“Agreed,” Clyde said as the sound of alarms ceased. He turned to William. “I’ve got it from here.” William opened his mouth, probably to argue, but Clyde cut him off. “I’ll take Luna home. Thank you for your help.”
Clouds filled the skies, making the servants with umbrellas unnecessary. Luna and Clyde walked from the infirmary to the buildings that housed the noble families, passing the barracks on their way. The grounds were like a small town, with all sorts of buildings people would need to live and thrive. They had walked a decent way in silence before Clyde made a sudden turn behind one of the storage buildings; the area was fairly isolated from everything else, allowing them a moment of privacy.
His dark brown eyes scanned over every inch of her body, worry furrowing his brow as he took a step closer to her. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She looked down at her ruined dress, her cheeks warming. Although tiny thorns had torn the outer layer of fabric, they hadn’t penetrated the numerous layers beneath, leaving her unharmed. A smile graced her lips; his genuine concern for her well-being was incredibly touching. “I’m perfectly fine,” she said. To showcase, she gave him a twirl, her waist-long blonde hair and dress flowing out around her as she moved.
“You know you will always be beautiful to me . . .”
His words made her want to melt against him, to show him how beautiful she could really be, but she held back. They were off the main path, sure, but they were still in the open. Anyone could walk by.
“However”—he raised his hand, rubbing the back of his neck—“you do look like you fought a battle in that dress, and if the king saw you right now, he’d put my head on a platter . . .”
She looked down at her once beautiful cream-coloured dress and frowned. It had been snagged in several places, with petals and leaves still clinging to the fabric. The hem and her slippers were stained brown from the damp soil too. She kicked her shoes together, trying to remove the dirt. Clyde was right. If the king saw the state she was in, he would regard flowers as a hazard. In fact, she wouldn’t put it past the king to claim that any kind of flower was dangerous and demand all the gardens be removed from the grounds. She brushed her hands along her dress, trying to remove some of the debris.
Clyde continued, “And to be frank, I would deserve it.” He looked over his shoulder before stepping closer to her, closer than what was appropriate of their stations. Gently, he captured her hands in his, stopping her from smoothing over her clothes.
Her eyes met his, and her breath hitched. Would he kiss her? They had kissed before, but never somewhere so openly. Usually, he would sneak into her room at night, after everyone was asleep. He never stayed long, always having to rush back to his post to keep from being caught. If he kissed her now, it would be the first time in the light of day. Heart racing, she stole a glance around, double-checking they were still alone, and then leaned forward.
Cupping her face, he tenderly stroked her cheek. “With your illness, a minor scratch would be fatal. And if that happened, I would never forgive myself.”
So much for a kiss.She sighed, hating how much her illness stole from her. They so rarely had any private time together, and after everything that had happened today, all she wanted to do was be physically and emotionally connected to him. Not discuss the what-ifs or what could have happened.
He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, her hands pressing against his chest. It had been foolish to go into the flowerbeds. If she had injured herself, she would have bled until she had nothing left to bleed. She melted into his scent, inhaling deeply. He could’ve been carved from stone—perfect, except for the lines on his face, shaped by battles he never spoke of. “I’m sorry for causing you worry. It was foolish.”
Tilting his head to the side, he asked, “Why did you wander into the flowerbeds, anyway?”
“There was a weed.”
He raised his eyebrows and chuckled. “Was it at least pretty?”
“In a way . . .” she admitted softly, “yes.”
But she wasn’t thinking of the weed anymore.
Chapter 2
Home
Clyde escorted Luna back home, taking his post by their door where he would remain until his shift ended and William came to relieve him. The majority of the king’s court lived on the palace grounds in designated residential buildings, only the royal family resided in the palace. Luna’s family was fortunate to have a home all to themselves, thanks to her father’s position in the court, which afforded them greater benefits than many others.
Luna had made it to her room without anyone discovering her, but she wasn’t fast enough to change out of her dirty clothes before her sister appeared in the doorway. Emily was the biological daughter of her adoptive parents, Darius and Angie. She had been born several days after they had adopted Luna and, even though they weren’t related by blood, they loved and fought like real sisters. Emily gave Luna a look, suggesting she knew exactly what had transpired and, to be fair, she was the queen of gossip so she may have already heard some of what had happened.
Nonchalantly, Emily announced, “I am off to see about getting a fresh loaf of bread and some vegetables for dinner.”
Alright.Apparently, she was going to ignore Luna’s state of appearance.
“Oh?” Luna replied.
Most times they dined in the palace grand hall with everyone else. But occasionally, Angie, their mother, would insist on making dinner herself. Since they didn’t keep their home stocked with food, either Emily or Luna would have to run to the main kitchens in the palace and grab the required ingredients. Their mother was a simple country girl before her marriage and disliked relying on servants. She took great pride in her upbringing and always tried to teach the important parts of it to Luna and Emily.
“Yeah, you’d think with all the chaos that happened, Mom would send a servant to run the errands, but no. According to her, they have plenty to do already.” It was interesting that no one seemed to take the warning bells seriously. Perhaps everyone was in just as much denial as the guards had been earlier. “She seems to think I have mountains of free time,” Emily added bitterly.
“Don’t you?” Luna teased.
“Absolutely not. Do you have any idea what kind of shenanigans people were up to while those alarms were ringing?” With her hands on her hips, Emily frowned. “I feel like I only know half of what happened and I’ll be so embarrassed during tea tomorrow if I am out of the loop.”
Most of the young noblewomen met up for midafternoon tea to discuss the affairs happening around the palace. Emily waltzed over to Luna’s bed, sitting down on the edge, and Luna raised an eyebrow. Apparently, Emily had plenty of time to stay and complain about her time being wasted.
