Chapter 11
“Yes, I agree. The roses were some of the most stunning ones I have ever seen. Thank you for showing me.” I fluttered my lashes, as was expected of me.
Gabriel guided me through garden paths laid with white stones and lined with thick hedges. Fountains stood proud in the center of seating areas with marble benches and shade trees. Thankfully, none of them held crimson liquid as the pillar did in the courtyard. My stomach turned at the thought.
“I look forward to showing you more of my home.” He lightly traced the back of my hand with his thumb.
I slowly pulled away from him. His proximity to me was inching closer with each passing hour.
So much so that I could feel his body heat.
We approached an outside wall of the castle and paused.
“And thank you for taking me to check on Cora. I just needed to lay eyes on her for a moment. I am a bit of a nervous parent.”
Gabriel inclined his head. “She’s fitting in well. I hope witnessing her care eased some of the burden of your worry.”
“It did.”
Gabriel beamed. “Excellent. Would you care to see the orchards?” I tracked the location he gestured toward.
On the northern point of the property, tall trees bursting with apples and pears peeked over the hedges.
“The apples are beautifully ripe this time of year.” Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Gabriel trailing hooded eyes up and down my body.
I took a step to the side and turned toward him, creating distance between us. “That sounds lovely, but perhaps another day? I was hoping you would escort me to my rooms, since I have it to myself for a little while.”
A corner of his mouth flicked upward, and he took a step toward me, narrowing the gap I had just settled between us.
“I would love nothing more.” His voice pitched lower.
“You wasted no time. I like that.” His arm snaked around my waist, fingers splayed wide on my back, and tugged me into him.
It was quicker than I could process. My chest forced against his abdomen, and what little air I had been able to intake, due to this blasted dress, was stripped from my lungs.
The mask of nobility I thought I had fastened tightly chipped and cracked. Enough to let the fire I tried to keep doused inside me ignite to life. A white flame formed from years of being a target of entitlement. My body an object for perusal, entertainment, and pleasure.
My brows knitted together. I slid my palms against Gabriel’s chest, and I pushed against him with a strength I didn’t know I had buried within me.
He released me at once, and I stumbled backward. His jaw dropped, and his eyes widened.
I blinked and pulled in a breath. Shit, shit, SHIT!
“Your Highness,” I gasped out. ‘I—I am so sorry.” My hands clasped over my mouth. The rage I had let seep through the cracks swiftly plunged back inside the depths of me, leaving a giant and deadly error in its wake.
Gabriel’s focus bounced around the clearing before landing back on me. He shook his head. “No, I misinterpreted what you asked of me.”
I dropped my hands. “To rest,” I clarified. “I wish to go to my rooms to rest before dinner.”
Gabriel tugged at each of his sleeves and nodded.
“Of course.” He opened his mouth and abruptly closed it.
A silent moment hung as heavily in the air as the honeyed scent of the orchard just beyond the hedge.
“I—I don’t know what has gotten into me.
Please know that I am not usually this forward.
You pull something out of me. I will control myself. I can control myself.”
I nodded but averted my eyes.
He offered me his arm, and his voice softened. “Come on. I will walk you back to your rooms.” I hesitantly hooked my arm through his, but he maintained his distance.
We wound back through hedges and hallways and stairs.
The previous chatter of the day had been left in the gardens.
Upon approaching my rooms, Gabriel kissed my cheek with a soft smile, turned without another word, and strode back down the hall.
The knot in my stomach loosened as he disappeared, out of sight.
I wasted no time clamoring through the door to my rooms. At the click of the latch, I yanked at laces, unfastened buttons, and rid myself of the layers of tight and hot chiffon that imprisoned me for far too long.
Having to revert to gowns, perfectly styled hair, and speaking with poise and elegance had been daunting, to say the least. The relief as I sat down on our plush bed in nothing but my undergarments was immense.
The frilly, pink nightmare lay crumpled on the floor, and I kicked it away from me.
I half considered for a moment burning it in the fireplace, but then thought the better of it.
That may not come across as ladylike or grateful.
I took out the pins holding my hair tightly in place, and my ash-brown waves cascaded down the middle of my back.
I was uncinched. Unbound. Able to breathe.
A deep sigh fell out of me as I flopped on my back, cushioned by the fluffy quilt splayed across the bed.
I had been in Tironaill for only one moon, and I had already come close to death and let a man kiss me...
twice. I stared up at the canopy above me.
The chill in the room was welcoming, cooling off my overheated skin—a leftover from the fiery anger I had to push back down inside me.
I came so close to costing us help and safety.
My mask slipped, and the anger I had been able to express so freely for the past four years wasn’t as easy to rid myself of as I had expected.
I was lucky he didn’t take me straight to a cell or toss us to the street to fend for ourselves.
Gabriel teetered between a quintessential noble who could make me cringe, only to produce something within me that softened to him.
This seemed like Clotha’s handiwork, weaving in not only obstacles but distractions.
I was beginning to think I was her favorite plaything.
“You look beautiful, Rory,” Gabriel whispered to me just as I bit into the crust of a warm piece of buttery bread.
The dark, wooden banquet hall table was filled with more food than I had ever seen in one sitting.
The savory smells of roasted boar, duck, and rabbit stew wafted through the room.
Wine filled to the top of crystal goblets, much to the pleasure of each noble seated at the table.
Most were on their second or third pour.
I took calculated sips of my first and only glass.
Wine made for lowered inhibitions and vulnerability. I wanted neither.
“Thank you, Your Highness,” I replied.
I laid my napkin on top of the rosy colored skirt covering my lap.
The dress that Anya had brought me made me crinkle my nose at it before smoothing out my expression.
It was berry-toned at the top and faded into various shades of pink until the bottom, which was so pale it was nearing white.
The plunging neckline showed more than what I was comfortable with.
My only consolation was that it wasn’t a corset.
At the hollow of my throat sat a small diamond on a silver chain, and pink pearls hung from my ears.
A pretty ensemble—if it had been any other color.
Cora sat to my left, and on her other side sat Prince Percie, a handsome youngling with his mother’s honey hair and father’s icy blue eyes.
He was a lovely boy with whom Cora was at ease.
Princess Sellen, on the other hand, had her father’s disposition, but she looked entirely like Queen Mollah.
She was younger but acted like she was the older sibling, ordering Percie around at every chance and making snide comments to him from across the table.
She had a spoiled presence and didn’t engage with Cora, even when she was addressed by her.
King Torrish sat at the head of the table, looking rather bored, and buried himself in his goblet of wine. Queen Mollah sat to his right. Her dress for the evening glimmered in the candlelight like stars, and she doted on her children readily, an attentive mother. Impressive, coming from a queen.
“Your Majesty, dinner has been lovely,” I said to Mollah. “Thank you for taking Cora into your care today. I hope she stayed polite and minded her manners.”
The Queen laid a delicate hand on her chest. “She was an absolute joy. Percie and Cora are so much alike. He needs a friend like her.”
I smiled with pride. “I am sure the prince has many friends!” I looked down at my daughter, animatedly talking with Percie. “Cora speaks highly of him. I would love to introduce her to other noble younglings,” I said in kind.
A wistful smile ached on Queen Mollah’s face, and the room quieted. Most of the nobles stared at me with somber expressions. A few of the women hung their heads, unable to look at me. A pit in my stomach formed as I realized I had said something wrong. “My apologies. Did I say something offensive?”
Gabriel placed his hand on my thigh, and I tensed. “Aurora, I should have mentioned this before. Angheal younglings are a sensitive topic. Dinner is not the place for this discussion.” His voice was calm and quiet.
“Oh, I apologize,” I responded hastily to the queen. “I did not know.”
“Gabriel, it is fine,” the Queen said tenderly. “It is better to discuss it here, amongst everyone, so she may understand the plight of our situation.”
All heads turned to Queen Mollah, apart from King Torrish, who continued to take interest only in his drink. “Aurora, our population is dwindling. Angheal women cannot produce offspring any longer, and we only have around twenty angheal younglings left in the entire seraph population.”