Page 40 of Of Song and Scepter
“How go the wedding plans?” she pries. “I’ve been thinking, it’d be lovely to have flowers for the ball.” A waft of her scent floods my nose—thick and floral, like roses too long in the sun.
Lord Varik chuckles darkly. “The prince is busy, my lady. Do not worry him with such things.”
I stare at her hand on my wrist, curling around my bare skin. Her palm is sweaty and warm. “Silver, do you think? And white? To match the princess’s aura.”
“The traditional color is pink,” I say on instinct. A pity, that. As abundant as it is in my kingdom’s decor, I’ve never cared much for the color. Except for the particular shade of pink that stained the handmaid’s cheeks the day I met her—when I thought she was mine.
An odd sensation flutters in my stomach when I recall those sun-stained cheeks. I haven’t seen Enna at a close distance since the garden incident, and I—
I shake my head to clear the thought. It can’t be that I miss her. Can it? Twisting my wrist, I gently dislodge from Lady Myrrh’s grip.
The lady blinks, as if broken from a trance, and steps back. “White and pink, then.”
“Sounds perfect. Lady Myrrh, if you could arrange with the florists to bring these ideas to life, I cannot wait to see what you come up with.” Once more, I step toward my exit.
The councilwoman splutters. “Pardon, Your Highness. Me?”
“Yes. You are the minister of entertainment, no? And you have an eye for beauty. I’d love to see how your vision transforms the throne room for the upcoming ball.”
Her brows furrow as if suddenly calculating difficult math. “It would be an honor,” she says finally.
“Excellent.” Another step toward the kitchen.
Lord Varik snorts. “Assigning tasks to the council directly, are we? Your mother would never—”
I’m two paces past the council member, yet I whirl to face him. “My wishes have the weight of an order from the crown, do they not?”
He meets my gaze with lifted chin, his top lip twitching with a repressed snarl. Anger burns in his small, yellow eyes, but I refuse to look away. I stare deep into the depths of his gaze until I’m cutting through their golden tides with efficient control.
With a grunt, Lord Varik flicks his eyes away in reluctant submission. “Of course, Your Highness. I simply meant that we are quite busy. I’m sure Lady Myrrh will need to arrange her schedule to accommodate your request.”
“Which is not a problem, at all, Your Highness.” She flutters her hand, as if that demonstrates her flexibility.
“Well, you both seem to have plenty of time to gossip in the hallway after sundown. Tell me, Lord Varik, what have you been working on?”
He narrows his eyes. “A personal project to ensure the continued success of this kingdom.”
“Is that so?”
The treasurer doesn’t respond, only pins me with another glare. I play his game for a few moments longer before pushing past him with a curt “goodnight” to Lady Myrrh.
As I round the next bend, at the edge of my hearing, I catch his grumbling tone, muttering under his breath.
“Oh, lighten up, Lord Varik.” Lady Myrrh giggles. “Look at our prince. He’s simply mad for her. I could see it on his face, plain as sand, when I suggested flowers to match her aura. The prince was blushing!”
I touch my cheek, feeling the residual heat. I’m blushing?
“Don’t get too invested in those flowers, my lady. He will walk out on this one, first chance he gets. Mark my word.”
“Hush now. That is a male in love, if ever I saw one. And I am an excellent judge of these things.”
I cannot keep hiding in my room. I have a kingdom to run, a council to manage. This wedding business? I’ve worked too hard to secure the future of my kingdom to let it be run by eels like Varik.
Chapter twenty-five
Enna
The palace holds plentyof secrets—the golden screws, for one. The library stairs. The magically locked door in the lowest level. The budding romance between the guard outside the prince’s door and a sullen garden maid. My favorite secret, though, is the hidden pool in the kitchen pantry.
