Chapter 3 #2
“You didn’t know?” Zoe looked scandalized. “He’s leading the investigation!”
“Who is?” Alina demanded.
“I’m not paying you to gossip in the doorway!”
The voice issued from the owner’s study, and Zoe flounced past Alina, rolling her eyes dramatically.
Alina’s heart was in her throat as she moved more slowly into the main room. Her eyes flew instantly to the alcove, but she could only see those seated on the end seats.
His Highness? The prince was here, in this tavern? But which prince? It was Prince Theodore, it had to be. The dependable and responsible one, that’s who would be sent to lead an investigation.
She knew it wasn’t Prince Theodore. He had no reputation for breaking hearts. But she stubbornly tried to pretend she believed it, right up until the moment the alcove came into full view.
There, at the center of the group, sat Prince Xavier.
The heir to Siqual’s throne was unmistakable.
Not because he looked especially like a prince.
It wasn’t as though he was wearing a crown in the tavern.
He didn’t even have a ceremonial jacket over his tunic, and that garment was of a striking blue that was too vibrant a color for formality.
It was unarguably of excellent quality, as fine as any her father had sold in his prime.
But the laces were rakishly loosened, and the sleeves rolled up to the elbow.
The prince’s dark hair was brushed to one side in an appealingly windswept kind of way, and he was laughing as he looked at a solemn-faced guard seated at one edge of the group.
No, he was unmistakable because everything about him was seared into her memory.
Xavier.
Alina actually stumbled a little as she approached the table, hardly able to comprehend it.
Had it been ten years? He’d changed so little.
And yet…her eyes lingered over the muscles revealed by those rolled-up sleeves, the broad shoulders and the sleek lines of his face.
Of course he’d changed. He was a man now, fully grown.
And Zoe had been right. Rumors of his good looks hadn’t done him justice.
Alina would be amazed if there was a single girl in the court who could resist falling head over heels for him the way her teenage self had once done.
Meanwhile, she had changed—more than that former version of herself could ever have imagined. And not for the better.
A sudden shot of anguish went through her. She shouldn’t care about her pride, but she did. She didn’t want him to see her like this, working as a tavern wench in a patched gown, far from anywhere.
Balancing the tray in one hand, she yanked the tie from her hair, letting the dark waves fall around her face.
The movement had the prince’s eyes turning in her direction, and Alina quickly lowered her head. She angled herself to the side, so her hair fell across her face as she efficiently moved the items from her tray to the table. Ignoring the empty tankards, she turned away immediately.
As she retreated, she heard the prince’s voice, with a lilt of humor that was somehow still familiar in spite of the years since she’d heard it.
“Cheerful, friendly service here, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps she was overawed by your presence, Your Highness.”
The reply was said in a sober tone, but Alina was sure the prince was still laughing to himself as he agreed politely with the speaker. Face burning, she hurried back to the kitchen, not drawing a proper breath until she was within its sanctuary.
At least he hadn’t tried to flirt with her.
Although…given his reputation for flirting with every halfway attractive girl he met, should she be offended rather than relieved?
A trickle of humor made it through the shock that had her acting so foolishly.
Awkward as any advances from him would have been, she was also quite curious to see how his famed charm had grown along with those muscles.
What an absurd fix she was in!
“Your hair has come loose, Alina.” The helpful information came from Olivia, who was on her way out of the kitchen.
Alina nodded, wincing as the shout rang across the space.
“Another one for the group from the capital!”
“Zoe.” Alina flagged the other girl down as she entered the room. “Your wish has been granted. You take this next tray to the prince’s table.”
“What?” Zoe’s eyes brightened. “Are you sure? The boss won’t like you overriding his instructions.”
“I don’t care,” Alina said. “I don’t want to serve that table.” She saw Zoe’s bewilderment and added, “Too much pressure.”
Zoe raised one delicate eyebrow, her expression shrewd.
“I’ve never seen you wilt under pressure, Alina.
What is it, really? Did he cross a line?
You can’t stand on ceremony with someone of his rank, you have to understand that they’re used to taking liberties.
They don’t think about consequences the way the rest of us have to, they’ve never had the opportunity to learn the skill. ”
“No, no, the prince didn’t say anything to me,” Alina said impatiently. “Do you want to argue about it, Zoe, or do you want to serve the table?”
“When you put it like that…” Zoe primped her hair, which was almost as dark as Alina’s, but with thick curls that always escaped their ties in a very provocative way. “How do I look?”
“You know the answer to that, you peacock,” Alina laughed. “Now get out there and claim the admiration your heart craves.”
Zoe chuckled as she scooped up the tray, leaving the kitchen with her swaying gait. Alina let out a sigh. She’d gained herself a reprieve, but it was still going to be a long evening.
She was right. Ridiculous as she knew her pride was, she was still reluctant to let Prince Xavier get a good look at her. She kept her hair down as she served every other table as needed, deftly avoiding approaching too close to the alcove.
Even if he does see my face, he probably won’t recognize me, she reasoned with herself as she poured ale at the counter.
There might have been no one in my life to drive him out of my mind in the decade since we meant something to one another, but there have been countless women who would have been glad to erase me from his memory.
Zoe seemed determined to join that list, Alina noted wryly.
The other girl had taken the opening at a canter, and a couple of hours later, she was still monopolizing all service to the table in the alcove.
She’d barely attended to any other patrons.
Alina had mostly stayed far enough away not to hear the interactions, but she found herself clearing a table uncomfortably close by when Zoe brought a fresh round of drinks.
“You are an angel.” Prince Xavier’s voice held the warmth of familiarity, as if he’d known Zoe for years instead of having met her hours before. “But how can I drink when I’m hypnotized by those dazzling eyes? Forgive me—they’re so striking, I’m sure you must tire of hearing their praises sung.”
“I get compliments enough, Your Highness,” Zoe said, her movements confident and graceful as she took her time filling her tray with empty flagons and plates. The opposite of Alina’s poor service.
Alina dared a glance, and saw that at some stage, the prince had repositioned, and now sat at the edge of the group. Much more dangerous for Alina’s goal of remaining unseen. But much more convenient for his goal of flirting with the serving girl.
The group had spared no expense on their meal, Alina noted. The boss would be pleased. He’d be hoping to lure them back as often as possible while they were in the area conducting their investigation.
Her heart sank at the thought, not helped by Xavier’s mischievous tone as he bolstered Zoe’s vanity with more overblown compliments.
It wasn’t just his looks that were living up to rumor, she reflected.
He was every bit as flirtatious and heedless as his reputation claimed.
She’d been wise in her decision all those years ago.
Everything she’d heard of him since had supported her conclusion that his promises shouldn’t be taken seriously.
The thought reassured her, and her heart didn’t even flutter as she surreptitiously studied the prince’s face.
“You’ll have to work a little harder to impress a northern girl, Your Highness,” Zoe was saying outrageously. She flicked her hair over her shoulder in a very practiced gesture. “We don’t swoon over pretty words like girls in the capital might.”
“Then I’m sunk,” Prince Xavier said despairingly. “My pretty words are all I have to offer. Nothing else to recommend me, I’m afraid.”
Zoe chuckled. “Well, that is a shame, Your Highness.”
“So heartless,” the prince told her, as she started to walk away. “Off to enchant some other poor soul.”
“I have no skill in magic,” Zoe said quickly, stopping in her tracks.
She’d spoken more loudly than necessary, and her eyes were cautious as they scanned the room to see who might have overheard the prince’s words. Her eyes caught briefly on Alina’s, and Alina scrunched her nose sympathetically. Then she followed Zoe’s gaze as it returned to the prince.
“Forgive me, Your Highness. We don’t much like jokes about magic around here lately.”
Alina saw the surprise flash across the prince’s face, and for a moment, she was sure that she saw a keenness to his eyes that was at odds with his lazy words.
“My apologies.”
Alina turned her back on the prince’s group as she cleaned the empty table.
She was facing the door to the kitchen, so she had a good view of the sulky look on Zoe’s face when she re-emerged.
Based on that—and the fact that she went behind the counter to assist those seated on the stools—Alina concluded that the owner had finally realized what Zoe was doing.
Alina slowed her movements, in no rush to go into the kitchen and be ordered to wait on the prince’s table as originally instructed. The group called for their total, and she allowed herself to relax further. The night’s ordeal would soon be over.