“Rissa and Thorne,” I repeated softly. “They sound nice. What are they like?”
He took a moment to think, squinting in mock concentration. “Well,heis charming and smart and very, very handsome.”
“Naturally.”
“Andshethinks everything he says is perfectly witty.”
I snorted. “Since we’re pretending, thensheis elegant and funny but doesn’t care what people think—in a non-pretentious way, of course.” I walked across the grass, kicking a stone and leaping from large boulder to large boulder. “And she’s a wonderful baker. With a cute little bakery—or perhaps a bar, right beside the ocean where she can hear the waves and the seagullsand have an acceptable place to toss rude customers when they annoy her.” I shot him a wink and jumped off the top of a rock.
“Perhaps he owns a bookshop next door. Where he often sneaks pastries or drinks when she isn’t looking.” Thorne picked up a handful of stones and threw them off the cliffside down into the ocean.
“Oh, abookworm,” I teased as I stole several rocks from his grip. “How very studious of him.”
He gazed off into the waters with a small smile on his lips. “Maybe he’d rather read of far-off places where people get their happy endings than open his eyes to his own life.”
I swallowed hard and threw a rock off the side of the cliff, watching it fall and crash into the waves. “He seems like a romantic.”
“I think she is too,” he murmured.
“Maybe she wants to be.” I shrugged. “Maybe she wants to be someone who isn’t so bound to her duty. Someone who can take life into her own hands, snap the reins, and go anywhere it takes her.”
“She could be,” he said.
“Well, of course you think so—we’ve already established you’re a romantic.”
“He’sa romantic,” he corrected me. “This fictional Thorne with his bookshop and stolen baked goods.”
I chuckled. “Ah, yes, how could I forget?”
He collected more rocks from the ground. “He’snot the type to boast, but his throwing skills do seem to be far superior.”
With a scoff, I said, “Andshedefinitely doesn’t make everything into a competition, but she may have to prove him wrong.”
“Probably not a good idea.” He stepped closer to me, his gaze roving to the stones clenched in my hand and back to meet my stare. “He would never want a lady to embarrass herself.”
His hair tangled with mine in the fierce wind. He was so close now, I had to angle my head up to take him in, those blue eyes the exact color of the swelling waves below.
“Don’t worry, she doesn’t back down from challenges,” I countered.
“And he’s not falling for the woman destined to save his kingdom,” he said, so quietly I could barely hear him.
The breath left my lungs with awhoosh. My lips parted, but no sound came out.
“Come with me.” He took my hand before I could eventhinkof a response. “I want to show you something.”
I let him lead me, my legs numb as they carried me across the rocks and grass and back to the mountain pass. My curiosity won out over my shock when he didn’t stop at the carriage, instead heading toward the looming mountain to our left.
“It’s not far. Just on the other side here.” He pointed ahead of us where a path disappeared around the mountainside. We walked for several minutes in silence, a light layer of sweat forming on my skin. The closer we got, the louder the wind picked up—it was now rumbling in my ears like someone had dropped us inside a cyclone.
When we followed the thick expanse of trees around the bend, I realized it wasn’t the wind at all.
An enormous waterfall poured from a drop-off on the side of the mountain. It cascaded from one edge down to the next, rippling over rocks and boulders until it landed with a resounding crash in a pool at its base. Mist rose from the water in a thick fog. Sunlight filtered in and caught the haze, making it glow like a rainbow suspended over the pool.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, although I wasn’t sure he could hear me over the noise.
Without a word, he tugged me forward until I felt the cool spray on my skin. The sound of the tumultuous water was a roar, vibrating all around me with every breath I took. It was invigorating and mesmerizing at the same time, watching the rush of water freefall from such great heights only to collect itself and slowly, calmly, peacefully wind its way downstream.
Thorne released my hand and strode headfirst into the base of the waterfall.
