by J. M. Page
Hesitantly, already wincing at the implications, Lina slipped her hand into Bain’s and he whisked her into the spinning crowd. All around, happy faces and rainbow fabrics swirled in the warm glow of fairy lights.
The song was slow at first, and Lina stumbled only a bit but soon, the tempo picked up and she found herself tripping over skirts and stepping on toes with every move. “This was a mistake,” she said as the people around them gave a wide berth. Her face burned and she could feel everyone watching as she tripped and stumbled again. Being the center of attention wasn’t something she was used to. Normally, people didn’t notice her at all.
“You’re thinking about it too hard,” Bain whispered in her ear, his warm breath tickling down her neck, sending shivers through her. “Trust me to lead.”
Lina frowned. How did she do that? It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Bain, but every time she tried to focus on what steps he made, she only got clumsier.
“Close your eyes,” he said, wincing as she stepped on his toes again.
She eyed him dubiously. “I’ve only just gotten out of the hospital, are you looking to put me back there?”
The corners of his lips curled upwards and he shook his head. “I assure you, I prefer our interactions without Farita’s supervision. All I’m asking is for a little trust. Please?” he added after a brief pause.
Lina heaved a sigh, sending one last glance around the dizzying dance floor before turning back to Bain and closing her eyes.
Without being able to see, she had to focus more on her other senses. The music swept over her and Bain’s grip on her hand and her waist felt warmer than before. The intimacy of the touch was unsettling and new for Lina, but she had to admit that she liked it.
“Now,” he practically purred in her ear, making Lina jump a little. He was closer than she’d thought. “Follow me,” he said.
“But how can I—”
Before she could finish her question, the prince began to move. He stepped forward and Lina instinctively stepped back. When she focused on the spots on her body where his fingers rested, she could almost predict when he’d next make a move. She kept her eyes closed and paid close attention to the way his hips moved with each step, brushing against hers for that split second before she took her move.
Lina opened her eyes, grinning now. “I’m doing it!”
Bain’s eyes sparkled, and he lifted his arm, making her gasp as he twirled her and caught her in a low dip. “You are,” he laughed.
He pulled her up from the dip just as the song ended and they wound up too close, chests pressed together, both slightly breathless from the dance. For just a moment, time seemed to slow, their eyes locked together, the rest of the celebration forgotten. She thought he was going to kiss her — hell, she thought she might kiss him — but the crowd broke into applause for the band and it shook them both free of the connection that had transfixed them.
They danced twice more before Suriah came for him.
“Brother, your presence is requested,” she said smirking. “Mother wants the delegation to hear about your plans for the Southern Isles firsthand.”
His shoulders slumped for the briefest moment and he sent Lina an apologetic look. “Duty calls, I’m afraid.”
Lina nodded, sad to see him go. But he couldn’t put everything on hold for the girl who fell from the sky. He still had a life and responsibilities to attend to. As he walked away through the crowd his shoulders stiffened, and he transformed from the fun and charming man she’d grown to know, into a confident diplomat on a mission. Her eyes lingered on his lean muscular form and her heart thudded in her throat.
Maybe being stuck here wouldn’t be so bad. There were already many pros, but Bain himself was turning out to be the most convincing aspect.
“He likes you too, you know,” Suriah said, surprising Lina by being right next to her.
Lina spun around, her face already heating up. “What? I don’t know what you’re—”
“Oh, please,” Suriah said, waving a hand dismissively. “It’s obvious that you like him. I mean… who wouldn’t right? He’s my brother and a jerk, but even I can see the appeal to someone that didn’t grow up with him putting sap in their hair.”
Lina dragged her eyes away from the last spot she’d seen Bain. He’d disappeared in the crowd and now she couldn’t find him. “Oh… Well…” Lina said, looking down at her feet and the perfectly-molded iridescent shoes the staff had made for her that day. “I mean… He’s been very nice to me and…”
Suriah rolled her eyes and slipped an arm around Lina’s shoulders, leading her away from the middle of the dance floor. “Come on, let’s get some food.”
Lina let herself be led, but her heart was racing. She wasn’t even really sure how she felt about Bain yet, despite the little flutter her heart did whenever she just thought of his name, but his sister seemed to be able to see right through her. What if she told him about Lina’s little crush? That would just be mortifying.
Suriah didn’t say anything as she steered Lina through the crowd to a table heavily laden with sweets in a rainbow of colors. The princess took a plate and started piling on one of everything.
“Oooh, these are my favorite,” she said, popping what looked to be a chocolate truffle in her mouth before sending a surreptitious look around and adding two more to her plate. “Have you tried them?”
Lina shook her head. “I haven’t tried anything yet.”
Surie’s eyes went wide and she passed her plate to Lina, grabbing another and repeating the process. “Dessert’s the best part of these things,” she said, eating another truffle. Then she shrugged adding, “Well, I guess if you’re not the girl lucky enough to be dancing with Prince Bain.”
Lina’s face burned again and she tried to hide it in a cupcake.
Suriah just giggled and shook her head, reaching for a napkin. “You don’t have to be embarrassed,” she said. “There are tons of girls who’d kill to be in your position. Here—” she said, dabbing the napkin on Lina’s nose, where she’d apparently gotten some frosting from the cupcake.
“Thing is,” Suriah continued, her eyes drifting off over the party. Lina followed her gaze and found Bain standing next to his mother on a raised dais, talking to a group of dark-haired people in robes of liquid silver. “Bain’s never once taken an interest in any of those girls. Mom’s tried pairing him up with everyone she can think of, but he’s stubborn and really good at sabotaging any prospects.”
She paused, seeming to realize what she’d said, her eyes going wide, her mouth opening in a little ‘o’ of surprise. “Uh… don’t tell anyone I said that. He’s really good at making it seem like it was the other person’s decision to break off the courtship. If Mother knew he was doing it on purpose she… wouldn’t be happy.”
Lina nodded. “Don’t worry. Who would I even tell?”
Surie laughed and shoveled another sweet into her mouth. “That’s a very good point.”
Lina nibbled on a few different things, each more delicious than the last. She didn’t know how Suriah kept her slim figure with the way she inhaled the stuff, though.
They stood there in amicable silence for a while, both watching the prince as they ate desserts. Lina couldn’t help herself from thinking about what Suriah had said though. It niggled at her until she couldn’t stand it.
“So…” she finally said, clearing her throat. “You think he likes me?” The moment she said it, her face was on fire again. Why was she so embarrassed about such a silly thing?
But she knew why. Lina had never so much as met another person her size. Or a boy her age. Or one so cute… Put them all together and what hope did she have? There was no denying it: Prince Bain was her very first crush. She never really expected a thing like this to happen to her. She’d heard love stories and watched movies and knew about romance, but never dreamed to think it would have any place in her life. But now… Now everything had changed, and the prince made butterflies flap around ma
dly in her stomach. He made her warm and tingly inside and most of all, he made her laugh. When she was talking to Bain, she forgot about how far away from home she was. She forgot about how she was stranded in this place, because suddenly, when she was talking to him, she felt like this place was home.
Suriah snorted indelicately and nodded. “Yeah, I think that’s an understatement. He’s only looked over here a dozen times in the last five minutes.”
This time, the warmth that flooded Lina’s cheeks was a pleasant, happy one. She pushed down a self-satisfied smile, but knew by the look on Surie’s face that she wasn’t doing a good job of it.
“Trust me,” the princess said, “he’s never looked at anyone that way. I think he was smitten the moment he found you. He never cared about staying with anyone else through the night while they were under Farita’s care. And he’s not like me — Bain normally goes to all these boring events. He still complains about them, sure, but he doesn’t just skip them like I do.”
Suriah shrugged. “He definitely likes you.”
Lina grinned at that and when she looked back his way, he was looking to her. Their eyes caught and a jolt of electricity shot straight to her toes. He smiled and turned back to the foreign delegation, nodding before shaking each of their hands.
“He won’t get in trouble for that, will he?” she asked, her breath caught in her throat as the prince held eye contact, sweeping through the crowd towards her.
“He was reprimanded earlier today, but I think our mother is more amused than anything. Seeing Bain distracted like this is… unusual. But more than that, he seems… happier. I’m sure she’s glad for that even if it does mean he misses some important events.”
Lina nodded and blindly reached behind her for another flute of the bubbly drink she’d had earlier. It seemed to have some relaxing properties and she could use all the help relaxing she could get right now. Bain was nearly upon them, his eyes never leaving hers, and her heart galloped with a mixture of anticipation, excitement, and apprehension.
She knew if she was going to pursue this thing with Bain, she’d be giving up on her hopes of ever going home.
“Suriah,” he said with a stern tone as he approached them, “please tell me you’re not harassing our guest.”
His sister rolled her eyes as Lina jumped to her defense. “Oh no, she wasn’t… We were just—” She spotted the laughter glinting in their eyes and let her protests fall, melting into a smile.
“Have you had enough of this yet?” he asked, turning to Lina.
“Hmm?” she asked, lifting her brows as she sipped on the sweet bubbly concoction.
“My duties here are done. Business for the night has concluded and it will be nothing but celebrating for the rest of the evening. I was considering making a break for it, but if you’d like another dance, I’d be happy to oblige.”
Lina’s stomach fell just a little, like it had tripped and stumbled. She wasn’t quite ready for the night to be over with yet. She wasn’t sure what she had hoped for, but she liked spending time with Bain and the thought of them going their separate ways and ending this wonderful night sent a pang of regret through her.
Still, he had enough duties and responsibilities without tending to her in every spare moment. If the prince wanted some down time to himself, she couldn’t blame him. He’d earned it.
She managed a smile and glanced back at the dance floor before saying, “I think I’ve had enough dance lessons for one evening, but thank you for the offer.”
Bain nodded. “Quite right you are. Shall we?” He offered his arm to her and Lina’s brow furrowed.
“You want me to come with you?”
He chuckled. “Of course. There’s something I want to show you.”
“Oh!” She slipped her arm into his, feeling almost foolish for having been so disappointed just a moment ago. Suriah said that Bain liked her, and yet she’d still been insecure and unsure when he’d appeared again. But with her arm linked with Bain’s things seemed well in the world again.
She turned to her new friend and asked, “Are you coming, Surie?”
The princess shook her head. “Nah, I’m good. You two have fun, though.”
Bain didn’t wait for their pleasantries or goodbyes. He steered Lina away from the party, heading down through the canopy town toward the ground.
Chapter Six
“So, can I ask where you’re taking me, or is it a surprise?” Lina asked, her voice bubbling with barely contained laughter.
“Well, it’s both, I suppose. My mother wouldn’t want me to mention it to you. She’s afraid it would give you false hope. And I suppose I see her point. But I think it will be interesting to you nonetheless,” he said.
Lina frowned. “You know you didn’t actually tell me anything with that?”
Bain laughed, the warm rich sound floating on the breeze and caressing her shoulders like a loving embrace. “I know. Humor me.”
“I guess,” Lina teased with a dubious tone.
They finally reached the ground level and grass tickled her ankles as Bain led her on. “I’m going to ruin this gown,” she said as the skirt snagged on a twig.
Bain shrugged. “It’s just a gown.”
There was no real arguing with that, but how could she tell him how much such a insignificant thing meant to her? That it was real clothing, tailor-made to her, not scraps of fabric stitched into some semblance of a covering. That it was so beautiful, unlike anything she’d seen on Earth. It seemed a shame to dismiss it so callously. And then of course there were the memories they’d already made in this dress. Her first real dance, her first real party. Thinking of it ruined and tattered made her heart ache.
But like Bain said, it was just a gown. Hopefully it wouldn’t be the last one she ever had.
“There, ahead. Do you see where the moonlight hits the water there?”
Lina hadn’t been paying attention to where they were going. She was carefully stepping around wet ground, avoiding brambles and branches, trying to protect her gown and shoes as best she could. But she stopped, leaning on Bain for support as she teetered on her tip toes, holding the skirt up.
They were on the bank of a river that curved and wound its way to the sea. Water lapped at the edges lazily, and in the distance, nighttime insects came alive, singing. She peered over Bain’s shoulder and nodded.
“Yes, I see it.”
“There’s a cave there,” he said. His tone made it seem like that should have some significance to her.
“Oh-kay,” she said not really understanding.
Bain’s mouth twisted, but then he shook his head. “It’s better if I just show you.”
“That’s on the other side of the river,” she pointed out, gesturing to her gown again.
“I know.” It seemed Bain really did not care one way or the other if her dress was destroyed.
He tugged on her hand and approached a large boulder on the side of the river. There were other, smaller boulders leading off from it in a line that marched straight across the river. Still, they were mostly submerged, only the very top peeking out of the slow-moving water.
“Think you can make it across?”
Lina frowned, looking down at her shoes. “Not with these.”
“I thought you might say that,” Bain answered with a mischievous glint in his eye. Lina took a step back, half expecting him to haul her over his shoulder and carry her across. She’d been carried lots of times, but that was in the palm of Mom’s hand and the idea of Bain carrying her seemed… different somehow. Instead of reaching for her though, he slid his hand around the boulder, his entire arm disappearing behind its bulk.
There was a loud thunk and then grinding, like unused gears coming to life. Slowly, the other rocks in the river lifted until they were the pillars of a bridge spanning the water.
“Better?” Bain asked.
Lina nodded carefully, her mouth agape.
“Come on then,” he said, waving her forward.
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She followed, but not before taking a moment to examine the boulder, looking for the controls he’d activated. She didn’t spot anything out of place and turned her attention to the bridge, frowning.
Bain seemed to not notice her lagging behind and was talking to her, but she couldn’t hear him over the water gurgling below. He turned, giving her a mock-stern look and waited for her to catch up to him. “If you think that’s cool, just wait until we get to the cave.”
“What is all of this about?”
The prince blew out a breath and his shoulders sagged as if the breath had deflated him some. “Our civilization is very old, Lina. We’ve been in this place, living this way for hundreds of years, but before that, we belonged to something bigger. You wouldn’t know it now, but my people were once explorers. We colonized many planets, but then something terrible happened.”
“What?” Lina asked, a lump growing in her windpipe.
Bain shrugged. “No one knows. It might have been a war that went badly. Maybe a plague. All we know is it brought devastation unlike anything we’d ever known. This planet, a small outpost of the greater empire, was the only refuge. We had only a few settlers here and the last remnants of the population joined us. We’ve all but forgotten our heritage, and I hate to say it, but I think my mother prefers it that way.”
Lina’s lips pursed and she held onto the bridge railing for support as she stepped onto the opposite muddy bank of the river. “And you don’t, I take it?”
This time, Bain’s sigh seemed to settle on his shoulders like a heavy weight. “I understand her intentions. Whatever destroyed us could still be out there, or something else waiting to take us out. And we are happy here. We’re thriving and prosperous, we still meet with delegations from other planets…”
“So then what is it?”
Bain shook his head. “Maybe we’ll never understand the technology our ancestors left behind for us, but I feel like we owe it to them to try.”
Lina nodded, though she wasn’t sure she understood totally. She didn’t understand how any of this was relevant to her.