Chapter 9 #3
“They are persistent, aren’t they?” Xavier gave the ghost of his usual flirtatious smile, but Alina had the impression that underneath it, he was exhausted.
A laugh bubbled up in her. “As that serving girl demonstrated nicely,” she said. “You really have no one to blame but yourself, you know, with the way you carry on.”
That banished his moment of weariness. “I’m wounded,” he declared, slapping one strong hand over the center of his chest. “I have no idea what you mean.”
“I think you do,” Alina said, amused.
She’d been loaned a traveling cloak by Mrs. Pincer, the garment currently over her shoulders.
With a flourish, she swirled it off, directing the resultant Dust to latch on to the laces of Xavier’s tunic.
They were loosened in a rakish way that she had no doubt was very intentional.
But under her direction, the magic made quick work of pulling them tight, until the garment was actually quite respectable.
“That’s just mean-spirited,” Xavier complained, although his eyes were dancing with appreciation. “I’ve been told my broad, manly chest is one of my best features.”
Alina was laughing again. “Who in Ryki actually said that to you?”
“Well, it was more that I overheard it,” he acknowledged. “You’re not really one to lecture, sweeping your cloak off so dramatically.”
“I needed the movement to generate Dust,” she protested. “It was the perfect option.”
“Ah, yes, because of the principle of inverting movement for the simplest conversion into magic.”
“Yes, actually,” Alina said. She was a little surprised he’d listened and remembered.
“I’m not sure I fully understand the principle,” he said innocently. “Maybe you should put your cloak back on, see what that magic does to the state of my tunic.”
“Nice try,” Alina scoffed. “You’ll have to try a lot harder than that.”
“Oh, I’ve barely begun to try,” he said, an unsettling glint in his eyes.
“And you wonder why local girls are throwing themselves at you,” Alina scolded.
“I do, actually.” Xavier leaned against the wall, crossing his arms and looking thoughtful. “I mean, I know I’m irresistible, naturally.”
“Naturally,” Alina parroted gravely.
“But I am a little surprised by the, well, aggressiveness.” His tone was more serious as he met her eyes. “Even you, my harshest critic, have to admit no encouragement has been required.”
“If I’m your harshest critic, you have an easy life,” she quipped. “But yes, it’s been fairly overwhelming. I suspect the rumors are to blame.”
“Rumors?” He repeated the word with a frown. “Which rumors, precisely?”
“Oh, well…” Alina trailed off, suddenly finding it hard to meet his eyes. “The word is that if a girl bears you an illegitimate child, the crown will pay handsomely for her discretion. Enough to support her and the child for life.”
Her words were met with silence, and she snuck a peek. He was staring at her, taken aback. All laughter was gone from his face now, his brows growing heavier by the moment.
“They say it’s standard.” She cleared her throat. “I imagine some at least of your…admirers are hoping for a fabulous payment.”
“That,” said Xavier, in a surprisingly calm voice, “is nonsense. No one has received payment for discretion from me or my parents in the whole course of my life.”
“So you leave your illegitimate children to fend for themselves, do you?”
Her attempt at humor fell woefully flat. Xavier straightened, his arms still crossed and his voice agitated.
“I’ve fathered no children, illegitimate or otherwise,” he said, his words tight.
Unsure what to do other than try to make light of the situation, Alina said, “Can you be sure, though, really?”
Xavier stood his ground, his stance confident as he held her gaze.
“I can be absolutely sure.”
A strange breathlessness crept over Alina as she considered his words. She didn’t know what to make of it all, and it must have showed on her face, because Xavier became visibly upset.
“Do you not believe me? Do you really think that being a prince means I have no need to consider consequences?”
“I…I don’t know,” she said. That was basically what she’d thought, but she didn’t think it would be helpful to say it. “I’m sorry if I upset you,” she said instead. “I didn’t mean to offend. It’s just…it’s hard to believe rumors could be so far from the truth.”
“Then you don’t know much about rumors,” Xavier said in a hard voice.
“It’s quite a shift, though, isn’t it?” she said with a flash of spirit. “Picturing you plagued by rumors you can’t extinguish in spite of your best efforts to prove them all wrong with your consistent behavior to the contrary?”
“I didn’t say that.” He was frustrated, and he wasn’t the only one.
“You have nothing to explain to me,” Alina said. “I have no grievance with you, and no need for you to prove or disprove anything. Thank you for walking me to my room. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She didn’t wait for him to reply before slipping into her room and closing the door. By what she could hear as she leaned back against the wood, he stood there for a long time before finally walking away.