Page 35 of Prince of the Northwest Forest
He spins around, tugging the hood back from his shiny, dark hair. “Can we talk?”
My mouth dries. Did I do something wrong?
No. Ihaven’tdone anything wrong. Why do I always assume things are my fault?
“Of course.” My voice sounds raspy. We walk a little ways into the forest.
Why do I feel like Kalle is about to break up with me?
Which is an utterly ridiculous thought. We’re not dating. We just hike together. And he hasn’t given me any signal that he’s open to exploring the potential spectrum of his sexuality or that he’s into me for more than my mind and scintillating conversation.
“Out with it,” I say, my heart beating faster than it usually does while hiking in a flat area.
He chuckles, but it’s mirthless. “Since you and I don’t shy away from deep things: Something happened since I last saw you.”
I want to joke with a guess: He lost his virginity. He got a tattoo. I don’t know.
“What?” I ask instead, holding my breath. Ahead of us, his fox pauses to sniff the air, then continues.
Kalle takes a step back, glancing around uneasily. “My parents came to visit. They think they’ve found my brother.”
Why doesn’t he look happy? “That’s great!”
“They haven’t found himyet,” Kalle corrects. “We received word that he is fine.”
I stumble, and we both stop in the middle of the path. His security halt their progress, too, but stay a discreet distance away. “Does that mean you have to keep looking?”
“Yes. Well, no.” He scrubs at his face with frustration. “He’s been kidnapped by the fae.”
“Oh my god!”
“The fae are calling in some debt my parents owe, which can only be paid with the princess’s dowry. Which means, if I want to get my brother back and save my realm from devastation, I have to take Mats’s place and marry the princess.”
My stomach drops out of my body and onto the ground. I have to keep myself from gasping. Not sure I manage. “What,like, you’re interchangeable? What on earth? Don’t you have more agency than that? Doesn’tshe?” My hands clench.
He squares his shoulders. “This is my duty. I can’t speak to how things work in her realm.”
Well, shit.
Poor Kalle.
And poor me. Because bye-bye, my crush. Not that it was ever going to go anywhere, but a boy can dream.
My heart clenches, and I suddenly feel nauseated. Part of me wants to turn and leave and be by myself. This isn’t fair.
I’m not being fair, either. Yes, my desire for Kalle has been steadily increasing since I met him. Forget how hot he is, being with him feels like the forest on a misty morning; it’s quiet, still, and romantic. And if he gets married, he’s not available to me. Even if it’s only a marriage of convenience, even if they have an understanding that they can see other people, I could just never be the one with whom someone cheats. I’d feel too bad.
But if he needs to marry to save his realm, I’d be a jackass to try to stand in the way. The needs of the many are more important than my own. Who am I to prioritize my unrequited crush over acres of forestland being swallowed by spewing lava? Or getting his brother back safely?
For a second or two, a secret, bad part of me wants to be that selfish jerk. And then I take a deep breath and move on.
So it’s goodbye to any hope of a future with Kalle. And it might be goodbye to Kalle, period, since he’s off to be married to some princess of a different realm.
Dammit. I bet my eyes are red. I’ll have to blame it on pollen or something. “When is this wedding supposed to take place?” I ask. My voice doesn’t crack. Good. I straighten my back. Maybe nothing has to change soon.
“In a few days.”
I blink at him. My jaw drops. “I was expecting you to say next year or something.”
