“A tour of the grounds?” I requested, hoping that would be the least conspicuous way of seeing where my gut pulled me. I needed to find the Jewels of Good Fortune and set Avalon right again. I kept my eyes on Demi’s long and manly foot, circling his ankle with my thumb while my knuckles dug into his heel. “And I’d like to meet my dad, if that’s okay.”
“Of course, Juliet,” he teased me with a charming smirk. “I’ll have Rigby set something up with his majesty most high’s attendants to make sure he’s presentable. We can tour the grounds while we’re waiting. Though, the castle’s quite large. It would take days to see all the rooms.”
I kept my smile in place, pacing myself for the job I hadn’t realized would be such an ordeal with absolutely no backup. “Finish your breakfast, Romeo, and then let’s get to it. I’m sure there’s a room around here filled to the brim with legit candy. No point in hiding it. You know I’ll find it. I’ve got a nose for good chocolate.”
Demi shoveled in a bite of eggs. “I wouldn’t dream of hiding a thing from you. First stop, the room with all the sweets.”
7
Kicking the Ball, and Putting my Foot in my Mouth
I was ready to go the second Demi finished off his last bite. My travel clothes had been washed, so I traded the dressing gown I’d slept in for the comfort of jeans and my purple Andre the Giant t-shirt that felt like a second skin. Demi helped me secure the closest thing Avalon had to a soccer ball, which was a leather ball used in the practice sessions for their annual polo events. I tried to explain soccer to Demi, but decided the basics were the best place to start. We went outside of the castle, staying between the large expanse of land that fell between my new home and the moat that encircled our fortress. It was just enough space to dribble the ball back and forth as we started to trot along the perimeter.
I kept a smile on my face while I tried to listen intently to my gut. I wanted to find those jewels and get out of here. I had no plan for after I discovered the gems, but decided not to let that bother me. Something told me like a creeping tap on the shoulder that if the jewels went missing, and I took off, Morgan would only increase her hunt for me. I hoped she believed that I had no Compass ability left to speak of.
“No, no. Try to kick it with your instep, Romeo. You’re going to hurt your toe always kicking it head-on like that.”
Demi obliged, but I could tell the adjustment felt unnatural to him. “Like this?”
“Yeah. Try it for one lap around the castle. You’ll have more control over the ball like this.”
He kicked the ball back with slightly better aim this time while we trotted a few meters apart. He wore beige pants and a white t-shirt, looking like a model from a Gap ad. “Is this what Commoners do for fun?”
“Sometimes. It’s what I do. I love playing sports. I do soccer most of the time. That’s my favorite. But I play basketball, sometimes rugby, and baseball if I need some extra stimulation. Just depends on how much free time I have after school and work, how many sports I can cram into my schedule. What do you do for fun here?”
My gut was still pleasantly settled, and we were already halfway past the front of the castle. I hoped I could find the jewels soon.
“We go hunting for game. The royals play polo. Some of us play les coup de poing. We find ways to entertain ourselves.”
“Cool. You’ll have to teach me.”
Demi shook his head, fielding one of my kicks with surprising agility. “No. Les coup de poing is no game for a woman. You could get hurt. It’s quite rough.”
“Clearly you’ve never played rugby before. Trust me, I can handle it.”
“Her majesty most high would never let you play, and the men would be afraid of a swift beheading if they touched you wrong or injured you.”
I grimaced, cradling the ball with my instep and dribbling it a few feet before kicking it back as we progressed along the perimeter of the castle. “Oh. Well, I don’t want that.”
We bantered for a while, and I learned that Demi was the second oldest of seven children, and that he’d grown up in Province 8. “When our province was surrendered to her majesty most high, I was chosen to serve in the mansion.”
“Surrendered? What do you mean?”
“Before she died, Duchess Avril couldn’t feed us all, so her majesty most high made an offer to provide for the people in the portion of Province 8 where I lived. It helped the duchess because there were less mouths to feed, which benefitted all of Province 8. So the region was absorbed by Province 1. Then when Duchess Avril died, the rest of the province was absorbed by Morgan.”
I guessed it was a big secret that Aunt Avril hadn’t been killed, but managed to escape into the Forgotten Forest with her Jewel of Good Fortune. I decided it was best for all involved if I kept my mouth shut about that one. “And everyone in the province was cool with that?”
Demi shrugged and kicked the ball back as we passed a stone parapet with a lion statue growling out at us on the ledge. “There wasn’t a choice. We went from barely making it day by day to feasting when her majesty most high took us in. Her payment was her pick of the men to serve however she saw fit. Some were chosen for the army, while others of us were groomed for serving her in the mansion.”
My mouth hung open. “So you’re a spoil of war? You were taken from your family?” I stopped the ball underfoot when it came to me, and closed the gap between us with a crushing hug. Demi’s body stiffened on first contact, but I couldn’t let him not be hugged through the awful confession. I nestled my cheek to his chest and squeezed him tight until he softened in my arms, melting like pliable chocolate. “Demi, I’m so sorry that happened. What can I do? Can I give you your freedom and send you back to your family? Like, do I have that ability?”
Demi’s arms finally wrapped around me, rubbing up and down my spine while he inhaled the scent of my curls. “I’ll go home when I’ve served my sentence. We’re to give the queen ten years from the time we’re taken, and I’m seven into mine. Life before this was so long ago, I barely remember the feel of a family. I made my peace with it all years ago. My parents are healthy, I’m told, and my brothers and sisters are fed. There are many of us like me here, so we lean on each other when it gets difficult, but over the years, we’ve grown numb to it all.”
“That’s like, the worst thing I’ve ever heard! You’re numb to being without your family? I’m a couple weeks without Lane, and I’m falling apart.”
Of all things, Demi’s chest rumbled with a quiet chuckle. He thumbed my cheek and cupped the underside of my jaw so my face was angled up toward him. “My sweet princess. How fair you are. You needn’t worry about me. If I’d not been taken, I wouldn’t be able to serve you now.”
I blew out a childish raspberry. “That’s an awful consolation prize. Can I talk to Morgan for you? Can I ask to get your sentence reduced?”
“No, my sweet Juliet. If I displease you enough that you send me away, I’ll be beaten and sent to do hard labor in the fields with the other shamed servants, or I’ll be beheaded. There is no other way for me.”
I looked up into his bright green eyes, appreciating anew how vastly different our worlds were. “I’m so sorry my mother did this to you.”
Demi squinted in mild confusion before his lips parted in wonder. “You’re being sincere. You truly wish me free so I can return to my family.”
“Of course. I don’t want this life for you. I want you to be happy and have a good life that has nothing to do with bowing.”
He glanced worriedly around to make sure no one heard us. “You cannot say such things out in the open. Her majesty most high will think I’m filling your head with foolish dreams.” Demi’s thumb slid across my cheekbone, his gaze thickening with intensity and intention. “And surely you cannot say things like that to me and expect me not to kiss you.”
My eyes widened when it occurred to me that I was in the arms of a man I’d known one whole day. My lips were close enough to clear the distance and taste
his. Demi had the look of being a great kisser. He’d kissed a few of the top women in Avalon, so he had to be pretty good at seduction.
I didn’t mean for the words to tumble out of my mouth like a clumsy punch, but I found I couldn’t stop them. “You kissed my mother and my aunt. I can’t kiss a guy who’s kissed my mom.”
Demi flinched as if I’d slapped him, which I guess my words kind of had. It wasn’t his choice to be with Morgan or Aunt Avril. He didn’t have a choice in his life at all. He was in survival mode, just trying to keep his head attached to his shoulders, and I was being a princess about the whole thing. Demi released me from our tender hug and went to pick up the ball. “Yes, your majesty. Perhaps you’d like to continue the tour of the grounds?”
His professional demeanor was exactly what I deserved. I lowered my chin and nodded, taking with grace the distance he needed to give me. We didn’t kick the ball back and forth anymore, but walked with a division the size of a grizzly bear between us. The ball was tucked under Demi’s arm. He talked about how old a few of the towers were, and I let him fill the awkwardness that settled between us. When he finally ran out of things to say, I reached out and gripped his hand, looping my pointer finger through his. “I’m sorry, Demi.”
He shrugged. “You’ve nothing to be sorry for. You’re right. I am a whore. I’m a whore and you’re a princess. For a moment, I forgot.”
I couldn’t respond with anything other than a meek, “You’re not a whore. You’re my friend. I’m so sorry I was careless. I was so mean. Please forgive me.”
Demi gave me that same odd bug look he did whenever I apologized. “If you need my forgiveness, you have it.”
I was about to say something to further debase myself, but my gut chimed in with a tug toward the moat. It was a gentle nudge at first, but as I steered us closer to the water’s edge, the nudge became a shove. My gut was screaming at me that this was the place, and that beneath the water was a jewel. I leaned over, and Demi’s hands on my waist secured me in place. “Careful, your majesty. It won’t do you any good to fall into the moat.”
“‘Your majesty?’” I turned in his arms, the hurt plain on my face as I cast my eyes up at his. He let his arms fall down and took a step backward, his hands tucked behind his back, like he was waiting for an order. I shook my head at him. “Ouch, Demi. I made one slip. I told you I’d only ever kissed one guy my whole life, and it went up in flames. I’m not good at the whole sweeping romance thing, but you don’t have to go all formal on me. It was an accident.”
He dipped his head and replied quietly, “I hear someone coming. I only used your title so as not to be punished.”
I dropped my fight, chagrinned. “Oh, sorry about that.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I’m screwing up all over the place.”
“Be patient with yourself and with me, your grace.” He stood straighter when Rigby rounded the corner at a trot. He gave Rigby a slight bow.
“Her majesty most high has requested the princess not be seen in peasant attire outside the castle. She’s to be taken back inside and properly dressed straightaway.”
I sighed at the loss of my jeans. I should’ve known that was coming. Everything here was so formal. “Okay. Hey, Rigby. How’s your morning going?”
Rigby ignored me completely, and it was then I realized he only looked at Demi and hadn’t spoken to me at all yet. “Take her through the south entrance. She’s not to be seen like this. The suitors are already responding with letters of intent. Her majesty most high will want to approve of her appearance before she’s seen by them.”
I looked down at myself, confused. “But I look fine. And I told her I didn’t need any suitors. She’s still on that? I told her I’m not ready to get married, much less to a stranger.”
Again, Rigby didn’t look at me, but only spoke to Demi. “Take her quickly, and see to it she doesn’t speak her mind. Her majesty most high is in a state this morning.”
“Yes, sir. Right away.”
I felt unbearably sad that for no reason at all, my friends in the castle had been cut by fifty percent. I didn’t know what I’d done to make Rigby hate me so much. “Rigby? What’s going on? Why won’t you look at me? Did I do something wrong? Whatever it is, I’m sorry!”
I watched the vein in Rigby’s neck tighten and pulse as he fought to ignore me. “Demi, please explain her majesty most high’s temper to your charge. The princess has been permitted to keep you, but should anyone else in the castle look the princess’ way, they shall face her majesty’s wrath.”
My eyes snapped to Demi in alarm. “Come again? Rigby, why are you mad at me? Please don’t hate me. I don’t know what I did!”
Demi nodded, his body rigid as he wasted no time pulling me tight to his side. “Come, Princess. We’ll take the back corridors to your chambers to avoid her majesty’s whims.”
Before I could respond or get a straight answer, Demi was shoving me into the nearest castle door, his body stiff and on high alert. He wrapped my hand around his elbow, taking quick and quiet steps, pausing before we rounded each corner. He pressed his finger to his lips, but I was already too turned around and upset to speak my mind. It felt like we were hiding from someone, though I wasn’t sure who.
8
The Punishment for Jeans
Demi gusted out a breath of relief when the door to my bedroom closed behind us. The small reprieve was all he allowed himself before running to the tall oak wardrobe in the corner and flinging the double doors open. He yanked out a dress at random and laid it on the bed. “You have to change now, Rosie. Quick as you can. It would really be faster if I helped you.”
“Huh? I can get dressed by myself, but thanks.” I went behind the partition with the new dress where a pile of white ruffles lay draped over an upholstered chair. “Why is Rigby mad at me? What did I do?” I jerked my shirt over my head and kicked off my shoes, socks and jeans.
“Rigby adores you, which is the only reason he thought to warn us. Her majesty most high hasn’t permitted another woman in the castle in ages. You’re the first. Her temper tends to flare when men look anywhere other than at her. Rigby is her most trusted servant, so he must be careful if he wants to stay in her majesty most high’s good graces.”
“But Rigby’s gotta be like, twenty years older than me. She’s not actually jealous of me. You can’t be serious. I’m in old jeans and sneakers.”
“Yes, and even in peasant clothing, you’re going to turn the eye of every man in the castle. We’ve been starved for true beauty.”
It was the closest Demi had ever come to out and out dissing Morgan, so I chose not to comment on it. “Okay. Then how is making me dress up going to help men not look at me?” The heavy pink material almost fell clean off me when I worked it over my head. I fumbled with the lacing in the back, but it was being stubborn, and had too many loops.
“Her majesty most high is quite proud. It won’t do to have suitors come to see you, only to think Morgan cannot run her household and look after one small girl. You’re Master Kerdik’s blessing to all of Avalon, so it’s important you’re presented as royalty. Her majesty most high fears only Master Kerdik, and there have been rumors that he’s been seen in Avalon. First time in decades. If he thinks she’s not presented you properly, he might pass judgment on her.” His tone turned grave. “Even the strongest and bravest don’t get back up once Master Kerdik’s judgment is passed.”
I gave up on the laces and came out holding my dress up with a look of apology on my face. “I don’t know how to lace this thing up. I know I said I didn’t need any help, and I swear I’m not trying to make things weird, but could you lace me up just this once? Maybe teach me how, so I don’t have to bug you about it again?”
Demi’s expression vacillated between amusement and panic that I’d wasted so much time doing it all wrong. “You forgot your undergarments, Rosie.”
“Huh? I’m wearing underwear. What are you talking about?”
A crooked half-sm
ile played on Demi’s lips. “Let me help you. Otherwise her majesty most high will see you like this, and she’ll be terribly displeased with us both.”
My face was burning crimson when he led me back to the pile of ruffles I’d dismissed as somebody else’s. He kept his eyes locked in on mine as his thumbs tucked under the edges of my dress’ neckline and slowly peeled down the gown until it was a puddle of material on the floor. My hands moved quick to cover my bra, but Demi only smiled softly at me. He picked up the mountain of beige and white alternating ruffles and slipped it over my head. My arms were expertly threaded through the capped sleeves after Demi popped my bra off. He kept his eyes focused on mine so I didn’t freak out and run away, but I was still on the brink. “Demi, I don’t think I like this dress,” I warned, panicked.
“These are your underskirts. They keep your dress in place.” He lifted the corset thing that Scarlet O’Hara had worn in Gone with the Wind, and began to fashion it around my waist. His hands gently moved under my breasts to plump them out, but his touch was kind and as respectful as possible. I didn’t feel the fear I assumed would rise up like bile in my throat at the way too intimate contact. I tried to remind myself that this was Demi’s job, and I needed to chill out about it. He tied the corset just tight enough that I could still move freely and breathe just fine. The pink and red dress was slipped over my head, but this time it didn’t droop off of me. The poofy ruffled under-dress thing held it in place. I held my breath while Demi laced up the gold ribbons on the back of the gown.
Demi leaned down to whisper in my ear. “It would do well for you not to mention any temper you have about your suitors today. They’re coming, whether you like it or not. On the days her majesty most high is in a temper, it’s best not to provoke her.”
“Oh, jeez. I told her no, though. Don’t I get a say in any of it?”
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