Page 76 of A Storm in Every Heart
“I thought we’d covered that already.”
“And—” she says, making a fist with her remaining raised fingers and fixing me with a vicious scowl, “—unfaithful.”
“In what possible way am I unfaithful?” I demand.
“You have a fiancée, whom I have yet to hear you mention even once.” A ringing silence follows this statement, and Odessa’s eyes flash with triumph. “Tell me again how you are better than the man whom you just shoved out of the way to steal his boat?”
My eye twitches. My discomfort is made no better by the fact that I can see other rowboats floating suspiciously closer to us as their occupants try to eavesdrop on our conversation.
I let out a huff of breath. “I don’t have a fiancée.”
“Liar,” she snaps. “You’re betrothed to that woman I met the other night.”
“Betrothed, yes, but not engaged.”
She looks at me like I’m insane. “Do you need a language lesson,Your Majesty? I would have thought you’d have the best tutors possible, but evidently they’ve neglected to teach you the meaning of the word ‘betrothed.’”
The corners of my mouth tip up and I row faster, trying to escape the other boats and find a shred of privacy. “I know what the word means, thank you, but a betrothal and an engagement are not the same thing.”
“Excuse you, but?—”
I cut her off before she can gather steam and run me over with her argument. “Betrothals happen between children and they’re broken all the time. Lyra’s father is my father’s favoriteadvisor. The betrothal agreement is really more about them than it is about us. It’s a public boon my father bestowed on Magnus.”
“But you’re still promised to marry her.”
“Eventually, maybe, in twenty years the betrothal could turn into an actual engagement…but I doubt it ever will.”
“Why not?” she asks begrudgingly.
“Because we’re not well suited. I doubt either of us would be particularly bothered if the other found their soul-bond and the agreement was dissolved.”
She looks up at me, eyes assessing. “I didn’t think royals cared about finding their soul-bonds.”
“We don’t,” I answer shortly. “It’s certainly not a requirement for a marriage, but obviously it would be preferable.”
She nods tightly. “I still doubt you’re supposed to be seen showing obvious favoritism for another woman.”
“Is that what I’m doing?” I challenge her.
Her cheeks flush, and goes back to staring off into the distance, refusing to meet my eyes. “Oh, never mind.”
I smile, pleased that I’ve managed to get under her skin.
She’s not entirely wrong, though. I probably shouldn’t be so obvious—especially as I’m not exactly known to show public affection for anyone. That’s probably where the impression that I’m arrogant comes from. I don’t really enjoy talking to anyone, but it’s not because I think I’m above them. I just don’t like people.
Except, for some reason, I like Odessa—and maybe Daemon too, though in an entirely different way.
With that in mind, I direct our boat beneath the branches of a weeping willow dipping into the water and stop, letting the branches serve as a curtain between us and the rest of the lake.
Odessa looks up, startled. “Why did you stop?”
“I’m not much of a fan of rowing.”
“Of course you’re not,” she hisses, rolling her eyes. “We can’t stay in here, though.”
“I thought you didn’t want people staring at us.”
She widens her eyes in incredulous disbelief. “You cannot seriously be this naïve. If we stay here, people will think we needprivacy.”
