Page 59 of Crown of Hearts
“But whomever I marry will become queen of Norrandale. She will be in charge or ruling my people alongside me. I do not consider the matter lightly.”
“Are you afraid Queen Elara’s not up to the task?”
I didn’t want to admit it aloud, much less have Elara know.
“She hasn’t been queen for very long. She’s still finding her feet.” My concentration was no longer on the pages in front of me. I could only think about our picnic yesterday and how much I enjoyed it. “She’s unpredictable and impulsive. I just... I don’t know. What if all of this breaks her somehow?”
“Are you afraid she won’t be a good queen or that Elara is going to change her mind and your matrimony will be nothing more than a piece of paper as each of you reside in your separate palaces?”
There could be no doubt that I was infatuated with Elara all those months ago. It was easy to make vows when you were free of responsibility and it seemed like the world was going to hell.
But everything had become shockingly real when my father died and suddenly I was in charge of running a kingdom. My choices had consequences now, not just for myself but for countless others.
“I think I’ve been spending too much time with you.” I signed another document.
His head tilted back with laughter. “For what it’s worth, I like her a lot.”
“I know,” I mumbled. “Me too.”
Chapter 17
Elara
Most evenings, dinner was a quiet occasion, the conversation mainly small talk. Tonight, current political affairs were the main topic of discussion. Thatcher and Gwen sat alongside Cai, while his mother had dinner separately.
“Argon signed a treaty swearing peace between our two kingdoms after the war.” Thatcher leaned back in his dining chair with a crease between his eyebrows.
“Thatcher, you know as well as I that treaties are made and broken.” Cai had his hands folded on the table. He’d barely touched his food. I realised that, in the past few days, he hadn’t done a lot of eating or sleeping. Dark circles ringed his eyes, accompanied by an ever-present faraway look on his face. He looked exhausted, and quite frankly, I would have been lying if I said I wasn’t a little worried.
“And why do you think Aries would consider breaking the peace treaty?” Gwen took a sip of wine.
Cai crossed his arms, looking down at his plate. “There is news that Aries has been growing his army and talking about military campaigns. We have to consider every possibility.”
I, of course, had never met King Aries. But I hadn’t heard anything good about him either. If the news was true, then it was no wonder Cai had been so worried and preoccupied since I’d arrived. I took a bite of my dinner, listening to the conversation.
My eyes didn’t waver from Cai. Even with his worried expression, he still somehow managed to look quite handsome. Eventually my gaze seemed to draw his attention.
He looked at me almost inquisitively and I decided to continue my stare without remorse. Daring to do what I would have never previously had the courage to — which I blamed onlyon the expensive Norrandish wine — I lightly knocked my foot against his under the table.
Cai bit his lip, trying to hold back a smile. Thatcher was saying something to him, but I could tell from his expression that he wasn’t listening.
“Do you believe King Aries intends another attempt at conquering Norrandale, Your Majesty?” Gwen drew his attention back to the conversation.
“It’s too soon to tell,” Cai replied. “We cannot act based on the assumption that he would do that.” His gaze returned to me. “What do you think, Queen Elara?”
All the eyes shifted to me. I jerked my foot back from his leg. Why on earth would he ask me a question he knew I had never considered? There was a mischievous look on his face.
“I, uhm,” I stammered. “I really don’t think I know enough about King Aries to make an educated remark.” It was the best thing I could have said without making a fool of myself. I could already feel the heat pulsing in my face, as if my body was preparing itself for the embarrassment it knew was coming.
“I hope King Aries hasn’t grown arrogant regarding the matter,” Thatcher spoke up again. “Taking on the king of Norrandale is one thing but if Norrandale and Everness are united, we are considering a whole new situation.”
I hadn’t even considered it. I’d been so preoccupied with what Cai’s union would do in my own kingdom, I hadn’t thought about the fact that Norrandale’s enemies would now be my enemies too. And the last thing I needed was a longer list of enemies. Was this something I needed to discuss with Lance? How had I grown so unconfident in my own choices over the last few months, second guessing myself around every corner?
Regardless, I should probably let Lance and the council know that if we were to go through with the alliance, Norrandale already carried the potential risk of hostility with the kingdom ofArgon. But if they were aware that alliance came with risk, would they baulk and oppose it?
“Maybe that’s exactly why Aries is growing his army,” Gwen responded. “He could fear the opposition it would pose to Argon.”
I took the napkin from the table and dabbed the sides of my mouth. “My apologies, but I think I’m going to retire early this evening.” I stood up from the table. Cai seemed surprised. Did I spot a hint of disappointment in his expression?
