She’d known that, but…“Why?”

Kiara answered. “Nykyrian doesn’t like to be grabbed from behind. Luckily, I’m much shorter than what his muscle memory accounts for, and as a former dancer, I have exceptional reflexes.” She looked down at her stomach. “Well, not so much right now. But…”

Nykyrian gave his wife a droll stare. “I’ve never once harmed her. Kyr, on the other hand, came at me and made the mistake of being alone when he did it. Don’t come barking at my door unless you have a fierce bite.”

Before anyone could respond, one of the ladies came over and cleared her throat. “Now that the meeting is wrapping up, we’ll be sitting down for dinner in a few minutes.” She bowed to Caillen and Nykyrian. “We have prepared places for both of your highnesses and your wives.”

“Thank you,” they said in unison.

The hostess curtsied again, then left.

“Who was that?” Zarya asked Maris since he seemed to know everyone. And most importantly, he knew their secrets.

“That would be Lady Nylan.”

Zarya’s jaw dropped. “As in…”

Maris inclined his head. “Since the senator’s one of the oldest members of the CDS, she’s the delegate wife who’s been hosting the social part of all their meetings for decades.”

Meanwhile her husband…

Zarya didn’t want to think about that. She was too afraid of what she might do to the man. How could anyone be married to someone like that? I will never understand people.

Most of all, she’d never understand their cruelty.

Everyone began adjourning for the dining room.

Nykyrian, Kiara, Caillen, Desideria, and Kiara’s father went in first since they were considered guest dignitaries. Something that confused her.

“Why aren’t you considered a foreign dignitary?” she asked Maris.

“They don’t like me.”

She popped him playfully on the arm. “I’m serious.”

“So am I.”

She didn’t believe that until they started to enter the dining room. Lady Nylan met them at the door and pulled them aside.

Her gaze cold, Lady Nylan put on a false smile. “Because of the unexpected guests, we ran out of place settings. As a result, we’ve set a small table for the two of you, outside of the dining room. That is, if you don’t mind.”

Zarya loved when people said that, knowing they weren’t about to take a negative response. She felt like protesting just to rub the woman the wrong way, but the last thing she wanted to do was cause a scene and embarrass Darling any more than what had already been done to him.

“Of course, my lady,” Zarya said, proud of herself that she kept her disdain from showing.

“Please, follow me.” Funny how her tone completely disagreed with that formal civility.

Maris rolled his eyes behind the hostess’s back. “We don’t want to sit with those apes anyway,” he whispered to her.

Agreeing completely, Zayra came to an abrupt halt as she saw the small side table that had been pulled out for them. “Small” being the operative word. It must have been an end table in the conference room. The chairs were tiny foldaways with stained gray cushions. And while the linens were clean, they, too, were stained in places.