Chapter 22 #3
Instead of telling him to kiss me, I say, “Thank you for bringing me here. It’s a lovely place.
If you ever come to Kyrr, I’ll have to show you my favorite village.
” He squeezes my hand but doesn’t say anything further.
The water beneath the bridge sparkles in the late afternoon sunlight.
Anders shifts, and as I glance up, I notice a man approaching, eyeing us both.
Anders not so subtly swaps sides with me, taking my left hand as we continue across the bridge.
A chill sweeps up my spine, and I notice Anders’ slight movement as he positions himself in front of me.
As the man nears, I notice his worn, thin cloak covering wrinkled, ashen skin, but his violet eyes give me pause. He stops before us, his eyes locked solely on me behind Anders’ shoulder. “The birth of the new dawn is coming, Light-bringer,” the man rasps.
The man bows before us both, and Anders tenses. The weird interaction is over before we can say anything, and the man continues on in the opposite direction.
“What does that mean?” I look over my shoulder, recalling the exact words from the temple.
But as I look back, the man has already vanished.
Anders shakes his head, displeased with the interaction, and mutters about strange people before protectively wrapping an arm around my shoulders as we continue to the other side.
“Alright, Princess, it’s time to head back.
” He turns his gaze toward the horizon where the sun is beginning to set, casting a golden hue across the landscape.
“I have a promise to keep to the King and Queen, and I don’t think they’d be too pleased with me if I broke it.
” As he speaks, the sun highlights the light brown and gold streaks in his effortlessly perfect tousled hair.
I let him lead us back to the hoverboards, his arm still draped around me.
I can’t help but tease him, “So you actually want my parents to like you?” The words escape my lips with a playful lilt, but I notice a flicker of something darker in his eyes.
For just a brief moment, the playful mask he usually wears slips away, revealing a glimpse of the secrets buried within.
But as quickly as it appears, he regains his composure, sliding his mask back into place with practiced ease.
That sudden shift unsettles me, creating a knot of unease in the pit of my stomach. “I want everyone to like me,” he replies, his tone light, though the faint tremor in his voice hints at something more lurking beneath the surface.
A thousand questions rush to my mind, but it’s not my place to push, and we’ve shared a lovely day together that I don’t want to ruin.
He’s not obligated to divulge his secrets to me.
I am, after all, just a momentary blip in his life.
By the time he graduates, he’ll be ushered into Bonding ceremonies where he’ll find a wife and then be crowned king.
This is all temporary. So why does his shutting me out hurt so badly?
Instead of pressing him for answers, I swallow my disappointment, trying to keep my emotions in check. I roll my eyes in a feigned expression of annoyance and march ahead.
“You’re truly insufferable, Prince,” I tease when we finally reach the hoverboards, my sarcasm tinged with some truth.
He merely chuckles in response. I struggle to shake off the sadness and heaviness in my heart that he feels obligated to hide a part of himself from me.
I wish he would let me in—if only just a little.
He loads all of our purchases into a seagrass bag and straps it to his back while I fish out the hand controls from my own overstuffed bag. As if sensing the change in mood, he steps closer, tilting my chin up.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” he asks quietly, his eyes searching my face for answers.
I bite into my lip and shrug as nonchalantly as possible, begging the burn in the back of my throat and my eyes to go away.
By some miracle, my eyes don’t fill with unshed tears.
He studies my face a moment before I wrap my arms around him, burying my face into his chest. If he won’t let me in, I’ll just be here in whatever capacity he allows.
“I don’t want today to end,” I admit, my voice betraying me as it wobbles.
He wraps his arms around me, tucking my head into his arm as he presses his mouth to the top of my head. For long moments, he doesn’t say anything; he just holds me, and that unsettled feeling leaves me in the form of a few tears, but once they’re shed, I feel so much better.
I step back and tuck my hair behind my ears, wiping my eyes before looking up at him with a small, closed-mouthed smile.
He studies me again, brushing my hair back before placing a soft kiss on my forehead.
After a short pause, he pulls back, nodding like he’s accepting whatever just happened between us.
I exhale and turn to get on my board. The sun will set soon, and I want to be back before it gets dark.
Plus, I really want to meet Princess Clara.
Anders’ hands wrap around my waist from behind me. His grip tightens, his thumbs brushing the bare skin on my lower back until my feet are strapped in.
His hands leave my waist, and he walks in front of me, cupping the side of my cheek while his other hand places the barrier back on my temple. “Thank you.”
His thumb brushes so close to my lips while we maintain eye contact. He dips his head, and just when I think he might actually kiss me, he whispers a response of “My pleasure” back.
I hear him sigh and, at the same time, get a lungful of his scent. In a moment of desperation, I’m gripping his shirt, holding him in place. A raucous laughter breaks whatever spell we’ve been in, and he pulls away, placing his own barrier on his temple.
“Keep up, Princess,” he teases before jumping on his board. His one-eighty in his emotions has me confused for a moment before I laugh and follow after him.