Dazed

by Katie Hauenstein

  He smiled and I mirrored the smile back to him. As we walked to the center of the dance floor, the crowd parted and formed a circle around us. The music began and we danced effortlessly to the song in three quarter time in companionable silence. Being in his arms was like basking in rays of sunshine after a few months of endless rain and overcast sky. I never wanted it to end. Mainly because I knew when it did, I would begin a rotation through the participants of the King’s Test as dance partners for the rest of the evening.

  The song ended and, as expected, when Peter bowed out, Brian stepped in.

  At least I’ll get an extra dance with Peter tonight.

  Brian bowed, I curtseyed, and he slowly moved to take my hand and waist. A moment later, the dance began. Fortunately, because each participant was guaranteed a dance and a private conversation during the King’s Test Ball, all the music would be slow, so I wouldn’t become exhausted. Unfortunately, this meant each man would hold me close and I would be forced to talk to them all as we glided across the dance floor.

  Brian stayed quiet for the first half of the song and had a hard time keeping eye contact with me. Just when I was thinking it might not be so bad after all, he opened his mouth and looked me in the eyes.

  “You are beautiful this evening, Princess Miriam. I have always liked that color green on you. It brings out the color in your eyes.”

  “Um. Thank you, Count Brian. We will be together a lot in the coming months. You can just call me Miriam, if you would like.”

  He gave me a crooked smile and I could feel his arms loosen up a bit. “You can call me Brian, Miriam.”

  It appeared as though my initial thought that he didn’t want to be there was wrong; he was just nervous. Trying not to tense up, I skipped a beat and almost fell. With quick reflexes he had developed through years of combat training, he caught me and managed to make it look like it was all a part of the dance.

  “Thank you, Brian.” I smiled at him.

  “Have you heard about my recent promotion? I am third in command now,” he boasted without acknowledging my gratitude.

  “Yes, I have. Congratulations. It is quite an honor for one so young to become the Lieutenant General of our military.”

  He must have been pleased with the compliment because he pulled me a little closer to him. “If things go well for me with the King’s Test, I will become the Commander in Chief. I am far more qualified than anyone else participating for that title.”

  And there it is. One wants only to be King. One is only interested in becoming the leader of our military.

  Tilting my head like a curious cat, I said, “You know, there is far more to being the King than leading the military.”

  His eyes widened. “Of – of course. I am qualified in other areas as well.”

  “There is more to being King than being King, as well.”

  He furrowed his brow. “I do not understand.”

  “Hmm.” That was all I said as the song ended. I figured it would give him some time to consider the fact that being King of Arboria would also make him my husband. When he walked away, baffled, Count Christopher, Arboria’s Most Desired, approached and looked at me seductively with his dark blue eyes.

  I hope this is a short song.

  I thought this, despite knowing that the songs would all be pretty much the same length to keep things fair among the participants. We wouldn’t want anyone becoming jealous. There was no hesitation with Christopher like there was with Brian. He also didn’t hesitate to immediately drop the “Princess” when talking with me, even though we were nowhere near friendly enough to ignore formality without my permission. Pressing me against himself, he began talking.

  “Miriam, I am delighted to get the chance to hold you in my arms tonight. So often, Peter, Stephan, and Theo take up all your dance time at these events.”

  “Yes. Well. To be fair, this is the first and only ball of this kind,” I retorted, annoyed that I had never noticed him watching me in the past.

  He grinned like a shark. “Touché. But I am sure you know what I mean.”

  “Yes. Though you have never seemed to be lacking as far as dance partners go. There are always a few ladies disappointed from not being able to dance with you by the end of a ball.”

  He quirked a brow. “You have noticed me dancing with other women?”

  “You say ‘other women’ as if I have some claim on you.”

  “You just might at the end of the King’s Test.”

  “You seem rather confident in yourself.”

  He shrugged. “I have been studying. And the women of Arboria love me.”

  I laughed at that. “Studying? What could you possibly be studying? I do not even know what this generation’s King’s Test entails.”

  He bent forward until his lips almost touched my ear. “You.” When he brought his face away from my ear, he kept himself within inches of my face.

  “Oh. You are good.” The song ended and I pulled his ear down to my lips and whispered, “Does that ever actually work?”

  He walked away dumbstruck as Leonard came for his turn around the room with me. Getting ready for round two of Arboria’s Most Desired, I curtseyed. When Leonard came up from his bow, he threw his head back to the right to get his bangs off his face and I winced inwardly. His tick had always driven me crazy. Like Christopher, he pulled me flush against him. He looked at me with heat in his gaze and I tried desperately not to laugh.

  “Princess Miriam, you are lovely tonight, as you always are.”

  “Thank you, Count Leonard. Please, we have known each other so long and our parents are good friends. You do not need to use my title.”

  He pursed his lips. He must have thought I would let him use the name my family and friends called me, Rose. Though, he was able to quickly recover and smile. “And you can call me Leo, Miriam.”

  I glanced around the ballroom and noted that Christopher had made a quick recovery as well; he already had a woman swooning in his arms on the dance floor. When I looked back at Leo, he was still looking at me intently. From then on, I tried to make a point of being a good dance partner by keeping eye contact.

  “Our parents have been good friends for quite a few years, have they not?” he asked.

  “Indeed.”

  “You know, our mothers both competed in our parents’ generation’s Queen’s Test.”

  “Yes, they did. It is so nice they were able to become friends out of it.”

  “Hmm. Perhaps it is meant to be, then.”

  “What is that, Leo?”

  He lowered his hand from the middle of my back to my lower back – my very lower back; his bending caused his hair to fall over his eye. “You and me.” Tick. “I think we make a good match.” Tick.

  “You know, in the twenty first century, they had this product called hairspray. It was meant to hold hair in place.”

  “Alright,” he drawled. That’s when I realized he was completely oblivious to his tick. “Do you always bring up random historical facts when you are nervous?”

  I smiled. “I am not nervous, Leo. Just out of curiosity, though,” I started as the song ended. “You realize the same logic you just presented could be used for your brother as well, right?”

  He walked away, bemused, as his brother, Lincoln, approached. Unlike his lecherous brother, Lincoln danced at a proper distance, but not so distant that he seemed uninterested. While we weren’t close friends, he and I had always gotten along better than I had with his brother. However, they both had a generous amount of ego in their personalities that simply burst every time they were with me.

  As the song began, he said, “I am sorry for my brother, Princess. I am afraid he has been fond of you for many years and has not picked up on how to be a gentleman. It was totally inappropriate for him to put his hand – there.”

  I laughed. “It is quite alright, Count Lincoln. I have dealt with men worse than that before. No need to call me ‘Princess,’ by the way. Our mothers are friends. I
think we can drop that formality.”

  He nodded. “Please, call me ‘Linc,’ then, Miriam. Please do not tell me that he presented you with the logic that he is your most logical choice because our mother competed against your mother in their generation’s Queen’s Test.”

  I nodded with a tight, amused smile at how well Linc knew his twin. “He did, indeed – near the end of the song. I, then, informed him I could use the same logic for you if it was good enough cause for a decision.”

  Linc laughed. “Is that why he walked away like a kicked puppy?”

  “I think so, yes.” Maybe he’s not so bad. “You know, I do not think I have ever spent any time with you separate from Leo.”

  “No, you have not. But that is alright. We will have plenty of time to get to know each other as individuals soon enough. I am excited to prove myself worthy of the Crown.”

  Then again, maybe he is.

  “I have been training with Brian in strategy and combat and I have worked closely with my father on dealings with the people and administration.”

  “I am surprised Brian would train you at all. He seems quite competitive. Are you sure his training is trustworthy?”

  “Of course. We have come to an agreement.”

  Raising a brow and tilting my head, I asked a question I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer to. “And what is that, Linc?”

  “Should I become King, he will get a promotion to High General. Should he win, I will.”

  “How can you get a promotion? You are not even in the Royal Arborian Guard. And what would happen to High General Miller?”

  Linc shrugged. “It does not matter. As King, you can appoint anyone as your second in command. If it was me, I would give High General Miller a great retirement.”

  The song was ended. “I will tell you what I told Brian, Linc. There is more to being King than being King.” Unsurprisingly, he gave me the same look Brian had when he walked away. Peter came and held me just right as the song began. Not as close as Lecherous Leo and not as far as Boring Brian.

  “You are absolutely stunning tonight, Rose. All I want to do is sneak you away to our normal spot and kiss you senseless.”

  I laughed. “Unfortunately, it’s not going to be possible tonight. I have to dance with all these men. At least I get an extra dance with you, and Stephan and Theo are good dance partners.”

  It was nice to relax a little. With Peter and Stephan, I wouldn’t have to be so formal and it was a nice break from my previous dance encounters.

  “I felt like ripping Leo’s hand off when he brought it so close to your – ”

  “Don’t worry about it, Peter. It’s alright,” I said, gently tapping his back with my hand to try to calm his barely-contained rage.

  “It’s not alright, Rose. How many times are you going to be molested by Christopher and Leo over the next few months?”

  “I don’t know, but at least you don’t have to worry about Brian or Linc. They are both utterly confused. I ended both their dances by telling them, ‘There’s more to being King than being King.’ Pretty sure Brian is killing brain cells trying to figure it out over there.” I nonchalantly tilted my head over in Brian’s direction where he was leaning against the wall deep in thought and Peter laughed.

  “Blossoms, Rose. I wish I didn’t have to compete for your heart.”

  “You don’t. You just need to compete for the Crown. You already won my heart years ago.”

  “If I win, I can’t wait until I can kiss you publically and declare from the top of Evergreen Palace’s largest tree that you’re mine.”

  “I have faith in you, Peter. It’s when not if.”

  “You’re probably the only one – well, besides Father and Mother, but they don’t count.”

  “You’re ridiculous.”

  “No, really.” The song was nearing the end. “Pay attention to everyone when Stephan approaches you. He’s the favorite.”

  “Do I detect jealousy? Peter, you know Stephan is only a friend to me – well, a brother.”

  “To you, yes.” Peter kissed my hand as he left the floor at the end of the song. I did as he asked and casually glanced around the room as Stephan approached. Everyone stopped talking one by one and pretty soon there was applause – actual applause! Stephan’s face turned bright red and he gave a polite wave to the crowd. I was surprised when he pulled me against himself and he looked assertively into my eyes.

  As the music began, I said, “Roots! Looks like we all know who the favorite is.” People knew Peter and I were friends, but it was common knowledge that Stephan and I were childhood best friends – aside from Ella, of course. I figured the combination between Stephan’s competence and a romantic notion of childhood friends falling in love had something to do with their favor of him.

  Stephan chuckled and shook his head. “It’s not a gameshow, Rose. It doesn’t matter who the favorite is. Are you doing alright? I’ve noticed a few of these men getting awfully fresh with you.”

  “Fresh? Have you been looking into twenty and twenty-first century terminology?”

  He smiled and shrugged. “I wanted to see what was so fascinating about the time period for you.” His face grew serious. “Seriously, though. Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine, Stephan. I’m a big girl. I can handle myself.”

  “A woman is never fine if she says ‘I’m fine’ like that. But I’ll let it go. You do seem to be handling yourself quite well. Peter is the only one so far who has left the dance floor not looking defeated. Are you going to defeat me?”

  “Oh. I don’t think that’s possible, Stephan. You’re carrying yourself with a level of assurance I haven’t seen before.”

  “In me?”

  “In anyone, really.”

  After a pause, he pulled me a little closer and said, “Would this be so horrible, Rose?”

  I tilted my head. “Would what be so horrible?”

  “This? You and me ruling together? Being together? I know you’re having a hard time with all this. I truly understand. It’s not fair to have such an important decision taken from you, but – it wouldn’t be so bad if it was me, right? You know I would take care of you.”

  I smiled. “I know. It wouldn’t be bad at all if it was you.”

  It wasn’t until I heard another round of applause that I realized the song was over. Stephan hadn’t let go yet and we were so deep in conversation, I wasn’t even paying attention to the music. That was one of the main reasons he was my best friend. He was always concerned for me and when we talked, it was as if no one and nothing else mattered.

  Stephan kissed my hand and passed it over to Theo, who was patiently waiting. Perfect dancer that he was, he held me at the same distance Peter did. Honestly, while he was my favorite dance partner, I didn’t know much about him at all. His parents were older and he was the youngest in his household – that was the extent of my knowledge.

  “Last dance,” he said with a smirk. “Let us make it a good one.”

  I laughed. He did have a gorgeous smile. We began to move to the rhythm of the music and everyone watched, as mesmerized by Theo’s talent as I was.

  “What do you think, Princess? Does an old man like me even stand a chance?” While he was the youngest in his household, he was the oldest of the King’s Test participants. He sat at the top of the age qualifications at twenty-six.

  I smiled warmly at him. “I hardly think it would be fair of me to judge your chances based on fancy footwork, Count Theo.”

  He feigned disappointment in his gaze. “Oh! But if you did, certainly I would be King of Arboria and your heart. And please, call me Theo.”

  “Miriam. You have some smooth words there, Theo.”

  “All the better to make declarations and whisper sweet nothings with, my dear.”

  Theo and I had always had fun together on the dance floor, but he had never been so flirtatious with me. It made sense that he would be now, though. He had probably been classically trained in dance – and
flirtation – just so he could literally sweep me off my feet.

  “Are you a wolf, Theo? Should I be afraid and hide all my red cloaks?”

  He growled with laughter, and I squealed with glee, as he lifted me by the waist and spun in a circle, causing the crowd to applaud. As we swept passed Christopher and Leo, I could hear them audibly groan.

  “Oh, please do not. Red is a most lovely color on you.” His smile faded and he began to simplify the dance so he could speak more seriously to me. I was breathless, though the rhythm was slow, the banter and steps had tired me a bit. It was only then that I realized he had drawn me closer to him.