Cynder stood up and crossed the stage to me. He held out his hand. I could see that he was as nervous as I felt. This could go so badly wrong, and we both knew it.
“I guess a few steps can’t hurt,” I said aloud, giving a quick smile to Marybelle. A few quick steps would be enough to make the crowd and Marybelle happy without giving the appearance of closeness.
I shrugged quickly at Luca, hoping he would understand I’d once again been backed into a corner by the media. His expression was unreadable.
Every time I’d ever danced with Cynder had been a magical experience, and yet now, I felt sick with nerves. I remembered a quaint little dance my old dance teacher had taught me and which Cynder and I had practiced for a short time. It involved little to no touching and was perfect. I whispered the name of it quickly to Cynder, and he nodded.
He held my hand in preparation, but before either of us had the chance to move, slow music began to flow from the speakers.
Slow music which would be impossible to dance this particular dance to.
I gulped as Cynder pulled me closely to him. The crowd cheered, but I could hardly hear them over the sound of my heart thumping. Just like that, we were back in the kitchen again, just the two of us. I rested my head on his shoulder without even thinking and our fingers entwined. I knew these steps without thinking. There was no name for this dance, but it was ingrained within me. I could dance this way with Cynder in my sleep. He twirled me slowly around the stage while a battle raged within me. I knew I needed to stop what we were doing, but as always, when dancing with Cynder, I was spirited away to a magical place, and I couldn’t stop. Eventually, the piece of music came to a close and Cynder pulled back, breaking the spell. Before I knew it, Luca was in front of me, his face like thunder. In front of a hundred thousand people, I’d messed up in the worse possible way. Again!
Elise
“Start the music again,” Luca barked to the sound technician at the edge of the stage. Another melody came on, different from the last, but equally as slow. Luca took me in his arms and began to twirl me around the stage.
“What are you doing?” I hissed into his ear as quietly as I could so as not to pick it up on my microphone.
“I’m dancing. What does it look like?”
I wanted to tell him that it looked like he was desperate and jealous, but I didn’t want to anger him further, so we danced. Luca was a good dancer. Years of lessons with the leading dance teachers meant that he was much better than I was, but because of that, he was able to lead me well. I closed my eyes and tried to enjoy it. After all, I was dancing with the man I would soon be marrying. What was not to enjoy? And yet we both knew this was a charade. We were doing it because he was jealous and the people of the kingdom expected it. Because of that, my old fear of dancing in public was rearing its head again, and I became concerned that I was going to trip over and fall flat on my face.
To my relief, the music finally stopped. The ordeal was over. We’d satisfied the crowds and Marybelle, and any damage I’d caused between Luca and I could be fixed. However much I hated having to play out our romance through the media, and with it, the jealousy that this new chapter was bringing, I knew that Luca was a good guy who deserved better. In his position, wouldn’t I have acted out of jealousy too? Of course, I would. I thought back to the ball at his parent’s castle when he’d been dancing with that girl. I’d been jealous then. What if the media had put them together the way they had Cynder and me? I would have hated it.
I quickly sat down in my seat, glad that the nightmare was over.
The noise from the crowd was unbearable as they chanted the names of Cynder and Luca, each side trying to outdo the other.
“Wow,” said Marybelle, facing Luca. “You sure love your bride to be!”
“I really do,” he shouted back, trying to be heard over the noise of the crowd. They quietened down slightly as he spoke, eager to hear what he had to say. “I’ve never hidden my feelings with regards to Charmaine. I loved her from the first moment I saw her. When she picked me as one of the men to sit with at the ball, I honestly couldn’t believe my luck, and when one by one, the other men left, I tried not to get my hopes up. Yet as the days went by and I fell in love with her more and more, I thought I began to see a spark in her. I hoped she was beginning to fall in love with me. Did you know that of all the men, it was I she kissed first?”
“No,” replied Marybelle, sitting forward in her chair. “Tell us about it.”
“We were in the garden, and a paparazzo scaled the outer wall and took a photo of us. Her Majesty was so worried as she’d not officially picked me yet. I guess she couldn’t resist.”
I thought back to the day he was talking about. He’d kissed me, taking me by surprise. I’d not expected it, and yet, I’d fallen right into it. He was a great kisser. Afterwards, I’d been terrified that it would be on the front page of every newspaper until Jenny managed to keep it quiet. No one knew about it until now.
Marybelle nodded and turned to me. “Was this at the same time you were dancing with Cynder in the kitchen?”
“No. I didn’t see Cynder from the day of the ball to the day he rescued me from Luca’s castle when I was being shot at.”
I lied because I had to. I had seen Cynder on a number of occasions between those times. We’d even slept next to each other in his parent’s old apartment. Oh, how times had changed. Even then, I’d known it wasn’t innocent, although we did nothing beyond kissing. I’d wanted to, though, and if Cynder’s neighbor hadn’t come up to warn us that the police were looking for us, who knows where it might have led? I looked over at Cynder who was staring down at his feet. Luca wasn’t the only one that this was hard on. It had gone beyond pleasing the people and was now a real contest between the two men. A contest neither of them deserved to be in.
I stood up and walked to the front of the stage. I had to do something drastic to salvage this. I’d spoken to the people earlier, and, by some miracle, it had worked. As far as I could see, there had been no violence. Both sides had come together over a common, if opposing, goal. The Magi wanted me to pick Cynder, the non-Magi, Luca. Either way, both sides needed me to pick.
“Behind me are two men,” I began. “Two wonderful men who have put themselves before you at the people’s request. They’ve done it for the same reason I stand before you. To bring our land together, so that the Magi and non-Magi can be able to be together as you are today without the fear of getting hurt or being persecuted. Look at the people standing beside you. I see people in purple and people not wearing purple, but beyond the color of your clothing, it’s people I see. To me, you are all the same. No matter who I pick between Luca and Cynder, my love for you all and for everyone else in my kingdom will not change. I will pick the man I love the most, and my decision will rest solely on that. His magical ability or lack of it will not have any effect on my decision. Only love will.”
A roar went up in the crowd as they listened to my words. I felt someone take my left hand and then seconds later someone else took my right. Luca and Cynder stood on each side of me, supporting me equally. If it was difficult for me to be up there, I could only imagine how hard it was for both of them. I lifted my arms, taking theirs with me and the crowd went wild. Between us, we’d done it. We looked united. It was the best I could hope for. I knew I’d have to mend bridges with both of them later, but for now, we were a team, and we’d achieved everything we’d set out to do. I walked off stage, still hand in hand with both men, without giving Marybelle the chance to stop us. The people had been given enough of us today. They’d have to wait until next week after my first official date with Cynder to find out more. This week, my private life was going to be kept behind closed doors.
When I was sure we were out of view, I pulled off my microphone and stamped on it until it was crushed into a million pieces. It was childish, but I was emotionally spent and had had enough. The fight I expected to happen with Luca and the long talk with Cynder abo
ut his wife was in my immediate future, and I wasn’t sure I had the energy for it now.
To my surprise, Luca held out his hand to Cynder. Cynder took it and shook it warmly before patting Luca on the back. He kissed me swiftly on the cheek and turned away from us to make his way up the driveway back to the house.
Luca pulled me into a hug. What was going on? Why wasn’t he shouting at me? I’d seen the look he gave me after I danced with Cynder.
“I think we did a good job, don’t you?” he said.
“What are you talking about? It was a nightmare. At one point, I thought you were going to get up and punch Cynder in the face.”
“Oh, good!”
“Oh, good?” I repeated incredulously.
“Yeah, just before you got to the stage earlier, Cynder and I decided to act it up a little. You know, pretend we were enemies. We thought a little harmless rivalry wouldn’t hurt. If you thought we were serious, that means the people watching must have.”
I opened my mouth as if to speak, but no words came out.
“Come on!” He took me by the hand and led me up to the palace.
“Are you telling me the whole thing was an act? Your anger at me for not staying in the basement when the siren was going off, the dancing on stage?”
“I’m not happy that you ignored the siren, no. I was worried about you. I love you. I can’t cope when you keep running off into danger. We live in dangerous times as it is without you actively seeking it out, but I understand why you did it. You are a born leader whether you realize it or not, and it wouldn’t be my place to tell you what to do. I’m only mad at myself for not following you when you ran back up the stairs. I hope you’ll forgive me.”
I could barely believe what he was saying to me.
“What about the dancing?” I croaked.
“I didn’t enjoy it, but I have to admit it was a stroke of genius. When I watched you dancing with Cynder, I almost believed you were really in love with him.”
We’d reached the hallway of the palace, and Cynder was nowhere to be seen. Luca hugged me again.
“Go get ready for dinner. I’ll see you there.”
He left me in the middle of the entrance hall feeling more confused than ever. I’d ridden a rollercoaster of emotions from anger to confusion in the past few hours, and now I didn’t know how to feel at all. Instead of looking for Cynder as I probably should have done, I decided to go to my room and have a couple of hours to myself to try and work out how I was supposed to be feeling.
I’d only lain on my bed for a couple of minutes before there was a knock at the door. It opened, and Elise walked in. She shut the door behind her and sat on the end of my bed.
“Oh, sorry, were you sleeping?” she said when she realized I was lying down.
“I was just about to have a nap. What’s the matter?”
She seemed awfully quiet. Something was up. It was so unusual for her to not come bouncing into my room like an overexcited puppy. I’d not seen her at the interview either which was also strange. She’d made a point of coming to all the others. As I looked more closely, I noticed her eyes were red from crying.
She sat silently, playing with the hem of her shirt, a habit she’d undoubtedly picked up from me at some point.
I sat up and took her hand. She bit her lip as she spoke.
“I’m sorry!” The tears began to flow fully now. Whatever it was that was upsetting her was really bad. Elise didn’t get sad. It just wasn’t her nature.
“What is it?”
“I…”
Her tears came faster. I passed her a tissue but didn’t speak. If she needed time to tell me, then so be it.
“I’m pregnant,” she sniffed.
“Why are you crying? That’s wonderful news.” I sat up and took her hand.
“You aren’t mad?”
“Mad? Why should I be mad? Unless it’s Luca’s or Cynder’s, and then, you’ve got some serious explaining to do, young lady.” I tried to put on a silly voice. She giggled and the Elise I knew began to shine through again.
“No. It’s definitely Leo’s. I thought you’d be upset because I know the media will jump on it and I didn’t want to take the spotlight away from you. I know how much this all means to you. You are working so hard to get the Magi to come back.”
“Oh, honey,” I hugged her tightly. “Nothing would make me happier than you taking the spotlight away from me. I’ve had to deal with it for the best part of a year, and I need a break, especially after today’s fiasco.”
“What happened today? I’m sorry I didn’t come down. I was trying to work up the courage to tell you.”
I told her about the whole interview and about how angry I felt about being told what to do yet again. I told her how angry Luca had looked when I danced with Cynder and how the whole thing had been a setup between them both.
“Now, I’m not sure if I should be angry or relieved. Both men seem to be on the same side, and it’s me that’s the outsider.”
Elise began to laugh. “What a predicament. Two men publically fighting over you but in real life, they are only pretending. No wonder you don’t know whether to laugh or cry.”
I began to laugh along with her. When she put it that way, it was rather amusing.
“Come on. Let’s get ready for dinner. I’ll order extra champagne. We have to toast the baby!”
Speaking to Cynder was going to have to wait.
The Pumpkin Carriage
The week between interviews flew by at such a pace, it was the day before the next one before I knew it. As I had the last time, I was expected to go on dates with both men and report back. In truth, I’d been keeping my distance from both men all week. Confusion filled me whenever I thought about either of them. I’d avoided Luca because I just wasn’t sure how to deal with him. And if I spoke to Cynder, I’d have to ask about his wife, and I wasn’t ready for that yet. I’d spoken to Leo to see if he’d found out anything else, but his informant hadn’t come back to him yet. I knew I needed to broach the subject to him, but no matter how I put it in my head, it sounded wrong.
When the time came round for our official date, I’d still not spoken to him about it.
I decided to hold our date in the bowling alley on the ground floor of the palace. I’d had a date down there before with Daniel and enjoyed it, although that might have been because he’d gotten me drunk on mojitos and other cocktails. As it was so far out of the way from any of the other rooms in the palace, I knew we’d be able to talk without being overheard. I wasn’t sure if I wanted anyone else to know he already had a wife yet. Leo had promised me he’d keep it a secret for now while I decided what to do. Once Cynder came clean about the whole thing, I’d have to make a decision whether to tell the public now or later. I’d also have to tell Luca who was sure to be happy about the whole thing.
I headed out of the palace to Cynder’s guest house. I felt the nerves creeping up on me as I neared his door. It dawned on me that this would be our first real date. An official date! It felt strange after everything we’d already been through together. It felt stranger knowing he already had a wife out there somewhere. I was ready to hammer on his door angrily. The tension had been building up in me all week and had now reached a crescendo.
I marched right past the guest house that Luca was staying in and headed to Cynder’s door. There was a small envelope pinned to the door. It had my name on it. I looked around to see if anyone was watching me, then pulled it down. It was one of the palace’s official envelopes. He must have asked my mother if he could have one. I fingered the royal crest before ripping it open. Inside was one sheet of paper—another bit of palace stationery.
In neat handwriting were the words “My Lucky Charm. I still remember where we danced. 7pm.”
I looked at my watch. It was only 4pm.
Where we had danced? The only place I could think about was the palace kitchen, but back then it had been late. At 7pm, the kitchen would be bustling with staff, get
ting dinner ready.
He surely didn’t want to meet me there?
I walked back to the palace slowly, feeling perplexed. As I had a few hours to kill, I decided to take a walk around the grounds. The grass was wet with rain, but the skies had cleared, and it was unseasonably warm. As I walked around the palace, a thought occurred to me. There had been one other place we had danced. I let my eyes gaze up at the apartment that used to belong to Cynder’s parents. It was still light out, so there was no illumination coming from the window, and yet, I knew I was right. Cynder was meeting me outside the palace. It was risky, but nothing compared to the last time. I’d managed to sneak out of the palace and meet him there twice last year. He’d been on the run from the police then. This time, I’d only have to worry about paparazzi spotting me.
Excitement flooded through me. The brief time I’d spent in his apartment classified as the happiest in my life.
He’s married, you idiot!
Damn that little voice in my head!
I ran back inside and up to the dressing room. Xavi was ready and waiting for me. My guess was that she’d been waiting all day in the faint hope I’d show up, but not really expecting it. A broad smile passed her lips as she realized she’d have her chance to make me up after all.
My plan was to ask her to find me a nice, but understated, dress. Something simple.
“Before you say anything,” said Xavi as I walked through the door I’ve already got a dress picked out for you.”
I wanted to argue, but I was intrigued.
“Why have you picked me a dress? You don’t even know what I’m doing for my date. I could have been going to the swimming pool.”
“Cynder came up earlier and picked one out for you,” she said, clicking her fingers. Immediately two of her helpers ran into the huge closet at the back.
“Cynder picked a dress?” I asked, a small smile on my lips.
“Not quite.” Xavi was obviously enjoying teasing me.
“So did he or didn’t he?”
“He asked us to order it in. It came this morning.”
Lucky Charm_Reverse Fairytales Page 14