Page 33 of The Queen's Crown
“I know it’s late, but I’d like to escort you to the rooftop to show you the nearby town. It’s exquisite at night.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Why?” She doubted he wanted to be nice or get to know her. He had to have an ulterior motive.
He slid his hands into his pockets and watched her a moment before responding. “I thought you might like to get out of your room,” he admitted. “The roof is secluded, so we don’t have to worry about anyone seeing you. And…I thought we could talk.”
Curiosity got the better of her and she wondered if he had anything to say regarding her sister. “I would like that.” Not that she cared to go to a secluded place with this man, but for her sister and the possibility for information, she would.
Axel held the door open for her, and she exited the room.
“You’re all to remain here,” he said to her guards as he headed to the right.
She hadn’t been down the corridor this way yet. “Markis will come with me,” she said loud enough for Markis to hear.
“You don’t need him. You have me to protect you.” Axel winked. “Besides, it’ll give us more privacy to talk.”
Having seen him with that lady last night, she figured he had a way with women and enjoyed flirting. Or at least using his charm to his advantage. Too bad it wouldn’t work on her. Having grown up with four older brothers, she knew most of their tricks. The key to dealing with Axel would be to treat him as she would one of her own brothers. “Markis will remain with me.” She noticed Markis kept a careful three-foot distance behind her.
“Don’t you trust me?” Axel asked, his hand to his chest as if wounded.
She tilted her head and looked up at him. “Do you trust me?” she countered.
He considered her for a moment. “I hadn’t really thought about it.” He led her to a flight of stairs.
“You never considered the possibility that I might have a weapon on me and try to assassinate you as revenge for the death of my sister?”
His face paled.
She laughed. “I’m only toying with you.” She winked. “Maybe.”
At that he chuckled. “You’re nothing like Alina.”
“No, I’m not.” She stopped halfway up the stairs and turned to face him. “What do you consider me?” she asked. “Am I your future sister? A pawn? A toy?”
He chuckled, the sound low and sultry, and then gestured for her to continue up the steps. At the top, he placed his hand on her lower back and whispered in her ear, “You’re all of those things and more.”
She suspected he wanted something from her, and she’d need to keep her guard up around him.
The roof turned out to be a twenty-foot wide flat space on top of one of the palace turrets. There were other decks with slanted rooflines that she could see from where she stood.
Axel dropped his hand from her back and then meandered over to the edge of the rooftop, leaning on the railing. “Care to join me?”
Sabine stood in the middle, taking it all in. The view of the town and nearby mountains was breathtaking under the moonlight. Since she could see it all from where she stood, she decided not to go any closer to the edge, especially with Axel there.
“Why did you really bring me here?” she asked.
He leaned back against the railing, facing her. “You’re much more direct than your sister.”
“I’m a very different person than my sister.” She folded her arms. “I thought we’d already established that.”
Axel turned and faced away from her, resting his forearms on the railing. “Anton and I are opposites as well, even though we’re twins. However, I assumed since you’re so young…” He didn’t finish his sentence.
Sabine could fill in the blanks. He’d assumed she was innocent, inexperienced, and naive. Especially after meeting Alina. “You thought wrong. Since I am the youngest of six…” She purposely didn’t finish her sentence, allowing him to draw his own conclusions. Whatever came out of this, he needed to know he couldn’t push her around.
“I’m sorry about your sister.”
It was the second time he’d said something along those lines. “Why are you sorry? Did you have something to do with her death?” She hadn’t meant to be so blunt, but she needed answers.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just ask that.”
