“It was kind of your uncle to permit me to stay at the palace with my mother,” Kalen said enthusiastically, looking around at the whirling dancers. It was his first time inside the Summer Palace. “I am having a marvelous time.”
I smiled at him from behind my plant. It was so good to have Kalen to talk to again.
“Why are you hiding behind a plant?” Kalen’s brow furrowed. “Let us go and meet Rafe. Don’t you want to talk to him?”
“No!” I said, catching Kalen’s arm and pulling him back behind the plant before he could escape again. “That’s exactly who I am trying to stay away from.”
“By hiding behind a plant?” asked Kalen, looking at me as if I had lost a few brain cells along the way.
I bit my fingernail. “Sort of.”
“But why? I thought you liked Rafe,” said Kalen, again looking confused.
“I do,” I said, now getting exasperated. “Too much. That’s why I have to stay away from him. Don’t you see?”
“No, I don’t see, but if you say so.”
I rolled my eyes. Kalen could be so oblivious sometimes.
“And don’t you think you should have mentioned that the Black Wolf was really the Prince of Eldoren?” I whispered.
“Shhh,” Kalen hissed. “Be careful. If anyone overhears us, Rafe’s life will be in danger.”
“But how could you not tell me?” I asked again, trying to keep my voice to the softest of whispers.
“I told you when you asked me the first time—he didn’t tell you because he didn’t want you to know.”
I hung my head. Rafe didn’t trust me. That hurt more than it should, and I turned away so Kalen could not see the tears that swam in my eyes and threatened to fall.
“Oh, it will be fun to watch Rafe when he realizes his betrothed is here,” said Kalen blithely, scanning the room.
I thought I was going to faint again.
Betrothed!
Rafe was engaged!
Oh no, Leticia! How could I have forgotten?
My eyes whipped about the room, and I spotted Rafe almost immediately, standing rather stiffly in front of Leticia. She had her back to me, and her beautiful golden hair, woven with glittering diamonds, cascaded down her back. She was dressed in a dazzling confection of baby pink and silver satin. She turned, and I noticed her icy eyes shone with anger—and she was directing that anger at Rafe.
I wanted to find out what they were saying. “Tell me about her,” I whispered to Kalen.
Kalen was busy looking around the room and was obviously getting bored standing with me behind the plant. I could tell by the look on his face that he was glad to spill some gossip.
“That’s Leticia, the daughter of the Earl of Glenbarry,” said Kalen quickly.
I nodded, urging him to go on.
“She is his only child and will inherit everything after her father. The estates of Glenbarry are enormous. I heard some people saying that Rafe’s mother and Leticia’s mother were best friends. And apparently—” Kalen looked around once and lowered his voice to a whisper. “Apparently, his mother made him promise on her deathbed that he would wed Leticia. Rafe agreed, to please his mother, but I guess he now regrets his decision to marry that shrew.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “Isn’t she nice?” I already knew she was horrid, but I wanted to know what others thought about her.
Kalen snorted. “Ha! Nice is the opposite of Leticia. Poor Rafe only found that out once she was officially betrothed to him. I heard from the palace servants that he keeps putting off the wedding, but I don’t know how long she is going to let him get away with that.”
I pulled Kalen’s arm as we wove through the crowd toward Rafe and Leticia. I kept stopping and trying to hide behind statues and people along the way so that Rafe didn’t notice me. When I finally reached eavesdropping distance, I pulled Kalen and sat down on a high-backed chair next to where Rafe and Leticia were standing. Kalen perched himself on the arm next to me. The chair was turned away from the crowd, so Leticia did not see us, but I was sure Rafe had spotted us already; he never missed anything.
“What are we doing, exactly?” asked Kalen, confused again.
I rolled my eyes for the millionth time. “Shhh,” I said, trying to listen.
“. . . And you just go off and leave me,” hissed Leticia quietly to Rafe.
“Leticia,” said Rafe slowly, as if it were taking all his power to keep his anger in check. “I told you I was away. I cannot be at your beck and call all the time.”
“But we are to be married, and I want to know where you were for so long,” she said sharply, “so you’d better get used to it. You gave your word to your mother, and I know even you would not go back on that promise.”
I tried hard to hear Rafe’s reply to that, but a gaggle of chattering women had approached and were accosting the prince. I turned around. Leticia looked peeved, but Rafe seemed to be relieved and was now enjoying himself, flirting openly with all the women who were fawning over him. I got up quickly from my chair, and Kalen followed.
I glanced around the room for Aunt Serena, who I couldn’t spot anywhere, when a young man who introduced himself as Viscount Steele came up to me and asked me to dance. Aunt Serena had tried teaching me the intricate dance of Eldoren, which was very similar to a waltz. I was not very good at it, but I decided to give it a go.
I took the viscount’s hand as he led me onto the dancefloor. He wasn’t a very good dancer either, and I tried to follow his lead, but he made it very difficult. The musicians were playing a lively melody, and my spirits lifted with the music. It was no use feeling sorry for myself and following Rafe around like a lost puppy. I was upset that he hadn’t told me that he was engaged. He’d let me fall for him without a thought as to what would happen when I found out about Leticia.
Despite my anger, my eyes searched for Rafe, and my heart leapt when I found him. He was leaning against a far wall of the ballroom, his powerful arms crossed over his chest, watching me. Our eyes locked, but he didn’t smile.
The viscount was still obliviously whirling me around the dancefloor and stepping on my toes while he was at it. I winced each time and finally stopped dancing. The viscount apologized profusely, but I wasn’t paying attention. I looked back to where Rafe was standing, but he was gone.
The music stopped, and the viscount begged me for another dance. But I’d had enough and turned to leave the dancefloor, when my face collided with a rock-hard chest covered in expensive midnight-blue fabric.
“May I have this dance?” said the voice I had come to love and trust.
I looked up at Rafe. His reassuring presence and piercing gray eyes were so familiar that I couldn’t help but smile.
“But Your Highness,” said the viscount, interrupting and standing close to me. “You never dance.”
“I do now,” said the Prince of Eldoren, never taking his eyes off me.
Rafe held out his hand, and I took it, just as I had dozens of times before. He led me to the center of the dancefloor, and overdressed nobles moved out of the way to let us pass. The musicians started playing a haunting melody, and Rafe swept me up in his arms, holding me close and gliding across the dancefloor. He was a wonderful dancer, and I didn’t even have to think as I followed his effortless steps.
As we danced, Rafe said nothing, but he looked at me as if I were the only person in the room, and in that moment a flame in my heart ignited and my soul woke up, recognizing its other half for the first time. For some unexplainable reason, I knew beyond a doubt that I had finally found a permanent place for my heart.
Everyone watched us as we danced, but I didn’t care. I was in Rafe’s arms, and that was the only place I wanted to be. The music stopped, but Rafe didn’t let go of me immediately. I knew people were staring and whispering, but I couldn’t look away.
Erien came over and pulled me away into the crowd. “What do you think you were doing?” he chided in a whisper. “Everyone is talking about
you and Rafe. He’s going to be married; you have to stop this now or your reputation will be ruined.”
“You don’t think I know that?” I snapped, irritated that Erien was absolutely right. “It was nothing. We were just dancing.”
Erien raised an eyebrow. “It didn’t look like nothing from where I was standing.”
“It’s my life. I’ll do what I want.” I turned from Erien’s angry gaze. I wanted to be alone; I had to leave the ballroom.
But before I could disappear into the crowd, Leticia stopped me, and Rafe was too busy to notice. Leticia ignored Erien and glared at me. If looks could kill, I would have been dead a thousand times by now.
“Calisto told me about you.” Leticia sniffed with her thin, pinched nose as if she smelled something horrid. “We thought you were just Silverthorne’s orphaned ward. It looks like you deceived everyone, Your Highness.”
Leticia was quite beautiful, but as soon as she opened her mouth, all that beauty vanished. She had a shrill, nasal voice, and her words were acidic and deadly. She was definitely someone I wanted to stay away from.
“You may think you can deceive everyone else, but you don’t fool me. I thought I would inform you that Rafael and I are to be married very soon, so don’t start getting any ideas.” Leticia gave me a warning look. “Just because you have discovered that you are a princess doesn’t mean that the prince will leave me for you. He doesn’t care about that sort of thing. He is mine, and there is nothing you can do about that.”
I looked down, embarrassed. Surely she couldn’t know how I felt about Rafe? No one did, or so I thought. But I guess the spectacle I had made of myself was hard to ignore.
“I saw you and Rafael dancing.” Her face was almost feral at the thought. “It is quite plain to see that you want him. If you don’t stay away, you will be sorry.”
Erien pulled my arm, but I didn’t budge. Who did this woman think she was, talking to me like that? “I have no interest in the prince. He is close to my granduncle, that’s all. And for your information, Rafe knew who I really was months ago.”
Leticia’s mouth fell open.
Let her chew on that, I thought as I turned on my heel and walked away quickly. My heart beat heavily, and it felt as if it were breaking. I had intended to stay away from Rafe anyway, and now that I knew he was to be married, I thanked my lucky stars that I had not gotten any more involved with him earlier or told him how I felt. I would have looked like such a fool.
Even if he did have any interest in me, it was just the way he was with any woman. He was gallant and kind and every bit a prince, and the more I thought about him, the more I wanted him. But it could not be, and I was definitely not the type to go after someone else’s fiancée. That dance was the last one we would ever have.
I felt claustrophobic. There were too many people chattering around me and to me. I didn’t even bother listening to what they were saying as I wound my way through the crowd. I had to get out of that room. It was too stuffy. I walked out onto the balcony and leaned against the marble balustrade. I gazed out at the now brightly lit gardens of the Summer Palace, took a deep breath of the fresh night air, and immediately relaxed.
I could think properly out here.
I walked down the wide steps leading to the garden. I just wanted to be alone. A few minutes of walking quietly would make me feel better; then I would unobtrusively slip in one of the side doors and go up to my room, and no one would even notice.
In a few days we would leave for Elfi, and I would never have to see Rafe again. My heart ached with the loss of my first love, but I knew now that it was not meant to be. He was getting married to someone else, and anyway he had never even said that he liked me. I was just imagining he did because that was what I wanted. I realized that now.
I looked out at the beautiful, moonlit gardens. There was no use in thinking about Rafe.
“Why are you out here alone, Aurora?” said an extremely familiar voice behind me.
Talk of the devil. I whirled around so quickly that my foot got stuck in the irritatingly billowing skirt of my Lady Charlotte creation. I could feel myself falling, but there was nothing I could do about it.
Strong hands gripped my arms and prevented me from making a complete fool of myself. When I looked up, I was staring into the beautiful gray eyes of the Prince of Eldoren himself, and to make matters worse, his lips had quirked up in an amused smile.
I gathered myself and stood up shakily. Rafe still held me by my arms in case I stupidly fell down again, I supposed. He looked at me intently, and I quickly brushed away a few stray tears that had unexpectedly stained my cheeks.
Rafe’s eyes narrowed as he surveyed me. “You have been crying.”
I shook my head. What could I say? That I cried every time someone was rude to me? Rafe would really think I was a useless idiot.
“Did someone hurt you?” he asked again, more gently this time.
I shook my head again. I didn’t even look up into his eyes, as I was afraid of what he would see in them. According to Leticia, it was obvious to everyone around me, and she was right. In only a few short months, I had fallen completely in love with Rafe. It was useless denying it to myself, and as much as I tried to stay away from him, it made no difference; he was always on my mind. But he was betrothed and lost to me forever. My only hope now was to forget about him and hope that I succeeded.
I steeled myself, looked up at Rafe, and smiled. “Oh, it’s nothing.” My stomach twisted as I tried hard to sound flippant. “I got some dirt in my eye, that’s all.”
“Oh!” said Rafe, coming closer. “Let’s see.”
My mouth dried up, and I was aware of every breath as Rafe brought his face so close to mine that our noses were almost touching. Looking straight into my eyes, he smoothed a stray lock of hair away from my face and tucked it behind my ear. Rafe entwined his fingers through mine, brought them up to his mouth, and brushed his lips over my fingertips in the lightest of kisses.
“Why did you lie to me about who you really are?” I flicked a glance up at him.
Rafe looked to the side and avoided my eyes but didn’t let go of his hold on me. “I guess I just wanted you to like me for me.”
“Did you think it would have made any difference?”
“It has in the past. Every woman I am with usually wants the title that comes along. Even Leticia is only with me because she wants to be queen.”
My eyes narrowed. “Well, I am not like that.” I pushed him away and folded my arms across my chest. “I was already in love with you when I thought you were an outlaw.”
Rafe’s eyebrows rose. “You were? You are?” But he still didn’t say anything about how he felt. He was always so mysterious; I had no idea what he was thinking.
“Yes, you silly fool,” I said, waving my hands about. “I think I fell in love with you from the first minute you walked into that dungeon. I didn’t even know at that time if I could trust you or not.”
Rafe strode over to me and took me in his arms gently, pulling me toward him. He looked into my eyes for a soul-searching moment before his lips descended onto mine in the most urgent of kisses. I melted into his arms as he pulled me closer, his arms tightening around my waist. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back. In that moment, I felt the whole world melt away. There was only Rafe and me and a world of possibilities before us. I never wanted this moment to end. It was everything I had wished for and more.
Finally I broke off the kiss, which had left me gasping for air. When I looked back up at him, his gray eyes were focused and staring straight into my own with an intensity I had never seen before.
Rafe held me close. “You are the most beautiful, courageous, and fascinating girl I have ever met. I cannot help the way I feel. I know it’s wrong. But ever since I met you, you are all I think about.”
“What about Leticia?” I asked breathlessly, my heart leaping at the possibility that Rafe really may have feelings for me.
Rafe ran a hand though his dark wavy hair. “Leticia is my betrothed only in name. It was a promise I made to my mother before she died, when Leticia and I were still very young.”
“But you cannot go back on your word.” I stated. I knew the answer before I even asked the question.
“No, I cannot. There is no way I can change the course of these events. Leticia and I will be married next spring.”
I disentangled myself from Rafe’s arms and pushed him away. “Then why did you kiss me?”
“I couldn’t help myself.” He didn’t so much as blink an eye. “Ever since I saw you in that dungeon at Oblek’s castle, wearing those funny clothes, I was completely besotted. I wanted to get to know you before I revealed who I was or my feelings for you.”
I put my hands on my hips. I didn’t believe him. And I absolutely refused to be someone he had on the side with Leticia as his bride-to-be. “And when were you planning on revealing the fact that you are engaged to be married?”
I was now hiding behind my anger, which had started building up slowly but steadily. Then it hit me. I had been so stupid; he’d never intended to give up Leticia for me. It was the most humiliating moment of my life, and my heart was crushed, smashed into little bits. I was not sure I would ever be able to fit it back together again.
Rafe furrowed his brow in confusion. “I was going to tell you. I just wanted time for us to get to know each other before you found out.” He stopped and ran his hand through his hair as he always did when he was flustered.
My eyes narrowed. “And then what? You expected me to just be okay with it?”
He shook his head. “No, I thought . . .” His voice trailed off. He didn’t seem to have an answer.
I threw him a pointed look. “I can’t do this,” I said finally.
His stormy eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that you are betrothed to Leticia, and I know that you cannot break your vow to your mother. I respect you for that, but I cannot be with you and kiss you knowing that you are to be married.”
The Last of the Firedrakes (The Avalonia Chronicles Book 1) Page 29