Chapter 1
POV: Gracie Evans
I can’t keep my eyes off Prince Isaiah Hamlin of the Winter Court. He’s a vision. His icy blue eyes are like sapphires, his jaw is chiseled as if from marble, and his dark hair falls to his broad powerful shoulders. He is quietly confident, breathtakingly handsome, and each time his gaze sweeps over the garden, I can feel it pass. But it’s more than just his good looks. There’s something different about him, something dangerous, and I can’t quite explain it.
Fae are sexual beings and a kind of sexual magic flows through all of us. The magic flowing through Isiah tonight is almost overwhelming. I can see it in the women around him; they are having trouble keeping their thoughts straight. One of them keeps giggling for no reason. A second not-so-subtly exposes her cleavage wider, hoping to catch his attention. Another is staring at him dumbly with her mouth half open.
I wonder if my own mouth is hanging open and I tighten my jaw. I shouldn’t allow myself to be distracted by a man. Especially not now. This event is a big opportunity for me. I’ve been asked to join the most accomplished musicians of the Summer Realm to play my lute for the High Fae. They have traveled here from all four courts, for this event. This is not an appropriate time to let myself get aroused!
Yet, I can’t resist. Again and again, my eye finds Prince Isaiah in the crowd. What is it? Why does this strange man from the winter realm captivate my attention? Everyone knows he’s without a mate and that makes him the most eligible bachelor in the four realms. But I’m a low fae and I know my place. Yes, maybe I’m feeling a little bit aroused, but I’m not even interested in him. I swear!
I should be thankful just to be here. The moonlit garden of the Summer Palace shimmers under a thousand twinkling lights. Tall, ancient trees surround the gathering. I sit with the other musicians, on velvet cushions, dressed in a gown of petals and silk. My fingers strum my lute, adding to the sweet melodies drifting through the air.
While the high fae mingle, our music makes a kind of magic that brings them together. This is the yearly Unity Gathering and my role is important. Any mistake, a single wrong note or a faltering chord, could easily ruin my reputation.
We finish our song and I have only a minute to rest. As other low fae begin clearing the tables and chairs for the coming dance, my eyes find Isaiah. He’s surrounded by beautiful high fae women from the Summer and Spring courts, competing for his attention. But he seems agitated. Maybe I’m imagining it, but I sense something dangerous building in him.
Then, magically, a shower of flower petals falls, fluttering down from nowhere to coat the floor in color. The dance is about to begin! The air livens with laughter and excitement. I pick up my lute and we begin to play again.
Soon, the dance floor is a whirlwind of twirling couples, driven by the music.
Something catches my attention on the dance floor. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch a glimpse of two figures moving erratically. On my second glance, I see that one of them is Isaiah Hamlin, Prince of the Winter court!
Isaiah has seized a beautiful young female from the Spring Court, her eyes wide with surprise. Gasps ripple through the room as he declares her his mate for the evening, something not usually done outside of the Equinox and rarely between two fae. My chest tightens. I wonder why he can’t wait. The Equinox will be here soon enough.
I watch in horror as he sweeps the girl up in his arms, her face an expression of stupefied bliss. I’m sure everyone is surprised, but I’m probably the only person here that feels uncomfortable. I know, I know, I’ve been eyeing him all night but it’s been half out of arousal and half out of fear. The idea of being claimed as someone’s mate for the night makes me very anxious.
I shouldn’t feel this way—fae aren’t supposed to be shy about mating. Like I said, we’re very sexual creatures. During the Equinox, when our world overlaps with the human world, all fae are overwhelmed with sexual magic. The only way to release the magic building up in us is to seduce the humans. Really, we’re like animals; so much mindless fucking. It goes on like this every year until a fae finds their life-mate and all that energy is turned toward a single person.
So why does it make me uncomfortable to see Isaiah Hamelin publicly claim a random female, a week before the Equinox begins? You could say it’s no more unusual than a human putting up Christmas lights in early November. A little premature, but not something to get emotional about.
Well, the truth is, every Equinox is an uncomfortable time of year for me. I have a secret no one knows: I’m a virgin. While everyone else spends the Equinox practicing their sexuality on captivated humans, I deny my desires. I’m saving myself for my true mate.
The Winter Prince and his chosen companion for the evening begin to dance, their movements graceful and hypnotic. Her face has become serene, like she’s in a trance. Isaiah’s sexual energy has her completely stupefied. She reminds me of a human, so overwhelmed by his powerful effect that she’s half-asleep. I have the sickening feeling that if he mated her right here, in front everyone, she wouldn’t resist. She probably wouldn’t even remember. Humans rarely remember more than vague details when a fae seduces them.
It makes me sick to imagine if that were me.
I practically jump when Isaiah suddenly throws the female over his shoulder and marches for the exit. Her dress is caught up against him, revealing the skin of her long legs up to her ass. My stomach twists, embarrassed for her, imagining if I were in her place, completely powerless, my dress hitched up in front of everyone. The worst part is, if he took me back to his quarters and fucked me like he’s about to fuck her, he wouldn’t even know he’d taken my virginity.
Isaiah’s route to the exit takes him past the musicians and, as he gets close to me, I try not to look. I try so hard. But I can’t tear my eyes away from the lunging, predatory movement of his body. The girl’s eyes are inflamed with lust, and her naked legs are writhing as if he’s already between them. I glance away but then glance right back and my heart nearly leaps out of my chest when I see Isaiah’s eyes lock with mine!
In that moment, I’m overcome by his magic. I feel like I’m no longer playing the lute. I feel like I’m the one thrust over his shoulder. I’m the one about to be fucked out of her mind by this terrifying and arousing man. The long meaningful glance between us seems to last an eternity and, when it ends, a shiver shakes my entire body. I have no idea what it all means, but I’m sitting in my seat again, holding my lute. The effect was so strong I can’t process it.
Isaiah and his conquest are gone. The atmosphere on the dance floor settles and the music and the dancers are soon in harmony again. No one else seems to have noticed the intense glance I just exchanged with the Winter Prince.
My mind imagines Isaiah passionately fucking that girl and my pulse accelerates. Why did he look at me like that? Like he wanted me and not her. I can’t get it out of my mind.
