Page 160 of The Mercy of Dawn

Out of thin-fucking-air, every damn time.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Runa smiled at him and smoothed her hand over his back.

“Usually, you’re a little broody,” his mother spoke quietly as she sorted through the open bottles of wine and found one that caught her interest, “But tonight, you’ve been especially broody. A little pouty, even.”

Mikael just cast her a sidelong glance and drained his glass. He wasn’t sure how his father enjoyed drinking this firewater, but that didn’t stop him from pouring himself another.

“Did something happen?” A little more softly, she added, “With Cyril, maybe?”

“Nothing happened.” And that was the entire damn problem.

His mother hummed. “Interrupted plans?”

Mikael might have scoffed. “Something like that.”

One of them looked amused, at least.

“You really like her, don’t you?” More a statement than a question from his mother, her eyes lingering past him for a long while, to where he knew Cyril sat with her uncles. He could hear her over there, giving shit to one of them about something he couldn’t quite make out. “And I actually mean her, as a person, and not just her body.”

Mikael knew he didn’t have a shining reputation for his comfort with commitment, but fucking hells…

“Good to know you think so highly of me.”

Runa rolled her eyes. “It’s just nice to see, Mika.”

“That’s not what you were saying a couple of weeks ago.”

He seemed to recall having a remarkably different conversation with her in the atrium the day after the state dinner.

“And I see things differently now.” His mother took a long sip of her wine. Gods forbid she admitted she was wrong about something. “Why don’t you go join her?”

“Join her?” Mikael stared at his mother. “There are four people in this room I am certain would enjoy dismembering me if I get too close to her. So, discretion.”

It felt better than it should have to toss his mother’s advice back, as if she conveniently forgot about that lecture. He’d had so many, it must have been hard for her to keep track.

She didn’t have an immediate argument against that.

Her eyes lit up, though, and Mikael feared whatever just ran through her mind. He would have walked away if she hadn’t linked arms with him and started tugging him along.

“You should try to get to know Dion a bit. I think it would do a world of good.”

Absolutely fucking not.

That man was about as thorny as they came, and Mikael had no interest in getting to know any bit more of him. But his mother was stronger than she looked and Mikael wasn’t about to cause a scene.

“Mother, I don’t think–”

“Lars, my love? Dion?” Runa called out, waving a hand delicately in the air. “Can we join the two of you?”

Like hells, his father would never say no to her.

The King of Reykr stood, a hint of sway in his step, and Dion followed suit. They hauled over another two armchairs to the fire and his mother all but corralled him into the one between herself and Dion.

He should’ve just stayed for Ezra’s lecture.

“Do you smoke?” Dion asked, and it took Mikael a second longer than he’d have liked to realize that Dion was speaking to him. The Rogue Master fixed his eyes on him, a metal case tucked between his middle and pointer fingers.