Page 1089 of One More Kiss

Chapter8

The tripback to the castle was mostly silent, except for periodic bouts of laughter. Edan’s shoulders would shake, and another warm laugh would wash over me. “You were indeed amazing,” he reassured me, before chuckling again.

At least I knew he laughed with me. Truth be told, I’d been pretending to be a moth when I was truly a butterfly.

The farther we moved away from town, the more anger coiled around me like a slithering snake ready to strike. Not at Edan, never at him, but at the shitty situation those dingbats wanted to put us in. After several cycles of counting to ten and deep breathing, I’d finally had a moment to settle my temper a few notches, but I was not by any means as calm as I should have been. I was practically stomping down the pathway.

“Tatiana.” Edan touched my arm. “It wasn’t all bad. At least you have your freedom now.”

His nonchalance pushed my newfound patience out the window. What was freedom, when at any minute, they’d find an insidious way to make me kneel? I’d walked away from them unscathed with the knowledge that they’d regroup and come back, but this time, with things that might cut deeper, be crueler, and painting fabricated pictures in pastel shades. Because of me, because of my mother, and her trespasses against them. So, yes, I was free for now, a reprieve without their repentance. But none of those words slipped past my lips. If I gave their evil a way to place a wedge between me and my love, they’d win more than freedom could ever be worth.

I stopped and faced him. “Edan, dear, freedom is relative. Believe me when I tell you, Griselda will not allow us to be happy without a fight. I’ve known her far too long. I know how she and the guild operate. We will have a fight on our hands—I can guarantee that.”

He placed his palms on my shoulders, his warmth seeping through the thin material of my dainty dress. Like warm oil, it traveled down my spine. He leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on my neck. “I realize you’re still upset, as well you should be, but remember—she and the guild no longer have any real power over you.” He then kissed my cheek, my forehead, and finally the tip of my nose. I felt myself soften a bit on the inside. “You’re to be my wife, my Queen. And, that, Tatiana, is all that matters. We’ll deal with everything as it comes, together.”

I took in the sight of the castle in the distance: its rose stones, tall towers that jutted toward the heavens with blue and gold etched along the conical turrets, topped with a decorative flagpole, waving the king’s red and white gryphon flag.

I couldn’t help but smile. Edan knew exactly what to say, to chisel away the ice around my heart. He was indeed a man of his word, a man of honor, and I would be entirely his, come what may. I just needed to have more faith in myself and stop allowing my emotions and scars from the past to affect my future.

“You’re right. I love you, Edan.” I took his hand in mine, but before we continued walking, he cupped my face between his palms and kissed me passionately for all to see.” Goddess, he stole the breath from my lungs each time his mouth touched mine.

“I’ll be with you every step of the way. You’re not alone, Tatiana. Understand?”

All I could do was nod, undoubtedly with a goofy grin.

As we neared the castle gates, it seemed all of Wisteria and Fairy were in an uproar. Humans mixed with fairies at the edge ofthe crowd, according to their wings, and the way the air vibrated with bits and pieces of fairy dust.

I hurried, practically dragging Edan behind me. The sound of trumpets blasting caught my attention. “Here ye, hear ye,” the Court’s herald loudly proclaimed. The sound of horses neighing, and the armor of the king’s guards’ moving into place was followed by that of a glimpse of King Frederick, who moved to stand on a raised dais.

“I wonder what this is about?” I asked, and Edan gave me a half-smile.

By the time we arrived, it seemed as though nearly all the kingdom stood by pensively and listened to King Fredrick. “I gladly declarethe pending nuptialsof my son, His Royal Highness, Prince EdanGryphon III of Wisteria, shall hereby marry Tatiana of the Fairy Godmother Guild. This I do, say, and decree. Let all those who wish them harm be ashamed, and all those who wish to gossip do so not in my presence. May the Goddess Inanna bless and keep us all.”

A series of gasps rolled throughout the crowd, followed by silence. He certainly didn’t waste any time. “Edan, I thought he was waiting for us to be present.”

Edan rubbed the back of his neck. “My father isn’t known to wait for much of anything once he has his mind set. He’s been waiting for our union for quite some time—years, in fact.”

I whirled around. “What? Years? Right. I know you planned on asking me for quite a while, but I hadn’t realized you’d shared as much with the king.” I turned in horror as I heard gasps and remarks about my mother when King Fredrick mentioned Edan would be marrying me.

Edan placed his hand on the small of my back. “Keep your head held high. Do not allow anyone to get to you.” He kissed my cheek as we walked through the castle gates. “You are not your mother, Tatiana.”

My heart thundered so loudly in my chest I could barely hear his words. I wanted to prepare for this, but it seemed I was getting a crash-course instead. I tried to focus on the well-maintained bailey, where the wild plants in an array of orange, yellows, blues, and pinks were in full bloom. How the swans and ducks serenaded us as we strolled along, as though unbothered by the various shouts of descent.

No one needed to know of the panic whipping inside me.

“Once Prince Edan and Tatiana, the Fairy Godmother, are wed,” King Frederick continued, “I will be transferring the throne to my son, as is his birthright.” King Fredrick’s words echoed throughout the castle grounds.

“She is not fit to be Queen,” one rabble-rouser shouted. I wouldn’t have been surprised if all those who’d gathered had been paid in wishes to voice their discontent. “Nothing but a cursed and fallen fairy, just like her mother.”

They were of the poorest of Wisteria as evident by their threadbare clothing. With all of the wealth in the kingdom, why did so many go without? I knew the answer. The guild’s wishes were addictive, like flowers from the poppy fields. Of course, a wish could only grant so much reprieve. Many of those faces I knew well, as they paid in soiled pennies for another chance at happiness, unable to make their prior wish work.

“She has bespelled the prince,” another shouted. “This is preposterous!”

The accusation rolled through the crowd like thunder across the evening sky.

“She should lose her wand. She has likely spelled the king as well!”

And the chants went on and on as we walked closer to the main entrance. I was waiting for someone to throw rotten tomatoes at my head. The scathing glares I received were as bad as the insults hurled my way. However, I did as Edan had told me. I held my head high and fluttered my iridescent blue and gold wings to add to the show.

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