Chapter Fourteen #2
Two young chambermaids laugh loudly together as they carry two big baskets of bedsheets across the hall.
Both short and fair-haired, like twins, they gasp and dip their heads and hurry their pace as soon as they realise my eyes are on them.
I want to tell them that their laughter is like my favourite childhood song, that they shouldn’t quell it in my presence, but they are gone before the thought reaches my lips.
‘Care for some company?’ a smooth male voice says, and I almost fall to the floor with the fright. I look to the culprit. The man is a familiar presence of dark, shining curls, sweet chocolate eyes and the spice of cinnamon in the air. The duke. Ansel Reyer.
I right myself on the bench, smoothing out the velvet of my Umbrian dress, hoping he does not notice the differing style. I pat the space next to me, inviting him to sit. A handsomely earnest smile enchants his features.
‘Still ever so easy to startle I see, Your grace.’
I breathe a light laugh, feeling my cheeks as they burn crimson. ‘I’m not anything if not consistent.’
His eyes trail over me. ‘I must say, I was disappointed not to have found you again, after our dance. I was hoping I’d get the chance to frequent your company.’
I trace swirls against the fabric of my dress, not meeting his eye. ‘You will have to forgive my absence, it would seem there is more to life as a royal than I had initially anticipated. Most of which urgently captured my attentions.’
‘Anything for which I can be of assistance?’
I shake my head, keeping my focus downward.
‘That is a generous offer. But, at this present moment I would much rather a distraction from what burdens me.’
‘Perhaps you might join me for my morning coffee?’ Ansel suggests. ‘Forgive me for saying it, but you do look like you could use a little pick-me-up.’
Having been up all night, the thought of coffee is the only thing that sparks my enthusiasm to stay awake.
Plus, I quite enjoy the ease of the duke’s company.
It’s certainly more bearable than the insufferable presence of the Umbrian king, and I am glad for the temporary reprieve, if not somewhat troubled by the thought of what Eliaz may be up to within these walls.
I meet his eyes with an appreciative smile.
‘Coffee sounds lovely, perhaps you can tell me why you remain in Grange over a cup? The festivities are quite over from what I can gather.’
‘The absence of the new princess does leave little to celebrate, you’re correct.’
‘And?’
‘Ah, ah, ah. I will tell you if you join me for coffee.’ The duke rises to his feet with a hand extended to me, an offering of furthering our acquaintance.
I bring my hand up to accept, but teasingly retract it just before his fingers grasp mine.
His crooked lips turn upwards into an incredibly charming smirk.
‘No?’
‘I don’t share drinks with people who hold back information from me, especially those who use it to bargain with me for their own selfish interests.’
He trails his tongue across his teeth, shoulders bouncing with a chuckle, eyes full of delicious delight.
‘I have a master negotiator on my hands. Well, how about a compromise. I will tell you anything you wish to know, on our walk to the parlour. Will that suffice?’
I raise my shin, looking at him in a sideways glance, faking arrogance.
‘I suppose that might be agreeable. Only if you promise to answer any question I ask, no matter how outrageous.’
‘Oh, I would never dare hold back truth from the Princess of Reyhen. For I don’t doubt she’d have my head if she found me swimming in deceit.’
‘One can never be too inquisitive.’ I ignore his still outstretched hand and get to my feet, wandering across the entrance hall without a glance to the duke, trying to quell the smile creeping onto my lips.
I slow my pace slightly when the sound of his footsteps slap against the walls, and Ansel finds his pace at my side with a breathy puff.
He slides his arm into mine, and my stomach flutters at the boldness of it.
I let him keep it there, if not only out of interest towards what might happen should those gentle hands explore their surroundings.
I swallow down the thought, unsure how I would deal with any advances from harmless flirting into more physical teasing.
‘I remain here on business, and part of that business relies on getting on your mother’s good side, which is another reason I decided to stay – to assist in her search for you.’
Guilt clutches my throat, hindering my breathing. I hadn’t even considered the fact that people would be looking for me, or that my mother would have some form of worry over her missing daughter – heir to the throne or not.
‘Oh gods, I didn’t even give any thought to the mass panic that would ensue in my absence.’ I think of the young chambermaids, and how unsurprised they were to see me here, intimidated yes, but not surprised. My eyes part even wider at the duke. ‘My mother kept it secret, didn’t she?’
Ansel sighs, nodding. ‘I heard about the missing princess through muttered conversations between the guards, who had been tipped to keep an eye out for any untoward figures in the night. Your mother wished to avoid mass hysteria it would seem.’
I look to my feet as we exit the entrance hall and head down the corridor in the direction of the guest parlour.
‘I understand, I guess.’ My lip twitches as I try to push down and quell the storm that grows within me, willing calm to take its place.
‘What is this business you speak of?’ I shake our linked elbows. ‘What could a bad-boy duke possibly want with the Queen of Reyhen?’
‘To better his reputation for starters.’ His cheekbones jut out further with his smile. ‘But, also to address the rapid decrease in population. Algran is becoming a ghost town, business owners and their families are vanishing, and the wellbeing of the remaining population is at risk.’
Knowing where the people are disappearing to, I offer the duke as much solace as I am able.
‘I’m afraid you would be shouting at a wall of stone should you plead with my mother for any assistance. But, it just so happens, the company you seek within me may be of some benefit to you. I am working on a solution to this detrimental issue.’
The halls are bright as we pass through, and my eyes ache as they adjust to the lightness of Reyhen after being encased in an almost perpetual state of obscure lighting the entire time I was in Umbra. Servants and guards bow their heads as we pass, before continuing on with their duties.
‘I am eager to hear of your plans for action. It seems it was fateful I found you today.’
I doubt he would be so eager if he found out who I am working with to right the kingdom.