Diedre
I shuddered when the king’s soft lips pressed against my skin and stifled my initial reaction to jerk away.
Impress the prince and his family during your short betrothal, my sweet. We need this alliance, even if your mother negotiates peace between us and Damai.
I plastered a dignified smile on my face as my future husband next introduced his stepmother, sister, little brother, and … we stopped in front of a young, handsome man.
His gentle hazel eyes met mine, and I barely noticed Fernando say, “This is Prince Lorenzo.”
My tongue clung to the roof of my mouth as I curtsied and held out my hand.
“Pleasure to meet you, Princess Diedre,” he replied in my northern dialect.
I blinked to recover from the shock. “As it is you.”
Astralini was a common language throughout the seven kingdoms, perhaps because almost all trade between north and south passed through it.
“Showing off your most recent vocabulary lesson, I see,” Fernando teased. He didn’t know it. We had conducted all interactions in Astralini, even at my home.
Lorenzo smirked. “Jealous of me for once, brother?”
“No,” he answered. “Why would I envy you when my future wife has no need of your skill? Her ability in our communication far exceeds your attempts in hers.”
Keeping a pleasant expression proved difficult, but I pretended not to notice the tension between them, even when the younger prince balled his fists and clenched his jaw.
“I think it’s nice,” I whispered.
Both men looked at me like they’d forgotten I was standing there.
Stella
The moment I saw the young princess, my gut tied itself into knots. He brought back a child? All the cosmetic powders in the kingdom couldn’t conceal her juvenile frame. The size and age difference between her and the prince bordered on ridiculous.
Actually, it was inappropriate.
“She’s too young,” I murmured to Bolin in Celestia so others wouldn’t understand.
He narrowed his eyes. “I didn’t realize he preferred…” his words drifted away.
Fernando wanted me as a concubine and explained I should be honored.
Yet he needed a princess for a wife, so he rode like a conqueror to the north, bringing a spouse younger than his little sister.
Nausea sloshed in my stomach as I drove invisible knives into my heart.
I’d kill any lingering longing for him and focus on my mission. My memories would never return, but I would work toward the political goals the goddess mentioned.
I stepped away from Bolin and pushed through the crowd, searching for Eric. He stood in formation along the walkway, so I stopped behind him with the pretense of getting a better view of the royals.
“I’ll do it,” I muttered in Celestia. “Tell me our next steps tonight by the kitchen.”
Only the slightest nod indicated he heard me.
A moment later, Prince Fernando approached the entrance, the child bride clinging to his arm. His eyes caught mine, freezing me in place and time. The memory of his kiss, the passion in his embrace, flooded me until it hurt. I bowed my head in fake reverence until they passed.
No tears fell as I imagined stuffing a bleeding heart into an iron box. It couldn’t ache if I protected it.
Bolin’s short body appeared next to me, and his calming presence soothed some of the discomfort.
“Help me be more than a hostage,” I said to him, knowing Eric also understood. “Will you teach me history and politics?”
Bolin’s brows furrowed. “If you want an education, I won’t deny you.”
I breathed strength into my lungs and exhaled fear. “Can you begin teaching me tomorrow?”
He tilted his head, surveying me. “I’ll select a few volumes from the royal library and ask Patrick for additional selections from home. You might need more candles for night reading. This is no small goal.”
I smiled. “I know.”
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