“Unless you wish for me to be a real contestant?”
Imagine, thought Demelza, if she didn’t come home because she’d run off to become a queen instead. Her father would be furious not to have her heart for his spell… but then again, Prava had always hoped for a greater presence in Rathe Castle.
“Are you… wait,” said Arris. “Are you saying that you’ve fallen in—”
“No! No, of course not,” said Demelza, cutting him off. She did not want to hear him say that word. On instinct, her fingers touched her neck, as if desperate to clutch at a winged necklace that was not there. Such a necklace would never be there until her heart decided it had found her true love.
“I am not looking to be controlled. I am looking for security,” said Demelza. She cleared her throat. “We could have a marriage of convenience. We could wed and I’d be safe and you could live your life and I’d still be able to discern who is lying to you and who isn’t.”
Arris stared at her. “Is this a proposal?”
“Do you want it to be?” asked Demelza.
What in the world was she doing? It was like testing the tenderness of a bruise… seeing how far one could go without more injury. Arris studied her. His gaze flicked to her hair—which Edmea had styled in a fashionable pile atop her head to disguise the remaining mud and brambles—and then to her dress—a high-necked confection of green lace that Demelza thought made her look like a shredded frog,but which Edmea had insisted was the height of fashion—and finally, her lips. Edmea had painted them with the slightest bit of rouge. It was quite subtle, but, as Edmea said, “loud enough that if you kiss a man, it’ll leave a mark.” The thought had made Demelza blush that morning and now she was blushing a second time all because the prince’s scrutiny dragged her back to the moment where they had kissed and something had beat violently inside Demelza’s chest. Like a pair of wings.
“You and I want the same thing,” said Arris.
Demelza’s heart skipped a beat.
“We both want security… we both want to trust that we shall be safe,” said Arris. “And I don’t think we would have it in such an arrangement. How do I know that you would not find it more useful to kill me? After all, I’m sure the wizard Prava would be thrilled to have one of his daughters installed in the Castle, wouldn’t he?”
Demelza said nothing, but her silence spoke for her.
“I thought as much,” said Arris, looking away from her.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. And then Arris moved a little closer.
“You look different,” he said. “Have you—”
“Edmea and I have been spending time together,” said Demelza, patting her hair. “Why? Does it look bad?”
“No,” said Arris. “Just… well, I guess what I’m trying to ask is if things were different…”
He trailed off and now it was Demelza who moved a little closer, and in the space between them, something urgent and fragile seemed to bounce between their very bodies. Itwas a moment that might become anything… a truth… a kiss…
But it vanished when Talvi stepped out of the sea cave.
“Oh!” said Talvi. “I’m so sorry… I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything?”
She curtsied to Arris and smiled at Demelza.
“No, not at all,” said Arris quickly.
“I was actually looking for you, Demelza,” said Talvi. “They’re about to put away the table of ingredients and I wasn’t sure if you wished to give it a try?”
“No,” said Demelza. “I wasn’t planning on participating.”
“Are you sure?” asked Talvi. “It’s quite fun, you know… well, once you get used to the strange walls. Ursula got mad that the ingredients weren’t edible.”
“Yes, I’m sure,” said Demelza, smiling.
“As you wish,” said Talvi. She curtsied to Arris. “We look forward to your company at tonight’s feast, Your Highness.”
“I am counting down the minutes,” said Arris, nodding.
Arris fell quiet again and at first, Demelza wondered if she felt his gaze on her, but when she looked at him, he was staring in Talvi’s direction.
“What?” she asked.
