Page 161 of Enchanted Kingdom
Oh.Okay he did have a point. Still. I think I honored Wolf Whisperer more highly than I did princess. What did that say about me?
* * *
“So!”Mother asked as she poured the tea. “How were your last two weeks?”
I let out a sigh. “I spent most of them giving Keir the cold shoulder.”
Owen snorted his agreement from his usual post at the window.
I took a sip of the tea, the taste reminding me of cold winters and hot ovens in this very kitchen. “He told me he wants it to be me at the end.”
My mother’s cup clattered to the table.“What?”
I shrugged. “That’s what he said. Of course he could be telling every woman that, given what I’ve seen, but somehow I doubt it.” I paused. “He said he’d felt obligated to Wylan to have a contingency plan if I shouldn’t want the responsibilities of a crown. That was why he entertained the others.” It irked me Keir’s explanation actually made a little bit of sense. “But just the other day he said that if it was not me, it was no one.”
“When was this?” Owen asked as he also took a sip of his tea.
“On the walk in the gardens,” I informed him.
Owen put a hand up and looked at the ceiling. “Of course. I miss one walk.”
I leaned in to Mother. “He had one too many cinnamon oat cookies. Had to sleep it off.”
“Sugar hangover,” she nodded. “Ahhh.”
Owen snorted.
“So?” Mother prodded. “What did you say to him?”
I cocked my head. “I didn’t say a whole lot. He told me we have time. Apparently, it won’t be until spring before the Assemblage numbers will be four each. So he told me I had time to think everything over. To decide if I want him back.”
“Seems reasonable,” Mother offered.
I nodded aggressively. “I know. He is awfully reasonable most of the time. That’s the problem. He’s easier to hate when he’s making stupid decisions.”
Owen burst out laughing and my mother and I couldn’t help but join in.
A knock on the door sounded. It was Krew with two guards. He must have finished at the orphanage and came a bit early to pick us up.
My mother bowed as she opened the door. Neither Owen nor I bothered to even stand.Whoops.
“So nice to meet you, Your Grace,” she said kindly.
“Mother, this is Prince Krewan,” I said in introduction.
She smiled and looked at me with wide eyes. “Not Prince Keiran?”
Krew smirked as he stepped into the bakery, leaving the two guards outside. “We are rather hard to tell apart, Mrs. Demir, so I wouldn’t hold it against you if you did call me by his name.”
They weren’t hard to tell apart at all, she just expected Keir and not Krew to be here.
“Eleanor,” my mother told him. “You must call me Eleanor. Would you like to have some tea?”
He gave her a shrug. “Only if you have an extra setting, otherwise I am content to wait.” He walked over and pulled out the chair next to me. He sat down like it wasn’t at all odd he was sitting next to me in my mother’s bakery.
“Prince Krewan,” my mother shook her head and stole a glance at Owen as she headed to grab Krew some tea, “in my bakery! Can you believe it?”
Owen raised his eyebrows and gave her what could only be described as an implying look back. “Yes.”
