The Kingdom Chronicles Box Set 1

by Camille Peters

  “You can’t spell Liam,” Aiden stated firmly. “Manipulating anyone’s heart is dishonorable enough, let alone that of a royal bound to a political contract.”

  I ignored this argument, for he was unaware of the connection Prince Liam and I already shared, especially during his humorous tour of the Dracerian palace, where it was clear he was beginning to realize how perfect we were for one another.

  I snatched my book back and scanned the recipe. “While I’ve successfully acquired half of these ingredients”—I patted my stuffed satchel—“some will admittedly be a bit more difficult. Despite that obstacle, I have no doubt I’ll succeed.”

  “Rosalina…” Aiden’s tone was hardening. I continued to ignore him.

  “The entire process of tracking these down makes this just like a real quest, a natural part of any story. I predict it’ll take no more than a few weeks. Is Prince Liam scheduled to visit within that timeframe?”

  “Rosalina, I’m serious. You will not spell Prince Liam.”

  I snapped the book shut and pressed my hand to my hip. “I’m your wife’s best friend and thus don’t deserve to be scolded by your Dark Prince persona, Aiden.”

  He sighed and rubbed his temples.

  “Don’t worry, dear, I’ll talk to her.” Eileen rested her hand on his shoulder and his hardened expression softened at her single touch. He reached up and squeezed her hand before returning his wary glance to me.

  “I’ll leave your mischief in my wife’s capable hands. If you’ll excuse me, I have a meeting to attend. I’ll join you the moment it finishes.” He kissed Eileen goodbye, and despite my annoyance at his using his Dark Prince wiles on me, it warmed my heart to see his usual doting on my dearest friend.

  “I’m so glad I’m not expected to attend that meeting,” Eileen said when Aiden left. She looped her arm through mine. “How about a walk through the gardens?”

  Perfect, an opportunity to search for some of the needed flowers for my love spell. “A stroll sounds lovely. Just let me grab something from my room first.” Carrying that enchanted golden ball would be the perfect lucky trinket to carry during my quest to find ingredients for my love spell.

  Once I was back—the bauble safely in my pocket—we were forced to walk past that guard while exiting the parlor. I used the opportunity to finally steal my first glance at him since arriving. He was frowning with disapproval. No surprise. He leaned down to my ear as we passed him, the warmth of his breath caressing my neck, causing me to shiver.

  “You can’t force true love, Rosalina.”

  His words pierced my heart. For some reason, his disapproval bothered me the most.

  Chapter 11

  “You can’t really be serious, Rosie,” Eileen said the moment we stepped out into the glorious sunshine and blossom-scented air.

  “I most certainly am.”

  “Then I must do my best-friend duty and talk you out of this nonsense before you create an epic mess for yourself.”

  She led me down a cobblestone path that wove through manicured flowerbeds of blossoming lilies, irises, and buttercups, but the beauty of our surroundings did little to soften her disapproval.

  Several ladies of the court also out strolling nodded politely to Eileen as they walked past. She waited until we were out of earshot before continuing. “Surely you must realize that forcing someone into thinking they’re in love with you is not only morally wrong but would be completely unsatisfying.”

  “If he didn’t care for me at all, then it would be,” I said. “I’m merely encouraging affections that already exist between us.”

  Eileen frowned. “I hate to be frank, but I didn’t notice any connection between you two at the ball. ”

  I flinched at the painful reminder that what was supposed to have been the most romantic night of my life hadn’t turned out like I’d dreamed it would.

  “I admit that at first I was rather disappointed, but I later realized that as one of the hosts, Prince Liam had a duty to attend to his other guests. But he did escort me into the feast, a very telling sign of his interest. And did you see how he doted on me during breakfast the following morning? He did it even more during our private tour of the Dracerian palace.” Not to mention he’d essentially proposed.

  Eileen laid a gentle hand on my arm, as if about to impart terrible news. “I did, Rosie, but I’m afraid the attention he gave you wasn’t any different from the attention I’ve seen him give other women. You’re misinterpreting his personality to fit what you want it to mean, when really being friendly is just his way.”

  My stomach jolted at her words, but I refused to listen to them. She was wrong—she had to be. “I can tell the difference between when a man is being charming and when he’s being flirty, and Prince Liam was the latter.”

  Eileen frowned skeptically. “If you’re so certain, then why are you brewing up a love spell?”

  “Because he’s being slow in confessing his love, and strong heroines take their story into their own hands,” I said. “The spell is merely to encourage him to choose love; I wouldn’t give it to him if I didn’t believe he felt something for me.”

  “You seem determined to make yourself fit with Liam solely because he’s a prince,” she said.

  “Because marrying a prince is the most incredible thing that can happen in any story. You should know, considering it happened in yours.”

  “Yes, but I didn’t fall in love with a prince; I fell in love with Aiden.”

  “In your case, it turned out to be the same thing.”

  She sighed. “Believe me, him being a prince was an unfortunate turn of events.”

  I gaped at her, baffled at such a ridiculous comment. “Well, if someone like you—who didn’t even want to marry a prince—married one, then why can’t I? The village storyteller even said so.”

  “The storyteller?” She rolled her eyes. “Oh Rosie, don’t be ridiculous, you know that dear woman is called the storyteller for a reason. Thus you shouldn’t take any predictions she makes seriously.”

  “She said you were alive and you are,” I said. “If she was right about that, then she’s right about my finding a prince. That was the word she used. My story will have the same outcome as yours.”

  Eileen pursed her lips and for a blissful moment dropped the subject entirely. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get away from her meddling so easily.

  “I watched you for most of the ball, during which both Aiden and I noticed you do have a connection with someone.”

  She glanced behind us. Curious, I did too, and saw Alastar following us from his discreet guarding distance. I gasped and snapped my head back round, my cheeks already flaring with heat.

  “Him? Don’t be ridiculous, Eileen.”

  Her expression was entirely serious. “I’m not.”

  “There wasn’t any connection between us.”

  “Really? Because you spent a lot of time looking at him, talking with him, and even laughing with him. It was the first time I’ve ever seen him laugh.”

  I snorted. “Which is exactly why he’s not the man for me; he’s far too serious.”

  “I wouldn’t discount him so quickly, especially when you can’t deny you’re drawn to him. What other explanation do you have for your behavior towards him at the ball?”

  The heat already filling my cheeks burned. “I—we were just…plotting together.”

  Eileen raised her eyebrow and I hated the reminder of that guard, whom I was quite determinedly doing my best not to think about. “Plotting?”

  “Yes, making up stories together. He…plays along.”

  Eileen’s lips twitched, another reminder of Alastar. Was she mimicking his quirks on purpose just to aggravate me? “If that’s not a connection, dear Rosie, I don’t know what is.”

  I shook my head. “He’s just a guard. He’s your guard.”

  “I don’t mind if you have feelings for my guard.”

  “Feelings? That’s absurd. I feel nothing towards him. He’s
my foe.” I frowned. No, I didn’t consider him that, not anymore. “Or perhaps my friend. Nothing more.”

  “Friendship is a start,” Eileen said brightly. “And if you’re anything like I was, it may take you some time to realize your feelings extend deeper.”

  “No time in the world would make me realize nonexistent feelings,” I snapped. “You’re just trying to sway me from spelling Prince Liam, but consider your efforts thwarted.”

  Eileen sighed. “Rosie, you must realize that spelling Liam could result in several political ramifications for both Draceria and Sortileya. You simply can’t go through with it.”

  I nodded simply to appease her and it worked, for nothing more was said as we thankfully moved on to other topics as we strolled the grounds for an hour. Considering we were no longer discussing specific guards I didn’t have feelings for—although I admittedly remained acutely aware of his trailing presence—we passed a very pleasant afternoon.

  Aiden eventually returned. Eileen’s entire expression lit up as she ran up the path to meet him. They embraced before Eileen looped her arm through his and walked on ahead, leaving me alone.

  Well, not entirely alone.

  I allowed the royal lovebirds to walk farther ahead before I darted down a side path, withdrawing my scribbled list of ingredients and referring to the included illustrations, an aid that would help me track down some of the more unfamiliar flowers. The thrill of the quest made it like a game.

  I consulted my list. Seven different-colored petals plucked from azalea flowers. Azaleas—how perfect for a love spell, for they not only symbolized femininity but were often used to showcase one’s romantic feelings. Luckily, I didn’t have to search long before I discovered the flowers growing in patches in the next garden over. After waiting for a group of strolling nobles to disappear down the path, I started snipping away at the myriad of colors.

  “I saw that.”

  I yelped as I spun around to face my discoverer. “I didn’t do it.”

  Alastar cocked his eyebrow as he took in the garden sheers in my hand, evidence of my crime. I hastily shoved them behind my back, but it was too late; I’d been caught red-handed.

  “I didn’t do it,” I repeated, my voice cracking in betrayal.

  Alastar made a show of glancing around the garden, checking for other potential suspects. We were alone.

  “Perhaps I’m seeing things, Miss Rosalina, but I could have sworn I just witnessed you snipping one of the royal plants with those sheers you’re now determinedly hiding behind your back. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I do believe this is sufficient evidence to prove that you did do it.”

  I gnawed at my fingernail as I tried to come up with a plausible cover story. “What are you doing spying on me anyway? Aren’t you supposed to be guarding Eileen?“

  “They wanted time alone and told me to take a break.”

  I pressed my hands to my hips. “And you chose to spend it watching me?”

  A light blush tickled his cheeks. “I wasn’t spending my break watching you; I was merely checking up on you. The way you scampered off naturally raised my suspicion, one that I can clearly see was valid.”

  Alastar removed my satchel from my shoulder and peered inside. His eyebrow rose, for my bag was stuffed with the pilfered azaleas. Thank goodness the golden sphere I’d borrowed from my room was in my pocket else I’d be in even more trouble; Alastar already had ample evidence to arrest me.

  I groaned, burying myself and my guilt in my hands. “It’s the dungeon, isn’t it? I’m going to wither away in the darkness for the rest of my tragic days.”

  “Not to worry, Rosalina, Prince Aiden is merciful to those who pilfer from his gardens. Your punishment will likely only be—Rosalina?”

  Embarrassingly enough, I’d started crying. “Please don’t take me to the dungeon.”

  Alastar’s expression immediately softened. “Of course I won’t, Rosalina. I’m sorry I frightened you; I thought we were playing out another story.”

  I peeked up at him through my blurry tears. He handed me a handkerchief, but I made no motion to take his offering.

  “You missed your cue,” he said. “You’re supposed to accept a handkerchief when a noble knight offers it to a lady in distress.” He pressed the handkerchief into my hand, but I immediately released it, letting it flutter to the ground. He sighed as he stooped down to retrieve it and gently wiped away my tears himself. “I can’t keep up with when we’re in a story and when we’re not. I thought you were playing. I didn’t mean to frighten you. Please be assured that, stealing from the royal gardens or not, you mean too much to Her Highness for the prince to ever punish you. After all, you’re practically royalty.”

  I managed a half smile. “You’re right, I am.”

  “Exactly.” He finished drying my eyes and pressed his handkerchief back into my hand. This time I kept it, now inexplicably wanting to cherish this token forever. Alastar searched my face, his own anxious. “Are you alright?”

  I nodded. “As exciting as I’m sure a sojourn in the dungeon would have been to read about in any other story, I’m quite relieved it won’t become a setting in my fairy tale. Dungeons are too dreary for innocent, beautiful damsels such as myself.”

  “Beautiful, yes—but innocent?” Alastar’s lips twitched.

  “Of course I’m innocent; I’m sure the head gardener would attest to that. Certain perks come from baking his favorite apricot bars.” I brightened hopefully. “Are apricot bars your favorite treat?”

  “I’m afraid not.”

  I slumped. How disappointing. Would I ever figure it out?

  Alastar once again looked in my bag of stolen plants. “Whether the head gardener turns a blind eye to your explorations or not, I must do my duty as a royal guard and investigate the crime I witnessed. What’s been going on here?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? I’m questing.”

  I again started walking up the garden path, but with his much longer stride, he easily caught up. “You can’t force love. It’s impossible. Even if your spell miraculously works—which frankly, I have my doubts—then the love it creates would be concocted by magic and wouldn’t be real. Is that really what you want?”

  “Of course it’ll be real,” I said. “For Liam is my prince. The spell will simply nourish the budding feelings he already has for me so he has the strength to break away from his duty to his engagement contract in order to marry me instead.”

  Alastar rolled his eyes. “Rosalina, this isn’t a game. If you managed to succeed, not only would you be forcing an unsuspecting man to give his heart away not of his own volition, but you’ll create a mess with great political ramifications. You’re truly determined to be the villain in your story.”

  I skidded to a stop with a gasp. “You take that back.”

  He folded his arms across his chest. “No. I won’t, not when it’s true.”

  I stomped my foot. “Take it back.”

  “No.”

  I glared at him. “How dare you cast me as the villain, Alastar.”

  “You’re casting yourself in such a role. Now, if you don’t mind us taking a brief detour down this pathway here”—he took my elbow and gently turned me onto the path in question, which twisted alongside a well-maintained hedge—“I can check on Her Highness.”

  “She’s with the prince and hence doesn’t need your protection.”

  “Be that as it may, I’m still on duty.” It only took a moment to find Eileen, curled up beneath a blossoming cherry tree with Aiden, snuggling and…I smiled in delight. They were stealing kisses midst their conversation.

  Alastar nodded to himself before leading us away. “She seems to be doing well.”

  I giggled at such an understatement. “Indeed; I’ve heard kissing is quite nice, not that I would know.” I sighed. “It’s one of the greatest disappointments of my own fairy tale to have never been kissed.”

  Alastar guided us down a pathway lined with tulips in a rainbow of colors.
“If I understand how the delightful mind of Rosalina works, the reason you haven’t been kissed is because you’re waiting for true love.”

  I pressed my hands to my hips. “Is that a problem?”

  “No need to get ruffled. Believe it or not, I admire that sentiment.”

  “Do you feel the same way? Have you ever kissed anyone?” And a strange anxiousness tightened in my chest at the thought that Alastar had indeed kissed someone before.

  He tilted his head. “Have I?”

  Oh no, he had. I sharpened my glare. “That’s what I asked. Have you?” Oh, please say that he hadn’t.

  “Would it bother you if I had?”

  An inexplicable wave of emotion crashed over me, sending an unexpected pang to my heart. “You have? Who?” My mind worked frantically before settling on a likely woman. “Is it Eileen’s handmaiden?” She was rather beautiful. “Not that it matters,” I added hastily. “I’m merely curious.”

  He titled his head, studying me with a rather intense expression before understanding lit his eyes. “Ah, I see.” He started walking again, leaving me staring after him. It took me a dazed moment to get my legs moving so I could hurry after him.

  “See what?” I demanded the moment I caught up to him, panting. Of course he didn’t answer. I seized his arm and dug my heels into the path to pull him to a stop. “For goodness’ sake, answer me, Alastar. What’s the meaning behind your cryptic response just now?”

  Amusement danced in his gaze. “What do you think, Miss Rosalina?”

  “I haven’t the faintest idea, hence I’m demanding to be told at once.”

  He became preoccupied with a bush of blossoming roses, tracing his fingertip along the petals of a pink rose with the utmost concentration before he finally raised his lit gaze to mine. “I simply…have a hunch.”

  “About what?” I pressed. His lips twitched as he returned his attention to the flower, now tracing its stem.

  “That, my Rosie flower, is a secret, and correct me if I’m wrong, but you don’t strike me as one who’s particularly good at keeping secrets.”