I bit my lip to suppress the emerging smile that seemed to arrive whenever I thought about Aiden. “I’m not thinking of anything.”
Rosie harrumphed. “You’re the worst liar. I always know when someone has a fantastic story waiting to be told. You must do your best-friend duty and share it at once.” She settled beside me on the settee and scooted closer with an eager gleam filling her eyes.
“It’s nothing,” I said again.
She delicately cocked an eyebrow. “Don't give me that. Nothing is merely code for Aiden.”
The heat already filling my cheeks deepened. “Why would I be thinking of him?”
Rosie wrapped her arms around her legs and rocked back and forth, eyes bright. “I’m assuming you heeded my advice and have been engaging in clandestine meetings with him. And by your current blush and the way you’ve been floating around all afternoon, things must be going very well, as I knew they would. Now spill.”
I groaned and buried my burning face in my hands. “I wish you couldn’t read me so easily.”
“I’m your dearest friend. Did you really expect anything less? Now stop stalling. I shall forgive your spaciness with every juicy detail you share about your Aiden.”
“My Aiden?” I peeked through my fingers to see her mischievous smirk. “He’s merely a…friend.”
Admittedly, the word seemed too weak for the relationship we’d forged between us. I frowned, considering why, and couldn’t come up with an adequate explanation that would sort out my jumbled feelings.
“Then why are you blushing?” Rosie asked, her annoyingly chipper tone far too knowing. “Why do you think about him so often with a dazed look? You two must have had many romantic interactions.”
“Of course not,” I said hastily. “We’ve only explored the Forest.”
It seemed such an inadequate summary for how much I’d enjoyed the time we’d spent together, despite knowing it was unwise to feel this way, especially considering we hadn’t been acquainted long and hardly knew one another.
Rosie predictably gave me an exasperated look. “Must you be so vague?”
I fiddled with the ends of my hair, avoiding her eyes. “I admit it’s hard not to be when I’m rather confused myself.”
She sighed, but I found her smiling when I stole a peek at her expression. “I suppose you’re still trying to come to terms with your deepening feelings for Aiden.”
My heart pounded rapidly. “My feelings? What feelings?”
Rosie rolled her eyes. “Isn't it obvious? You’re developing a tendre for him.”
My cooling cheeks ignited again. “Don’t be ridiculous. I scarcely know him.”
“Such a triviality was no obstacle for the Forest bringing you two together so that your hearts could recognize one another.” She pressed her hand over her own heart with a wistful sigh. “It’s terribly romantic, just like a fairy tale.”
Father’s tender goodbye embrace with Mother flashed through my mind, their last interaction before he left and never came back. Pain prickled my heart. “Life isn’t a fairy tale.”
“It would be if you’d stop being a villain by thwarting your own happily ever after,” she snapped.
I sighed. “Stop reading too much into my relationship with Aiden. I told you we’re just friends.”
“Then why do you frequently daydream of him with a starry look?” She smirked, daring me to deny it. I tightened my jaw, refusing to humor her, and her smirk widened. “I rest my case. Friendship is a wonderful start, but I have no doubt it’ll soon lead to something more.”
“It can’t.” Panic clawed at my heart at the thought. “It can’t develop into anything. I won’t allow it to.”
Rosie pouted. “Why not?”
“Because love isn’t in my future. It leads to nothing but heartbreak. After Father left, I vowed never to experience such pain again.” My declaration built the weakening defenses surrounding my heart back up.
“Aiden isn’t your father, Eileen,” Rosie said softly.
I nibbled my lip. “I know that, but…” The image of the darkness filling Aiden’s eyes returned, the memory of his cold expression eclipsing whatever warmth filled my other memories of him. “There are moments when something overcomes him, as if he’s guarding a multitude of secrets. I don’t know whether or not I can trust him.”
Rosie pressed her thumb to her lips. “I admit distrust can be an obstacle difficult to overcome on the road to true love. What you must determine is whether he’s honest with you, if you’re comfortable enough to be yourself around him, and if you feel safe with him.”
She made it sound so simple.
Rosie’s frown deepened and her forehead wrinkled in concentration as she considered. Then she brightened with an idea. Judging by the mischievous gleam in her eyes, it was likely one I wouldn’t like.
“We must create a situation that will guarantee you’ll be able to determine whether or not he’s worthy of your trust.”
“And how do you propose we do that?”
She clasped her hands, her face lit with a radiant smile. “With a spelled dessert, of course—specifically, my famous truth cakes.”
Before I could respond, Rosie scrambled to her feet and skipped into the kitchen. I reluctantly followed and found her tugging on a cupboard door that was quite firmly locked. She sighed and pressed her hands on her hips to look around the kitchen as if seeking inspiration.
“That cupboard has been locked ever since Mother caught me baking from it, but I was hoping luck would pay us a much needed visit and I’d find it unlocked for my plan. How inconvenient it’s being so uncooperative. What a bother. I suppose I must find a way to break it open.”
I eyed the cupboard warily. “What’s in the cupboard?”
“Enchanted Sweets and Delights.”
I groaned. The last time she’d used her recipe book of magical desserts, it had ended in disaster. “Rosie…”
She waved my concern away as she strode the circumference of the room, searching for the appropriate tool for this particular scene in Rosalina Bakes Up Trouble.
“I don’t have the recipe memorized, so it’d be best if I used the book so I can get it right,” she said. “Wouldn’t it be terrible if I inadvertently poisoned your true love?”
“Rosie!”
“Oh, stop fussing, Eileen; I’ve baked these cakes plenty of times. They’re a Rosie specialty. Don’t you trust me?” She gave me a wide-eyed, vulnerable look that tugged on my heart. Still, I refused to be so easily swayed.
“How do I know you’re not going to create a love spell instead in order to get the ending you want in my story?”
“Why do that when you’re well on your way to falling in love with Aiden already—if you haven’t already done so?”
I opened my mouth to protest that particular point, but she merely talked over me.
“But if you’re so worried, then watch me bake them so you can see for yourself I won’t tamper with the recipe.”
As I scrambled for another reason to dissuade her, she returned to her pacing, scanning every inch of the kitchen. It was meticulously clean, everything in its proper order, leaving no spare tools lying about just waiting to pick a lock.
She suddenly froze and giggled. “How silly of me, I have the tool I need right here.” She pulled out a hairpin. “This is how all heroines do it in mystery novels.”
She returned to the cupboard and began working on the lock. Annoyingly, it actually clicked open. She flashed me a triumphant smirk.
“See how easy this is? We’re definitely on the right path.”
She pulled out a large and stained leather volume. Despite the heirloom having seen better days, it still had a glimmer about it, as if it not only taught how to brew magic, but that magic itself filled its yellowed pages.
She plopped the tome onto the counter and began to rapidly flip through the pages, muttering to herself. I sauntered over and stole a peek over her shoulder just as she reached the “Truth Ca
kes” recipe. She scanned it with her finger.
“It's an easy recipe, so nothing should go wrong.
Trepidation knotted my stomach. “And it won’t, right?”
“Of course not. Stop worrying.”
“But what if your parents return and catch us baking from this book?”
“They’re in Draceria visiting my aunt and won’t return until after dark. It’s the rest day, so the bakery is closed, preventing any customers from interrupting our baking adventure. Any other protests?”
I gnawed my lip. “It’s so…deceitful.”
“But effective.” Rosie began bustling around the kitchen, pulling out mixing bowls, spoons, and jars containing strange powders and colored liquids I’d never seen before, all with a determined gleam that made me realize I’d already lost the battle. But I refused to give up completely.
“We shouldn't bake Aiden truth cakes. It’s wrong to tamper with magic when there’s so much that can go wrong.”
Naturally, she ignored such a sensible suggestion. She arranged the ingredients on the counter before opening the bag of flour. Humming to herself, she carefully measured it before pouring some into the bowl.
“Be a dear and fetch the unicorn tears?” She waved me towards an upper cupboard I couldn’t hope to reach with my short height. I deliberated for a moment before sighing in defeat. There was no point arguing with a very determined Rosie. I dragged a chair over, telling myself that there wasn’t any harm in humoring her since I didn’t have to actually give the cakes to Aiden. This lie was so convincing I almost believed it myself.
The cupboard was stuffed to the brim with all sorts of strange ingredients: pixie dust, dragon’s breath, petals from mystical flowers I’d never heard of, bottled starlight…. Even in all the fantasy stories I’d read and all the times I’d visited the magical Forest, I’d never encountered anything that would yield ingredients such as these. Where had they come from?
“Eileen? The unicorn tears, please.”
I picked up the labeled jar containing a shimmering lilac liquid and scrambled down from my perch to hand it to her. She carefully measured out a spoonful before pouring it into her batter, which immediately turned a soft rose color. She smiled.
“Goodness, it’s already so pretty, not to mention mine always turn out incredibly tasty. Aiden will gobble them right up when you give them to him. You should eat some, too, else he’ll be suspicious.”
“I suppose you fail to see the irony that I’m using deception in order to determine whether or not he’s worthy of my trust?” I said wryly.
“One must use all the resources at her disposal,” Rosie said, unabashed. “You’re fortunate your best friend has an enchanted bakery.” She sprinkled a glittery powder into the batter before handing me a spoon. “While it’d be preferable if you made these yourself so you’re the type of heroine who takes charge of her own story, it’s best if I do most of the baking so you don’t mess up; we wouldn’t want your story to end in tragedy. However, you can at least stir the mixture together.”
I reluctantly accepted her spoon and proceeded to mix, alternating between clockwise and counter-clockwise stirring as directed by the recipe. “How do these truth cakes work exactly?”
Rosie dropped in three petals from a vibrant blue glowing flower. “They’re really quite simple. With one bite the spell is cast, forcing Aiden to be truthful for several hours. It’s a very subtle spell, so he shouldn’t suspect anything is amiss, leaving you free to question him all you like. But don’t be too heavy-handed; no man likes to feel interrogated. If you eat one, too, then you’ll finally stop lying to yourself and admit you’re falling in love with him.”
“But I’m not,” I insisted. She merely shrugged.
“We shall see, won’t we?” And humming once more, she measured two spoonfuls of the crushed silver moon rock before snatching the mixing bowl from me and stirring with an excited fervor. The way she measured and mixed, she’d obviously created these quite often. I frowned suspiciously.
“Who have you baked these for?”
She paused, her cheeks pink. “A few crushes over the years, just to see whether or not they felt anything for me in return.”
I groaned. “Oh, Rosie.”
“There’s no need to sound so disapproving. Except for my repeatedly breaking heart, there was no harm done. I needed these cakes to determine whether or not my crushes were the one, only for me to realize they weren’t. But I’ll find him one day. In the meantime, I can help you get together with yours.”
“But Aiden isn’t my—”
She gave me an exaggeratedly sweet smile. “Wait until you’ve eaten a truth cake before you try to deny it once more.”
I knew I should continue arguing against Rosie’s ridiculous idea, but it was difficult when I was already wrestling so much with myself, a battle made more difficult when I wasn’t sure which side of me I wanted to win.
Once the batter was mixed, Rosie carefully arranged four cakes—each a different color—into round balls and placed them on the wooden peel. She carefully slid the peel into the hearth before rubbing her hands clean on her apron, eyes bright.
“Voilà! Four truth cakes, soon-to-be-baked to perfection. They’ll keep for several days.” Her eyes widened. “You are meeting him within the next several days, aren’t you?”
“We’re meeting tomorrow.” My treacherous heart lifted at the thought, but I tried to mask my excitement. By the knowing look in her eyes, I hadn’t fooled her in the least.
“Excellent. The spell works best when fresh. Oh, this is positively thrilling, Eileen. You must be sure to tell me the results afterwards.”
As the cakes baked, we sat knee-to-knee on the floor as Rosie jabbered away about the latest rumors surrounding the Sortileyan royal family—particularly the Dark Prince and Dragon Princess—as well as all sorts of nobles I could care less about, considering none of the rumors were about Aiden. I fought to focus on the conversation rather than on my memories of Aiden that continuously fought for my attention. It didn't work, and thus I missed every bit of Rosie's juicy gossip.
Rosie checked on the cakes every ten minutes. Despite their small size, they took an hour to bake, which Rosie insisted was necessary in order to let the magic seep. When she deemed them finished, she removed the peel and sniffed the steam rising from the cakes.
“Aren’t they perfect?”
They were quite lovely— small, colorful, and perfectly round, with a crispy outside and what promised to be a soft, fluffy inside. Their fruity scent tickled my nose and their appetizing appearance eased some of my anxiety. “They do look good.”
“They’re delicious, for truth is one of the sweetest things.” She wrapped them in a napkin. “You must promise me you’ll give them to Aiden the next time you see him.”
I couldn’t do anything less, not with the fierce look she gave me. “I promise.”
With a satisfied nod, she reverently handed me the cakes. Their heat enveloped me as I cradled them close. The rest of my reservations melted away. Perhaps these were exactly what I needed.
Despite my continued denial against Rosie’s suggestions that my relationship with Aiden was something deeper, I knew my heart was in danger—all the more reason why our next meeting should be our last. Even so, I couldn’t deny I wanted to remove whatever barriers stood between us in order to know the true Aiden. Even if we never saw one another again, I needed to trust him—if for no other reason than to prove to my heart that it hadn’t been nearly stolen by a man unworthy of it.
Chapter 9
Aiden led us down the path deeper into the Forest, his hand laced through mine, having shyly taken it after kissing it in greeting. Ripples pulsed up my arm from our intertwined hands while nervous flutters tickled my stomach as I thought about the truth cakes tucked inside my satchel.
Due to these sensations, both his attempt at small talk and the beauty of the surrounding trees lit with golden sunlight were entirely lost on me. Ea
ch touch from his fingers sent a jolt straight to my hammering heart. Why was I allowing myself to hold his hand? We were only friends. I repeated this lie over and over while I still could, for once I ate a truth cake, I’d no longer be able to.
Around us, the trees were gradually thinning, hinting we were nearing the destination of my final payment. After today, I likely wouldn’t see Aiden again...or rather, I shouldn’t see him again. The thought sent a pang through my heart.
“We’re almost there,” Aiden murmured, and a few minutes later the path opened up into a clearing. My hand leapt to my throat.
“Oh, Aiden…”
Midst the clearing of colorful wildflowers permeating the air with their sweet perfume, a waterfall fell in a frothy cascade into a crystal clear pool. A glistening mist shrouded the air, casting a sheen of rainbows in the sunlight. A picnic blanket and basket were already arranged at the base of the falls beside the rocky outcroppings surrounding the pool.
Aiden beamed as he watched my reaction. I tentatively stepped closer, taking in the scene before us. The color of the waterfall gradually transformed from crystal blue to indigo to violet. My eyes widened. Like everything in the Forest, the waterfall was enchanted. Once again Aiden had chosen the most perfect place to take me.
“I’d always hoped there was a waterfall hidden within these trees,” I murmured.
He wiped a spray of water off my cheeks with his sleeve. “I’m pleased I helped grant your wish. The Forest is full of many wonders, isn’t it?”
He led me to the picnic basket and pulled me down to join him. There he unpacked all manner of delights—thick artisan bread, a variety of cheeses, slices of salami, an assortment of berries, and a pitcher of lemonade—and made me up a plate, which I accepted with a shy smile. He softly returned it, his gaze incredibly tender. I felt my heart constrict at his look. I needed to be careful; each moment spent with him weakened my defenses.
Pathways (The Kingdom Chronicles Book 1) Page 9