TWELVE YEARS OLD
Violet rushed through the halls of the palace toward the school rooms, furious with herself for losing track of time. She loved collecting shells and pebbles on the shore to make jewelry or sew onto her clothes. She’d risen early that morning and ventured through the jungle to the beach since morning low tide provided a better selection of treasures than any other time of day.
As the daughter of a general in the Tropical Kingdom’s battalion, her family lived on the warrior compound located within the palace walls. The children in the compound attended a school located inside of the palace, which was both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because it was close to Violet’s home, but a curse because her mother worked as a cook in the palace kitchens and knew before the end of the day if one of her daughters misbehaved.
Violet glanced at a large golden clock hanging in the palace hallway and groaned. Ms. Bonner, their teacher with the personality of an ornery stable cat, would scold her in front of the entire class if she arrived late. Violet could see it now. Her permanent scowl would deepen as she shook her head, the dangling earrings adorning her pointed ears clanging against themselves.
Running around the next corner toward the school rooms, Violet collided with someone and bounced backward. The momentum sent her sprawling across the floor, and her treasures scattered everywhere.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized and pushed to an upright position. “I shouldn’t have been running.” She tilted her head up and froze. Roman Covington, heir to the Tropical throne and the cutest boy in all of Saltu, stood over her with a startled expression. She couldn’t help but admire how his short sandy blond hair looked nice against his slightly sun-tanned skin. The lightest brown eyes she’d ever seen stared back at her, and to her utter mortification, she realized she’d stared too long.Great, he probably thinks I’m strange.“I’m sorry,” she said again.
He lowered his already muscular body to her level, his focus still on her. “No, I’m sorry. I was trying to get to class and wasn’t watching where I was going.”
Violet dared to look at him again. “You were going the wrong way.” She pointed behind him. “The school rooms are still upstairs. They keep us in the same room every year.”
The prince hadn’t joined their school until last year. Before that, he took private lessons with the royal tutors. He always had a serious expression on his face and seemed mature for his twelve years of age. Violet thought he actedat leastsixteen.
The points of his ears turned pink. “I wasn’t paying attention,” he mumbled and gathered her books while she scooped up her shells and pebbles.
Most of the shells had broken in the fall, and she groaned. Roman shoved the books into her bag and glanced down at the shards in her hands. “What are those?”
She dumped the broken pieces into her satchel. “Shells I collected this morning.”
“You were at the shore this morning?” He scooped up more of the broken pieces and studied them before dropping them into her bag. “Are they important?”
She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll find more tomorrow.”
“I can help you look,” he offered.
Violet lifted her gaze to his, her lips parting in surprise. “You don’t have to do that. Thank you, though.”
After scooping up the rest of the broken shards, Roman helped her stand. “You’re Viv’s twin sister. Violet, right?”
Roman and Violet had never interacted until now, but it didn’t surprise her that he knew Vivian. Everyone did, and Violet was simply known as “Vivian Maekin’s twin sister.”
Where Violet was quiet until she knew someone better, Vivian was loud; Violet liked clothes, jewelry, and decorating things, while Vivian liked fighting and strategy games. Vivian and Roman trained as junior warriors together, but Violet only saw him in passing.
At least he hadn’t mistaken her for Vivian and actually knew her name. Since Violet and Vivian were identical, people sometimes got them confused. Violet never understood how. Their clothes, personalities, and hobbies screamedcomplete opposites. The day Vivian walked around in flowery dresses and beaded jewelry would be the day horses walked on water.
“That’s me.” Adjusting her book bag on her shoulder, she motioned toward the stairs. “We should get to class.”
Roman fell in step beside her and tapped the satchel draped across her torso. “What do you do with the shells?”
She pulled back the flowy sleeve of her dress to reveal a row of bracelets. “I like making jewelry and other things.”
He reached out and twirled one around her wrist. His fingers brushed against her skin, sending tingles up her arm. “I like them. Maybe you can make me one someday.”
Violet forced herself not to giggle like a little girl. “I don’t know if they’d look good on you,” she teased, hoping she sounded nonchalant.
His crooked smile made her insides flutter, and she blushed harder. At this rate, her face would stay permanently red. When they reached the classroom door, he held it open for her and followed her inside. “See you around, Violet.”
The prince lifted his chin to another boy in the back and wove his way through the desks while Violet stood at the front of the class, searching for an empty seat. She felt eyes on her and fought the need to flee.
She noted the full desks around her best friend, Griff, who lifted his shoulder apologetically.
“Find a seat, Miss Maekin,” Ms. Bonner clipped, the older woman’s sharp voice making Violet jump.
Roman waved to get her attention, and her heart skipped a beat when he pointed to the empty desk next to him. With hot cheeks that would never cool, Violet hurried down the aisle and sat down. “Thanks.”
