Page 110 of Deadwood
Did I seem that naive to give the impression that I couldn’t handle the world for what it was—cruelties and all?
“Trouble in town not enough for you?” a deep voice spoke up, pulling me from the alcohol-induced spiral I was headed toward.
I set a hand on the trunk of a tree, glancing over my shoulder to find Bowen standing a few trees back. “I was simply enjoying the silence of the forest.” I faced forward again, stepping over a root as I continued walking. “And you are currently interrupting it.”
By the crunch of leaves, I could tell he was following me. “Ah, Princess, with that head of yours, I doubt it’s ever truly silent.”
I rolled my eyes, despite him being unable to see it. “Do tell. What do you suppose I’d be thinking about to make my mind so loud?”
He hummed as he grew closer to my back, and still, I continued walking. “I could guess a few things.”
“Go on.”
Without pause, he listed, “The ring that will one day feel too heavy on your finger. Why this land is so vastly different from your own. How you finally don’t have a guard trailing you like a lost puppy. But on top of all that”—he exhaled a breath, close enough now that it raised the hairs on the back of my neck—“what most stands out in that pretty head of yours is the way you feel when you’re around me.”
My cheeks heated, and I was glad he stood behind me so he couldn’t see what he really did to me. I scoffed in an attempt to act as if his words hadn’t affected me. “I feel nothing around you.”
I could practically sense his smirk. “The princess is a liar.”
I whirled, finding him all too close as he nearly rammed into my chest. “I amnota princess, and I feelnothing, especially around you.”
His voice lowered. “Besides the fear?”
My eyes narrowed. “Why are you out here?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
I let out a frustrated groan, turning back around to take another step.
“Tell me something honest,” he went on.
I tried to focus on the tiny bits of green grass reaching up through the pine needles and leaves covering the ground, searching for sunlight as they brushed along the sides of my boots. His question made me want to laugh. Out of everyone here, I was the most honest of all of them, and yet, he wanted veracity from me?
“Honest.” The word tasted bitter on my tongue. “That’s so funny, considering no one tells me shit, including you.”
“I’ve never lied to you.”
My eyes turned to slits at his statement, but I couldn’t deny that I believed him. I might be foolish, naïve, but nothing he’d ever said to me before felt like a lie. Not like the spun truths my father presented me with.
With a sigh, I admitted, “I’m not upset that the bridge collapsed.”
When he didn’t respond, I turned around, finding him still standing where I’d left him. His brow was cocked, his gaze curious. “Really?”
I picked at a piece of bark on the tree to my right, studying the rough, brown piece as if it was the most fascinating thing on this planet. “I mean, of course I’m upset about it. I was meant to be back in Amosite before…” I shook my head. My father would be irate. “It’s just nice to be somewhere other than the castle for a change.”
“I know. You don’t get out much.”
I moved my attention to him. He remembered me saying that so long ago?
“I’m the daughter of a king,” I explained. “I can’t exactly just stroll around wherever I’d like.”
“Why not?”
My brows pulled together, his question taking me back. Was the reason not clear already? “What if I was injured? Or worse?”
He held a hand out, gesturing to the forest surrounding us. “You’re walking around right now, aren’t you? No guard, no order. Just you, on your own free will. Slightly buzzed, too, if I’m guessing correctly.”
He was idiotic. “Well, as you can see from the market incident, my free will is not always the best. It sometimes leads me to being deceived.” Yet the last part was not in reference to the market. It was a jab at him. I shook my head and continued, “I shouldn’t have said anything about the man stealing.”
