[Fairytale 02] - Asleep (2013)

by Elizabeth Darcy

  “Sentimental fool,” Farah said, with a fond note in her voice. Jess could tell that, no matter how much she might try to conceal it, her mother was pleased by the compliment.

  “My little girl, about to get married,” Omar said, holding Jess’s face in his hands and looking down at her.

  Jess covered his hands with her own. “Are you happy for me?”

  “Happier than I could say. I love Dev, and I know how happy he makes you. I couldn’t have found a better match for you, no matter how hard I tried.”

  “Did you try?” Jess asked, surprised.

  Omar looked a little uncomfortable. “Well, no, not as such. But you were getting older, and your mother and I did sometimes talk about who might be suitable…”

  To her parents’ obvious surprise, Jess threw her head back and laughed. “Not you too! I thought it was just Dev’s mother who did such things! Tell me, are all parents like this?”

  “If only you knew,” Farah said, making a face. “I think my mother started hunting for a husband for me when I was three.”

  “And my mother, gods rest her soul, made sure to bring the subject up as often as possible from the time I was fifteen years of age,” Omar replied, a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth.

  “So what you’re saying is I should be prepared to act in the same manner when I have a son or a daughter?” Jess asked.

  “Best to face up to the truth now,” the queen said, smiling.

  “We wanted to see you happy, to know you would have someone who would console you, watch out for you when we are gone,” her father said, his voice serious.

  “Not just any man would suit you,” Farah added. “Though we never did consider Dev, strangely enough.”

  “Why?” Jess asked, bristling a bit.

  “We thought the two of you were just friends,” Omar said. “We had no idea there was anything more between you than friendship.”

  “Adar did,” Farah said. “He told me he started suspecting Dev was besotted with you after Nishana’s ball, when you were seventeen and Dev was nineteen.”

  “I think I always loved Dev. I just didn’t know it,” Jess told them. She had taken her love for granted in the beginning, until she had been old enough to realize how childish her sense of security had been. Her beloved Dev had appealed to many other women as well, sometimes for reasons that weren’t entirely pure, but sometimes because they saw the same spark in him that she saw.

  “We’re thrilled Dev will be our son. There isn’t another man I would trust to take good care of my daughter,” Omar said.

  “Thank you, Papa.” Jess threw her arms around him and hugged him.

  “Are you ready?” the king asked his daughter.

  “Yes,” she said, a smile breaking out over her face.

  As they stepped through the door, her parents on either side, lords, ladies, and knights lined the corridor, sprinkling Jess with jasmine petals, their voices rising in song. Their faces reflected the joy Jess felt, and she let the excitement of the moment sweep her away.

  Chapter 47

  Dev’s chambers were on the other side of the palace, about as far from the princess’s chambers as it was possible to get. The distance hadn’t stopped them, though. He and Jess had spent very little time apart since she had rescued him. During his convalescence in Estoria, Jess had spent every moment at his bedside, coaxing, pleading, and, when that didn’t work, badgering him into eating. She had bathed his feverish face with cool cloths, had helped him sip water when he was too weak to hold his own head up, and had learned from the physicians how to tend to his wounds.

  He knew the chamber arrangements hadn’t been meant as any sort of deterrent; it was the only part of the castle that had chambers large enough to accommodate the entire Estorian royal family. Neither he nor Jess had been particularly covert about sneaking into one another’s chambers, and everyone had turned a blind eye. The moony way everyone looked at them told him they were glad he and Jess had been reunited.

  It had been such a comfort to have Jess with him at night. At first he’d been so weak he could do little more than sleep, waking up just long enough to murmur a few endearments to her before falling unconscious once again. He’d suffered from nightmares, some Jess knew about and others she didn’t. She would have wanted him to wake her, but all he’d needed was to pull her into his arms, to feel her body against his, to be reminded that his ordeal was over.

  When he’d recovered, they’d slept very little. Once, he had squandered time, taking it for granted that he would have as much of it with her as he wanted. Now, every moment counted. Why should he sleep when he could be kissing her, loving her, exploring her body with his fingers and his mouth and his eyes? He’d thought he couldn’t love Jess any more than he did, but the months that had passed since Ellaria’s defeat had made Dev fall even more deeply, more madly in love with Jess, and he had only to look into her eyes to see that she felt the same.

  It was with a great deal of reluctance that he’d finally admitted he was well enough to get out of bed and tend to some of his normal duties, and Jess had returned to training with the troops, either his or hers, depending on where they were staying at the time. Sometimes panic attacked him, causing him to go tearing through the corridors, searching for her until he could see her, at which point it would become possible for him to breathe again. He was embarrassed by these attacks and afraid they made him look weak, unable to care for his Realm, but the physicians had assured him that their frequency would lessen as he began to feel more secure, and they were right. Still, even when they ceased, he stole away as often as he could to enjoy the simple pleasure of being able to look at Jess whenever he wanted.

  His captivity had changed him, given him a greater appreciation for the good things in his life, made him more aware of the importance of things he had been wont to overlook in the past. He realized how much he loved Estoria, how fiercely he would fight to see that it never fell into the hands of someone like Ellaria, and he took greater interest in some of the more minute details of his Realm. His parents ruled justly and treated their people well, but Dev found some areas in need of improvement, and it led him to do things like found training schools for the children of the poor, whose parents couldn’t afford to apprentice them to a master. He oversaw the building of new schools and libraries, the improvement of granaries and fortifications. When Jess wasn’t training she would ride out with him, and the two of them became a familiar sight to the common folk of both Lyrane and Estoria.

  “I’m very proud of you, Devaran,” his mother said one day as he sat with her, listening in patient silence while she went over some ledgers with him. “You’ve improved our Realm and earned the love of our people, not just because you’re their prince, but because you’re their protector.”

  Ashamed, Dev lowered his eyes. Even though his mother was praising him and he knew she hadn’t meant to criticize him, he still felt the sting of the implications on the other side of her words. “I’m sorry, Mother. It took me some time and some thought to appreciate what I have.”

  His mother covered his hand with hers, and he raised his eyes to her. She looked at him with such love that he felt like a little boy again, back before he had developed the unfortunate tendency of letting her down. “I always knew you would,” she said. The words surprised him, but he could hear the sincerity in them.

  “You did? How?”

  A faint blush appeared on her cheeks. “I may have been rather like you when I was young.”

  “You were?” He couldn’t have been more shocked had she announced to him that she had sprouted wings and could fly.

  “It’s why I was so hard on you. I didn’t want to see you make the same mistakes I made. But I know now that I went about it in the wrong way,” she said, grimacing.

  He took her hand and squeezed it. “I guess that explains why we’ve so often been at odds. We’re far too alike for our own good.”

  “Yes, indeed.” She laughed and embraced
him. Before she pulled away, he heard her take a long, shuddering breath, though she tried to conceal it.

  There was some good that came of this, he reflected now, as he looked out at the mob of people gathered below, singing and tossing flowers at the palace. Not for centuries had such accord existed between the Realms. Even Beland and Mahlia had put aside their differences for the time being, though Dev hated to think of what would happen once Mahlia’s betrothal to Lord Helliard of Lyrane was announced—but that was a problem for another time.

  “May I come in?” a voice asked. Dev turned to see his brother’s head peeking around the door, and he smiled at Tanvir.

  “Of course,” Dev said, waving him in. Though he still frankly envied Tanvir his physical appearance, his resentment of his brother had also softened, and he’d come to have a far greater appreciation of just how superb his brother’s counsel was. Tanvir’s bond with Jess had also been strengthened, and Dev’s gratitude to his brother for keeping her safe knew no bounds.

  “Well, it’s a different take on traditional Lyranian songs, that’s for sure,” Tanvir said after they stood for a quiet moment, listening to the singing outside.

  Dev laughed. “We’ve all long known the Lyranians to be superior musicians.”

  “Indeed. It’s amazing to hear, though, isn’t it? Could you ever have imagined people from all Five Realms would be singing in celebration of the marriage between a Lyranian princess and an Estorian prince? I know you like to show me up, Dev, but this is a little excessive, don’t you think?”

  With another laugh, Dev slapped his brother on the back, and Tanvir smiled. “Have you been reading comedies lately, brother?”

  “No need. I’ve had you to study all these years.” They smiled at one another and Tanvir walked over to a table, where a bottle of fine Estorian wine sat. “To calm your nerves?” Tanvir arched a brow, holding the bottle up.

  “Yes, please,” Dev said, clasping his shaking hands together.

  “You’re better at these things than you think, you know.”

  Dev took the goblet his brother offered. “I hope you’re right.”

  “Of course I am.” Tanvir looked down his nose at Dev, who tried hard not to smile.

  “Yes, yes, yes. Where are Mother and Father?”

  “They should be here any second. I came ahead to warn you that Mother is all aflutter.”

  Dev smiled. “It’s good to see her happy.”

  “Yes,” Tanvir agreed. “Planning the wedding has kept her very busy, and she’s loved it.”

  “Enjoy it while you can, little brother. Once it’s over, you’ll become the focus of Mother’s undivided attention.”

  The look on Tanvir’s face made Dev laugh long and hard, and he was still laughing when their parents entered the chamber to offer their son their congratulations. As he embraced them, Dev understood just how much he loved his family, how important they were to him, and how much they’d been willing to give to ensure his safe return, and he was grateful.

  Despite the wine, Dev’s nerves were decidedly not calm as they rode in a carriage to the cathedral. The streets were teeming with people and thick with guards. Fall flowers flew through the air as the carriage passed, the crimson and gold blooms brilliant against the impossible blue of the sky. Everywhere he looked, Dev saw happy faces.

  Lords and ladies crowded the cathedral, filling it with their finest silks and satins, the expensive scents they wore competing with the haze of incense. Standing in front of the altar, Dev stared at the back of Tanvir’s head, trying not to notice just how many people were looking at him. True to her word, his mother hadn’t said a thing about his choice of wedding clothes, though she had nodded approvingly when the tailor relayed the details. He fiddled with the cuff of his doublet, wondering if the embroidery was a bit excessive. Then he caught himself obsessing about Tanvir’s thick hair, which his brother had bound into a tail. It reminded Dev that though his hair had begun to grow back, it was now more unfashionably short than ever.

  When the ceremony started, Dev did his best to take deep breaths and tune everything out. The only thing he cared about was seeing Jess, and when she walked down the aisle, she stole the breath from his body. She looked more radiant than he had ever seen her. He felt the love she bore him, and it warmed him like the rays of the sun. Long as the cathedral’s aisle was, her procession up it was both too slow and too fast. Even as he savored the sight of her and wished he could just stare at her walking toward him forever, he was impatient for her to be at his side, so he could take her hand and assure himself that she was real, that all this was actually happening.

  He remembered very little of the ceremony when it was over, for his attention was fixed on the beautiful woman who became his wife. His heart hammered as he took her face in his hands and gave her a kiss, sealing the promise he’d made to love her until the end of his days. It was a promise he’d find easy to keep.

  Chapter 48

  It was the most lavish ball Jess had ever seen, far more lavish than any Nishana had ever thrown. Jess had seen her mother-in-law examining the decorations, the food, the wine, and the orchestra with an expression of the deepest satisfaction. Jess felt a great deal of affection for Nishana, but she was thankful Dev hadn’t inherited his mother’s taste for the excessively fancy.

  “I’m glad you picked your own wedding clothes,” she whispered to him as they sat down to dinner, a smile playing about her lips as her head filled with images of him in his ridiculous peacock costume.

  “Do you like them?” he asked, smoothing a palm over the front of his doublet. Richly embroidered in silver, the heavy, patterned silk was the midnight blue of the Estorian royal house, as were his breeches. His tall, soft black leather boots hugged his calves. He’d always been slim, but his attire emphasized the new leaner, harder lines of his body. The planes of his face were more defined than they had been, and there was now a thin scar on his left cheek. While his short hair should have made him look even more boyish, a soberness had settled over him. He was still her Dev, but he seemed older, wiser. Yet when he turned his dancing eyes on her, she saw a flash of the boy he had once been.

  “You’ve never looked handsomer.” His eyes went soft, and he lifted her hand to his lips for a kiss.

  “And you’ve never looked more beautiful.”

  She wanted to say more to him, but her father stood and lifted his goblet, and the roar of chatter died down.

  “Loyal friends, we thank you for being with us on this most joyous of days. My lady wife, Queen Farah, and I are thrilled to welcome Prince Devaran to our family. We’ve had the pleasure of knowing the prince since he was a boy, and watching him and Princess Jessmyn grow up and fall in love has brought us more happiness than I can say. The friendship between the Realms of Estoria and Lyrane has been a long one, and there are few things in life more wondrous than witnessing the union not just of two kindred souls, but of two Realms. To you, our beloved Jess, and your new husband, we wish a lifetime of joy and peace. We know that you will rule wisely and justly together, and that you will usher in a new era of prosperity for both Estoria and Lyrane. Long live the prince and princess.”

  “Long live the prince and princess!” the crowd responded, saluting with their goblets. Dev stood, taking Jess’s hand and helping her from her seat, and they saluted their families. Jess blew a kiss to both her parents and Dev’s, her heart swelling at the joy she saw in their eyes.

  As the dinner proceeded, Jess determined she was just as frustrated with royal protocol as Dev was. The meal was one endless succession of toasts. Though the sentiments were lovely and Jess appreciated them, she wanted only to have a moment alone with her new husband. Instead, they had to settle for smiling at one another and exchanging chaste kisses at the insistence of their guests.

  Once dinner ended, the dancing began. Dev led Jess to the floor for the traditional Lyranian wedding dance, which they would perform alone, under the watchful gaze of the more than one thousand guests.r />
  “Are you nervous?” she whispered as they faced one another and he took her right hand in his left. A tremor ran through his fingers, and she rested her left hand on his shoulder, hoping her touch would reassure him.

  “Yes,” he said, his voice strangled. His right hand tightened on her waist. “That gown is breathtaking, it truly is, but I must confess that I hate it. I just know I’m going to get tangled in all those skirts, trip, fall, and make an utter fool of myself. Perhaps I can manage to chip another tooth, so that I’ll have a matched pair.”

  The orchestra drowned out the sound of her laughter, but the crease in Dev’s brow smoothed and he grinned back at her, the chip in his tooth making him look like the mischievous boy who’d long ago stolen her heart.

  “Want to get out of here later?” he murmured in her ear when he pulled her into his arms after a spin.

  “Have I ever refused the chance to escape a ball with you?” His smile widened, and her heart skipped a beat at the expression in his eyes. It was one of utter worship, and she was transported for a moment, her head fuzzy with disbelief at her good fortune. Jess wasn’t a big believer in fate, but it was hard to shake the conviction that she and this man had always been meant to be together, that they had been created for one another.

  For the rest of the dance Jess felt like she was in a dream, and the crowd seemed to melt away. It didn’t matter how many people stared and sighed, they were not a part of the unspoken communication that passed between Jess and Dev. He didn’t need words to tell her how much he loved her; she could see it in his eyes. She hoped he saw how that love was reflected in her own eyes. Her heart was full to bursting, and she was overwhelmed by the strength of her adoration for him. He was hers, hers forever, and her head was filled with images of the life the two of them would share.

  When the song ended, Jess didn’t even hear the final notes. Playing through her head, as clear as a bell, was the sound of the first time Dev had played for her. As his lips met hers in a kiss filled with promise, the music in her head swelled, the sound more beautiful than any she had ever heard.