Rebel's Honor(29)

Lynx's face burned, and it was on the tip of her tongue to ask Lady  Tatiana, Who knew I would have to teach my lady's maid respect? But she  swallowed the words; after all, Tatiana was right. She had been an idiot  with the oils. Never again would she let Chenayan luxury beguile her.

Tatiana waved a ring-encrusted hand. "Can't be helped now. The men are  waiting for breakfast." She scooped up her skirt. "And we couldn't  possibly keep them waiting, could we? They'll end up dyspeptic."

Lynx bit her lip until it ached as Tatiana led her through the palace.

Once at the double doors leading into the great hall, the haughty high-born bobbed a curtsy and vanished amongst the diners.

Only Tao waited for them. His eyes widened, and he took a hasty step  back as Lynx approached. She guessed only politeness stopped him from  waving his hand in front of his nose. Wincing with shame, she pointed to  the empty space next to him, where Lukan should have been standing.

Tao shrugged, offered Kestrel his arm, and started into the hall.

Lynx touched his shoulder. "Is Lukan coming?"

Eyes laden with concern, Tao said, "I don't know. I stopped by his  apartment, but he wasn't there." Tao hesitated and then added softly,  "It didn't look like he slept there, either."

Lynx's stomach plummeted. "So, now what?" She glanced into the hall,  packed with people, dreading having to walk in there on her own.

"The show goes on. No one eats until we take our places." Tao paused  again, then added, "If you were with Lukan, you'd walk ahead of us. But  now-" his voice trailed off.

Lynx understood perfectly. So did Kestrel, who preened, fluffing her hair and patting her skirt at this unexpected windfall.

"Lead on," Lynx said, grateful that at least Tao wasn't smirking at her.

It was a long walk, past rows of tables, where watching high-born stood  at attention at an ebony table on a dais, overlooking the crowd.

Tao gestured for Lynx to take a seat on the right, two down from the head. He and Kestrel sat opposite her.

"My father won't be joining us," Tao said. "He never eats breakfast."

Lynx blew out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. At least Mott wouldn't see her alone.

"And the other people?" Kestrel asked, gesturing at Tatiana and her two  female companions, the only other diners, sitting at the other end of  the long table.

Tao didn't even look at them. "The one who looks like she sucked a lemon  is Lady Tatiana. Up until recently, she was my father's mistress. Her  sister, Lady Nithena, has taken her place. The pretty one is Axel's  mother. The one with the wart is Count Raklus's wife. He's our Lord of  the Conquest." He looked up at Lynx and smiled. "The person responsible  for ravaging our neighbors and expanding our empire."

Conscious of the need to be above reproach in her dealings with Tao lest  she again be accused of flirting, Lynx didn't return his smile.  Instead, she eyed Axel's mother surreptitiously. "You can see where Axel  gets his looks."                       
       
           



       

Tao laughed. "Don't be fooled by Countess Katrina's pretty face. She's as tough as they come."

"She'd have to be, married to Count Felix," Lynx muttered as an army of waiters besieged her.

Clad in black and red, they bore dishes of pickled eggs and fish,  cheeses in varieties she'd never before seen, breads made from every  grain imaginable, and towering platters of fruit. Lynx dished up a bowl  of strawberries, an almost unheard of delicacy in Norin, as someone  pulled out the chair next to her.

She glanced up to see Axel.

He nodded a greeting at his mother who waved back. Instead of his  oppressive black uniform, he was casually dressed in a simple white  cotton shirt and a pair of black trousers tucked into knee-high boots.  Without a waistcoat or surcoat, he looked nothing like the other  high-born.

Lynx flushed, and a traitorous flutter swooped through her stomach. She  popped a couple of strawberries into her mouth to cover her unwanted  reaction to his presence.

Axel jostled Lukan's empty chair. "Been spurned, have we?" Then he  coughed and took a couple of steps back. When he finished spluttering,  he laughed as he sat next to her. "Your hand slip with the oil bottle,  Princess?"

"So it would seem," Lynx replied, letting him decide which question she  was answering. "And are we back to calling each other by our titles?"

"Only when you smell like something one would normally find in a  brothel. I have to remind myself who you really are. Love the dress and  the hair, though."

Knowing she deserved the one comment and pleased at the other, Lynx suppressed a smile. "So what brings you here?"

"Breakfast." He loaded a plate with pickled fish and black bread. It  looked disgusting. "As you know by now, I have a healthy appetite."

"No . . . I mean, don't you have another table to sit at? Some friends,  maybe?" Lynx rolled her eyes. "What am I saying? You with friends?  Unlikely."

"Nice try," he said, around a mouthful of food. "But you're sitting in my seat."

"Your seat?" Lynx gave Tao an accusatory look, but he was involved in a stilted conversation with Kestrel and didn't notice her.

Axel touched her hand, sending another spike of desire through her.

Lynx pulled away quickly, wishing she could control her misbehaving body. Didn't it know how much she hated him?

He grinned at her. "Calm yourself, Princess. It was my chair, but now  that you've agreed to marry my cousin, I've moved down one."

Like she'd been given a choice. "So I have to put up with you at all my meals? Wonderful."

"Tough luck, huh?" His grin was replaced by a fleeting frown. "But relax. Hopefully, after the wedding, I'll be gone."

"Gone? Oh." Lynx looked down at her plate, unable to deny her regret-even if he was the enemy.

"Don't say you'll miss me?" From his tone, she knew his smile was even more sardonic than usual.

She looked up, meeting his eyes, noticing for the first time that they were flecked with gold. "In your dreams, General."

Axel leaned into her, nudging her with his shoulder. "Don't worry, Lynxie, I'll miss you, too."

Lynx shivered, both at his use of the nickname only her family called  her and from his touch. For the first time in-how long?-she was lost for  words. How was it possible she could react to him this way? Usually,  her mind and body were totally in agreement about things. How had this  Chenayan gotten under her skin like this?

Lynx sensed someone watching her. She looked up to see Emperor Mott  standing at the doors, studying her, Axel, and Lukan's empty seat. She  had no idea how long he had been there. Her appetite fled, and she  pushed her plate of fruit away.

"Not eating? That means you're either cross or upset," Axel said.

Lynx cast a sideways glance at Axel, surprised he'd noticed that about her. "Neither. Worried better describes my mood."

"‘Worried'? Now why would that be?" Axel paused. "Given that you're among friends. Or rather, should I say, ‘friend'?"

Lynx scoffed and then gestured to Lukan's empty seat.

"Ah. I see. I can't believe you're actually missing our illustrious crown prince."

"No. Not really." Lynx bit her lip, then added, "But you know those troops stationed in Tanamre?"

Axel's face cleared of all expression, as if he had turned into a complete stranger.

Lynx hesitated, not sure whether she should confide in him. But as he  probably knew more about Mott's plans than she did, it wouldn't hurt to  tap him for information.                       
       
           



       

"The emperor has threatened to send those troops to my father's tent . .  . if-if Lukan and I don't provide him with a grandson. He's given me  three months from the date of our marriage to comply." She gestured to  the empty chair again. "Not looking good, is it?"

Axel coughed and then brushed it off with a strained smile. "He expects a  grandson in three months? I know you Norin are rebellious, but not even  you lot would get away with defying Mother Nature like that."

"Very funny." Lynx pulled her plate back and forced herself to eat  another strawberry. It tasted like ash. "So why do you think he said  that? Are his, Lukan's, Tao's, and your deaths so imminent that he so  desperately needs another heir?"

She spotted a guardsman plying through the tables toward her.

Axel must have seen him, too, because he leaned in, almost brushing her  cheek with his lips. "Interesting question, but it seems like one of us  is about to be summoned."

Lynx's fingers whitened around the handle of her fork. It had to be Mott. Who else would want to speak to her?