Page 26 of Enamored
He leaned his head back and watched me through his lashes—dark, enchanting, long lashes.
What was he thinking? I wished I could read his thoughts and emotions, but he’d clearly become the expert at masking them. “You must think me pathetic, that I cannot choose from amongst so many fine men.”
“Not at all.”
“Then what, O wise one? Lend me your perspective, I beseech you.” Though my tone was playful, I truly did covet his wisdom.
“O wise one?”He cocked a brow.
“Yes. ’Twill be my new name for you.”
“I only answer toO extremely wise one.”
A tender shoot of joy sprouted through the dry ground of my soul, as though he were both the sunlight and water sent to revive me. “Very well. What say you, O extremely wise one?”
He hesitated. “Do you fancy another man? If you have already given your heart to—”
“No. No, that is not the case. My heart is still very much my own.”
“Then you have no one you are secretly admiring?”
I shook my head. Although I’d enjoyed the company of many noblemen at court in recent years, I’d never felt overly attracted to one over another. “Allowing myself feelings for someone else would have been futile, since I knew I must wait for the courtship week.”
He was silent another beat. “Then I say you are an honorable and dutiful princess who would marry any man whether or not you have a heart match, so long as you are assured he will be the king this country needs.”
“Precisely.” How could Maxim know me so well? Better than anyone else?
“Your fear of choosing wrongly is holding you back from choosing anyone at all.”
“Yes.” I sat forward, loving that someone could give voice to my dilemma. “’Tis too important a decision. If I pick the wrong man, ’tis not only I who will suffer but the entire country.”
“Do you not trust that the Royal Sages have carefully selected the twelve so that you could not go wrong with any of them?”
Did I trust the Royal Sages? The wisest men in all Norvegia? Men like Rasmus, who’d spent their lives devoted to the process of learning and gaining wisdom?
On the one hand, I appreciated the emphasis in Norvegia on the rulers receiving direction from the wisemen as well as the warriors. The balance kept the country from being fooled by either peace or war.
My arm brushed against Maxim’s. “Whom do you think I should choose?”
He didn’t move to break the contact as he’d done earlier in the day. “If you cannot rationally and logically narrow down your choice, then perhaps you can decide upon whomever your heart beats for the most.”
“What if my heart does not beat for any of them?”
He bumped his shoulder lightly against mine. “Surely it has pattered an extra beat of fondness when you are with one of them?”
The only one my heart had pattered harder for was Maxim.
“I can see I’m right.” His tone was laced with curiosity. “Which man is he?”
I set aside my parchment and pushed up. “’Tis a riddle. One you must solve.” One I wouldn’t let him solve.
From below, he studied me. “Very well. And how will I go about finding the clues for this riddle?”
My mind raced. I’d always loved our attempts to challenge one another. ’Twould be entertaining indeed to give him clues he believed related to the twelve chosen men but were about him instead. I’d make sure he didn’t discover the truth. But in challenging him, I’d take my mind off the daunting task I had to accomplish before my eighteenth birthday feast tomorrow evening, when I’d make my announcement to the world.
I held out my hand.
He hesitated, looking first at my hand, then down at his own.
