Page 112 of Enchanted Kingdom
“Jorah,” Keir said as it was finally my turn to leave for the night.
“Your Grace,” I said with a bow.
“This is going to be another long night, I have a feeling,” he said in common conversation.
I got his underlying meaning. I shouldn’t wait up because he was going to be here awhile. I had to shut down a yawn just thinking about it. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I can handle a few pretentious parties.”
He was a better man than I gave him credit for most days. What he and Prince Krewan were trying to accomplish was nothing short of heroic. “Eyes on the prize?”
His eyes swung to mine. “Actually no. Because they can’t all know how much she means to me.”
His words had my heart beating rapidly. I wanted to kiss him for that. I wanted to cling to that hope with everything I had. But here we were in a room full of people, some of which I knew had to be watching him walk me out. I smiled up at him. “Good night, Your Grace.”
He brought my hand up to kiss, more slowly than was necessary, all while keeping his eyes locked on mine. “Goodnight, sweetheart.”
The trip back to Keir’s room rather than my old one was more of a trip, but I found I was getting used to it and didn’t mind.
“Need a cold shower?” Owen asked as the door to Keir’s wing came into view.
I snorted. “Do you?”
He didn’t hesitate. “I always do.”
I couldn’t help it. I was beyond tired, but I just couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out. Between giggles, I managed to ask, “Because you like them that way or because you find you are easily excitable and need to take them frequently to cool off?”
He squinted at me and leaned in to whisper, “You’ll never know.”
“So, both.” I giggled the rest of the way into my room and the entire time Silvia helped me out of my dress.
The first ball was finally over. I had survived the night. I only met one disloyal that I knew of, Keir had been charming, and I had successfully avoided the king.
Would things finally settle down a little now that the evening dinners were off? Or were we picking up speed? Only time would tell.
CHAPTER32
For the first time since my very first night at the castle, I got to pick what color I was wearing the next morning. I chose a light pink day dress, nostalgic of the dress Keir gifted me. It was odd how something as simple as choosing a color to wear made my shoulders feel lighter.
There was a knock on my door as Silvia was finishing getting me ready for the day.
Keir stuck his head in. “Jorah, can I borrow you for a minute?”
I looked at Silvia to be sure she was done, and she gave me a nod. “Sure.”
As soon as I stood, I noticed frustration was written all over Keir’s face. “Are you all right?”
He sighed. “No. For your sake. Come here.”
We exited my room, turning the corner to enter the sitting room closest to his bed. Prince Krewan and Owen were there, sitting at the round table near the window, the same table I had eaten soup at just the other day. They were laughing and talking, but my eyes naturally landed on the food in the middle of the table. There was a stack of bacon in the middle of the table that was larger than the pancakes. It was impressive, really. I had never seen so much bacon in one spot.
“Now,” Keir said with a squint at them from next to me. “She’s right here. So before you go flippantly making decisions that affect her freedoms, maybe you should let her have a say.”
My eyes snapped to his. “My freedoms?”
He pulled out a chair for me to sit at the table, so I did. As soon as I sat, he pulled up a chair and sat next to me.
“Don’t you have a luncheon with Gwen soon anyway?” Prince Krewan asked harshly.
