Page 26 of Enchanted Kingdom
“Thank you,” I added. “For a lovely walk, Pr—” I cut off, remembering his request. “Thank you, Keir.”
His smile spread slowly across his handsome face. “There. That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”
“It was terrifying,” I fired right back.
He laughed as we began heading back to the castle.
Outside the same doors where he had been waiting for me earlier, we met Prince Krewan coming in from the south.
“You’re late for a shower,” Prince Keiran jested.
Prince Krewan rolled his eyes like he could not care less and did not slow down to chitchat or speak with us.
Just before we entered the castle, I whispered to Prince Keiran, “Back to the harems we go.”
While Prince Keiran snickered beside me, Prince Krewan tensed and paused in his tracks. With a heave to his chest, he spun back around, his cold gaze set on me.
“Krew,” Prince Keiran warned.
Prince Krewan silenced him with a glare as he approached me, his riding boots clicking on the floor with his approach. He didn’t speak until he was right in front of me, and even then, it was quiet and clipped. “Jorah, if you are going to defy the crown so consistently, could you in the very least do so more quietly?”
“Krew,” Prince Keiran snapped. “Leave her be.”
Prince Krewan turned toward his brother. “And you know better than to dangle her in front of father like that. Every time she opens her mouth, her disdain for the throne spews out.” His eyes went back to me. “Remember who’s roof it is you’re sleeping under, Jorah. Do control yourself. Even just a modicum of self-control at this point would be an improvement.”
He spun on his heel and left.
Prince Keiran turned me toward him. “I’m so sorry. He’s intense and didn’t mean to be so rude.”
I hated the tears stinging my eyes. I had been scolded like I was a child taking one too many sweets. “Actually, I think he did.”
“Well, I apologize on behalf of him. And I am going to go have a word with him. I’ll see you later?”
I gave him a nod as I was fighting off both tears and anger.
Out of the shadows, Wallace suddenly appeared to take me back to my room. I had less than an hour to get my wits back about me and head down to dinner.
While it may be true not every Enchanted was bad, for every kind Enchanted in this castle, there seemed to be two or three of the opposite. The bad far outweighed the good in my experience. Prince Keiran had asked me to stay, but all I currently felt like doing was running far away from this place.
CHAPTER11
“You’re quiet tonight,” Renna stated at dinner as I barely picked at my dessert.
I tried to give her a smile. “I’m just tired is all.”
She leaned over and whispered, “Was our conversation earlier in the day too much?”
I shook my head. “No. Not at all. Promise.”
She looked skeptical but said, “Okay.”
I was really just agitated and annoyed with Prince Krewan and his condescension. For a moment I almost felt the need to warn Renna to stay safe while she was within his Assemblage, but then again, she was an Enchanted and could probably hold her own. Plus, he didn’t seem to loathe the Savaryn women like he did me. Then again, most of the women were probably adoring his every breath and every word, so my blunt rudeness of our first meeting was probably also to blame.
After the meal, the king retired, and I was even more irritated to find that we were going to stand around chitchatting before being dismissed. Oh how I wanted to just walk out of there and be done for the day.
“What, no special gown tonight?” Aiyana asked. I was sticking to the outer edge of the room, trying to find my way to a window to look out, but apparently, she had found me. To goad me.
“Not tonight,” I said with a quick smile. “Though this is still far lovelier than I am used to.”
