull it off.

“It will never work,” he said. “He won’t allow it.”

“Oh, he’ll have no choice.” Skylar’s grin was wicked. “I can

guarantee you that.” His expression sobered. “But I don’t want to

push you again. If you’re against this, or if Corbin is, we’ll find

something else. After all, Corbin is right. You are no longer a stranger here.”

Skylar’s words might have soothed Winter somewhat, except they

came too late. Winter’s mind was already screaming a litany of

anxious nos. And it wasn’t even because he didn’t want to belong to

Corbin. God help him, there was nothing he wanted more. But doing

it this way, wedding Corbin for political purposes, it made the entire thing seem so cheap and tawdry. Winter had never even allowed

himself to spend too much time with the lynx, worried that he’d give

too much away or, more importantly, he’d allow himself to fall for the shifter. This meant that, sadly, in spite of their instinctual attraction and the genuine caring between them, they truly knew very little

about each other.

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Not only that, but the situation brought Winter to his previous

concern. Accepting such an idea would involve Corbin in dangerous

Sidhe politics. The mere thought of having Corbin risk his life this

way made Winter sick to his stomach.

“I…I’ll agree to it, but only if Corbin wants to,” he replied.

“Marriage into the Sidhe royal family isn’t exactly something easy to handle.”

“I can handle more than you think, sweetheart,” Corbin replied.

He’d never once let go of Winter’s hand throughout the conversation,

but now, his arm went around Winter’s waist, pulling him close. “Just don’t let them bully you into anything,” he whispered in Winter’s ear.

“I’m here, whether we are mated or not.”

Warmth flooded Winter upon feeling Corbin’s body against his

own. Suddenly, his apprehension began to be overshadowed by

arousal. His mind knew this was a serious situation, but his libido

wanted a continuation of what they’d begun earlier.

“I know,” he replied, “and you have no idea how much I

appreciate it. I just don’t want you to be in danger.” He’d already lost two loved ones to the Unseelie. He couldn’t bear the thought of it

happening again.

Corbin caressed Winter’s face and lips almost reverently. “Don’t

worry, sweetheart. I’ll be fine. You won’t ever lose me. I promise.”

His almost somber tone turned naughty. “Seal the deal with a kiss?”

Winter couldn’t have refused to save his life. Lost in Corbin’s

blue gaze, he surrendered to Corbin’s strength. When Corbin pressed

their mouths together, Winter was assaulted by a feeling of rightness that pushed aside all the doubts.

Parting his lips, Winter allowed the other man entry. He wrapped

his arms around Corbin’s neck, melting into the lynx’s embrace. How

could he possibly resist this? How could he even think about giving it up?

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It was only when they broke apart to breathe that Winter realized

the Cunninghams were still in the room. He felt himself flush as he

turned toward Skylar and Byron.

“I guess that’s a yes,” Skylar said, a light, good-natured smile on

his lips.

Winter nodded. “I suppose.” Corbin’s scent was distracting as

hell, and he knew he was forgetting about something.

When Corbin nibbled on his neck, Winter pushed away from the

lynx. “Give me a minute, okay? We have to…ah…What did I want to

say?”

Corbin obediently stayed put, and Winter managed to gather his

thoughts. “Right. If Corbin and I are to be married, it’ll have to be by the Sidhe ways, too. That will imply a special garb, which I can only get from the palace, as well as the participation of one of our priests.”

“I expected that much. Don’t worry. We don’t mean to keep the

wedding a secret from the king. We’ll just mention it in the right ears before we tell him. Byron and I haven’t been idle in the past year.

We’ve prepared ourselves for all possible outcomes, including a war.”

Looking at Skylar’s face, Winter wondered what in the world he’d

gotten himself into. Clearly, Skylar had more than one card up his

sleeve. It was quite likely that King Sterling would end up in a poor position because of Winter’s choice. His uncle would be furious once

he found out about this. But as he leaned against Corbin, Winter

thought it just might be worth it.

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Chapter Four

There was nothing King Sterling Tomacelli hated more than being

forced into a certain course of action. He’d always appreciated

freedom, something which, sadly, people from the royal family never

benefited from. But what irked him more was that what little freedom

he did have had been taken from his hands by a higher power.

The Oracle gave him a kind, yet stern look with her sightless eyes.

When she spoke, her lips didn’t move. “Things are in motion, King

Sterling. Your envoy has not accomplished his task, and the future

that we attempted to build is gone.”

Sterling sighed. A part of him didn’t regret that too much, but he

knew it was unfair. He had a responsibility to his late brother, a

responsibility to protect Winter, even from himself. Unfortunately, he couldn’t exactly explain that to Winter as the existence of the Oracle represented a well-guarded secret only the king and his consort were

privy to. She did not even have a physical manifestation, but rather, was more like a banshee, giving the current leader of the nation the

gift of foresight. And Winter would never believe him if Sterling said he’d suddenly had a vision from the Gods.

Not to mention that his dear nephew had become resentful