THE HEIR’S HUMAN MATE

CHAPTER SIX

Kael did not return to the ballroom after that. Even after Ronan followed him downstairs and several noble families attempted to pull him back into conversation, his attention remained elsewhere, trapped upstairs on a quiet balcony beside a human girl who somehow managed to disturb his peace more than an entire battlefield ever had. It irritated him and most of all, it unsettled him.

Kael had spent years mastering control over himself. Emotion was dangerous in his position, attachment even worse. He had seen powerful men destroyed by obsession, watched rulers weaken because they allowed themselves to care too deeply about the wrong person. Yet now he found himself searching crowded halls for a woman he had spoken to for less than an hour.

“That expression on your face is concerning,” Ronan muttered beside him as another noblewoman walked away after failing to gain Kael’s attention. Kael barely looked at him. “What expression?”

“The one that says your mind is somewhere else.” Kael ignored him and reached for the glass placed before him by one of the servants, though he had little interest in the drink itself. Across the ballroom, music continued beneath glowing chandeliers while noble guests moved gracefully across the polished floors. Normally, gatherings like this bored him from the beginning. Tonight, however, boredom was not the problem. His gaze drifted unconsciously toward the upper balcony again but it was empty.

“She left,” Ronan said, noticing immediately.

Kael’s jaw tightened faintly. “I wasn’t looking for her.”

“That’s a lie.” Kael finally glanced at him with mild irritation. “You’re becoming annoying.”

Ronan smirked. “And you’re becoming predictable.” Before Kael could respond, another voice interrupted them.

“My prince.” Kael turned to find Councilman Aurel approaching with a polite smile stretched carefully across his face. Age had softened the man physically, but not politically. Men like Aurel survived near the throne because they knew how to adapt quickly.

“I hope the evening has been acceptable,” Aurel said.

“It has.” Though Kael answered politely, his tone still carried enough distance to make most people nervous. Aurel cleared his throat lightly before continuing. “I heard you spent some time speaking with one of the guests upstairs.”

Ronan immediately looked amused. Kael remained expressionless. “And?”

“Nothing concerning, of course,” Aurel said quickly. “I simply wondered if Lady Kaelira caused any problems.” The moment her name reached him, Kael’s attention sharpened again before he could stop it. So that was her name…Kaelira.

“No,” he answered calmly. “Why would she?”

Aurel hesitated slightly. “She’s… different from most girls raised around nobility.”

“I noticed.” That earned a careful pause from the councilman, as though he was debating how much to say next.

“She speaks her mind too freely at times,” Aurel admitted. “Her father worries it may eventually offend someone important.”

Ronan looked like he was struggling not to laugh. Kael, however, remained focused only on one thing—her father.

“Lord Vale attended tonight?” he asked.

“Yes, my prince.” Kael nodded once, though his thoughts had already drifted elsewhere again.

Lord Vale, human nobility. Close enough to Councilman Aurel to receive invitations to gatherings like this. Useful information…dangerous information because Kael already knew he would remember it. Aurel excused himself shortly after that, disappearing back into the crowd while Ronan stared at Kael with growing amusement.

“You asked about her family.” Kael took a slow sip from his glass. “I asked a question.”

“You never ask questions unless you care about the answer.” Kael’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Must you comment on everything?”

“Yes,” Ronan answered immediately. “Especially this.”

Kael exhaled quietly and looked away again, though this time his attention drifted toward the large estate windows overlooking the gardens outside. Somewhere beyond them, Kaelira was probably preparing to leave. The thought settled strangely inside him. Most women chased him but for the first time in years, he found himself wanting to chase someone else.

That realization should have been enough to make him walk away from this entirely. Instead, he found himself asking, “Where did she go?”

Ronan blinked once before grinning openly. “Oh, you’re finished.” Kael ignored him completely.

“I saw her head toward the east gardens a few minutes ago,” Ronan answered eventually. “Probably escaping the same people you were.”

Kael was already moving before Ronan finished speaking.

“Unbelievable,” Ronan muttered behind him.

The estate gardens were quieter than the ballroom, lit softly by silver moonlight and rows of hanging lanterns that swayed gently in the night breeze. Stone pathways curved through flowerbeds and fountains while distant music still echoed faintly from inside the manor. Kael slowed slightly as he spotted her near the far end of the garden. Kaelira stood beside one of the fountains alone, her fingers trailing lightly across the marble edge as though she had come outside simply to breathe. For a moment, Kael just watched her and somehow that felt more intimate than it should have.

“You disappeared,” he said finally as he approached.

Kaelira glanced back at him, surprise flickering briefly across her face before settling into something calmer. “So did you.”

Kael stopped beside the fountain. “I was looking for quiet.” A faint smile touched her lips. “And yet you found me again.”

The words carried no accusation, only observation. Kael looked at her for a long moment beneath the soft garden lights, aware now of something he had been trying not to name since the moment he met her. This was no longer curiosity. It was becoming something far more dangerous and deep down…he knew it had already started.