Kiss of Snow

18

When I opened the door, Keane looked at me before falling into step behind me as always. There was something comforting about his familiar footfalls.

We reached the ballroom, and I paused at the open door. A footman blew a fanfare, and the butler cleared his throat before announcing my name in a deep baritone that echoed from the high, white ceiling.

Grimelda walked toward me. “This way, your Majesty. Allow me to introduce you to your prospective suitors.”

I swallowed hard. Everything about this felt wrong. Maybe not the arranged marriage part, although I’d always imagined I’d marry for true love, but the idea I got to select from a seven-man line-up. Still, it wasn’t dissimilar to King Raith choosing Rose from a line of my sisters and me, and that had worked out well. I clung to that thought.

Grimelda led me to a line of suitors, all striking in their differences. They’d been gathered from all six kingdoms, one from each of the others and two from Talador. As well as strengthening my reign, it seemed Dahlia also hoped to strengthen ties with the other kingdoms. It left me with quite the conundrum though, because I didn’t want to cause any political disputes if one or the other of the kingdoms believed I had rejected their best offer.

“May I present Lord Danzin of Rodor.” Grimelda held out her to indicate a dark-skinned man with glasses and a well-kept, short black beard.

I nodded in greeting as he offered me a perfect bow. Grimelda shuffled me along the row and introduced Lord Theund of Mesner. I nodded to him as well and tried to hide my surprise. Dahlia had selected an older nobleman from Mesner, perhaps more than double my age. His beard was bushier, verging on unkempt, and gray like his hair. His eyebrows were busy and seemed drawn into a scowl. A permanent one, judging from the creases in his forehead. A sword hung at his side, and it looked more practical than ornamental.

We moved along the line again, to Lord Covack of Korelan. I took in the strikingly handsome man, his ginger hair perfectly styled, his jaw square and strong, but I didn’t bother nodding. He wasn’t even looking in my direction. Instead, his attention was on the crowd at the edge of the dancefloor, and as I watched him, he yawned, sucking in a long breath through his gaping mouth. Perfect.

Lord Vasso of Andaria was next. I looked him over, noting his broad shoulders, perfect olive skin, and chiseled face, and he grinned before falling into a clumsy bow. His hard muscles bunched and flexed with the movement, but something in his dark eyes looked a little vacant. His clothes and sparkling jewels screamed of wealth and riches, and his handsome looks and strong body didn’t hurt either. A wry smile tweaked at the corners of my lips. Well-played, Aunt Dahlia. A young, rich man who she probably thought would be easy to control. Or at least very easy on the eyes.

“Lord Gusten of Talador.” Grimelda nudged his foot with hers. “Look at your Queen when you’re being introduced to her.”

“My apologies,” the man before me murmured as he met my gaze briefly, his cheeks burning a bright red before he folded into an awkward bow. He was cute, with short sandy hair and an attractive face, but he seemed so young and out of place here, his blue eyes wide as he took it all in. He looked more like he needed a hug from his mother than he wanted a new wife. I knew of his family though, and they were among the wealthiest and most prominent nobles in our kingdom, which is no doubt why Dahlia had included him.

Grimelda cleared her throat and I returned my attention to her. “Lord Lasloe of Talador.”

“Your Majesty.” He smiled wide, his eyes alight with laughter, and I found myself smiling back at him. He lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back as he bent over into his bow. Everything about him was charming, from his perfectly tousled dark brown hair, to his alluring brown eyes, and I had no doubt he had many admirers.

“Lastly.” Grimelda had already moved on and seemed almost to be tapping her foot as she waited for me to catch up. “Lord Hirth of Ilidan.”

I greeted him with the same pleasantness as the others but discounted him almost immediately. He sneezed as he looked at me, then wiped his nose on an oversized handkerchief that he drew from his pocket. It was a good thing Rose had already secured an alliance with Ilidan.

There were too many names to remember, and I glanced back through the line. The man from Ilidan sneezed again, and I stepped out of the line of his spray. So, I had Sneezy, Happy—I looked at the grinning lord again—yes, definitely Happy, and who else? I looked at the little guy next to him, so cute and embarrassed to even be here. Bashful. I quickly reeled off names in my head for the remaining men. Dopey, Sleepy—that man from Korelan would not quit yawning—Grumpy, and lastly Doc, because he kind of reminded me of the Winton physician with the way he nudged his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose.

“It’s a pleasure to meet all of you,” I said, even as I was busily striking some of them from my mental list.

They were all attractive, some of them more than others. Dahlia wouldn’t have selected any men with deep character flaws, so I was safe in that respect, but how did she expect me to choose the man to have at my side for life during my time here? The more I studied the men, the harder the task seemed.

None of them had any physical effect on me. None of them had piqued my interest at all, in fact. I wasn’t sure I could marry any man who didn’t at least lift my heart a little. I wanted the sort of chemistry I’d always dreamed of, but perhaps my station in life had robbed me of that luxury.

“Princess Lily, may I offer you a drink?” Doc gestured to a passing server, and I nodded my agreement.