The bath felt colder, despite the rising steam.
Winnie parted her lips, sitting up as understanding dawned. Her hand moved to steady her heart.
“The prince,” whispered Winnie, her throat bobbing. “You saved him in the woods that day, but in doing so…”
“I’ve cursed him,” I replied. “And there’s nothing I can do to reverse it.”
Winnie’s composure crumbled. The judgment I’d expected was nowhere to be seen; there was only raw empathy as her eyes welled up with frustrated tears.
“That’s why you’re here.” She reached toward me, hesitated, and withdrew her hand. “All this time, to carry such a burden in your heart…” She paused, lips pressing tightly together, unable to finish the statement. “You poor woman.”
A weight lifted from my shoulders. I sank deeper into the tub. “It’s not so terrible. At least now I have a friend.”
Winnie kneeled beside the tub with forgotten propriety. She took my wet hand between hers, clutching it with fierce protectiveness.
“You have more than a friend,” she said. “You have a confidant. And I swear, by the Lady of Day and the Lord of Night, I will guard your secret as if it were my own.”
She squeezed my hand, cementing the vow.
Chapter 9
The warmth ofWinnie’s understanding was still fresh in my mind come morning. There was a distinct shift in our companionship throughout the day: small smiles shared over meals, a gentler hand arranging my hair, whispered comments that acknowledged our new alliance. Now, when privacy allowed us to drop the act of formality, the frigid customs of servant and mistress melted away between us.
Unfortunately, the intrigues of court life had a way of sabotaging my peace of mind. The amiable atmosphere was disturbed that evening as Winnie received word from a page, her smile faltering and expression returning to that of a proper lady-in-waiting.
“Oh, gods, what is it?” I groaned, reconsidering the second serving of wine I’d poured. It was the first time she’d allowed me to do anything for myself since becoming my attendant.
“The prince requests your immediate presence in his private chambers, my lady,” Winnie announced, voice carrying the proper court intonation while her subtle head tilt urged caution.
I set down my goblet with a louder clatter than I’d intended. My trembling hands found safety in the fabric of my skirts. “Did His Highness mention why?”
“I’m afraid not,” Winnie sighed. “Watch your volume. The dog’s already waiting in the corridor with his tail wagging.”
“Of course he is.”
I got up and opened the chamber door, glaring up into the dark eyes of the expectant Lord Quinn. He met the challenge with his usual irreverent smile and a bow. “My lady, I did not expect to see you again today; not once you bade me goodnight with your middle finger.”
“Oh,enough, Lord Navarro,” Winnie grumbled on my behalf. “Do you not exhaust yourself with these antics? Come, let us be swift. The matter seems urgent.”
“Such commanding airs from a newly-minted lady,” Lord Quinn remarked.
Gods, I could hit him.
Winnie and the viscount bickered all the way to the prince’s chambers as if I did not exist in the space between them. Their banter, like a duel of personalities, was oddly entertaining.
If only I had the opportunity to show some wit of my own. I would love to put the man in his place, just once.
They fell silent outside the prince’s door, putting on masks of indifference for one other as they approached the posted guard, a middle-aged man clad in plate mail.
“Lady Alana Chastain, summoned by His Highness,” said Lord Quinn, observing a rare moment of proper etiquette.
The knight turned to the door in a redundant process. How much time could be saved if I had simply come here on my own and knocked? “Your Highness, Lady Alana Chastain awaits your—”
“Yes, yes, send her in,” the prince replied as though equally encumbered by the process, and the knight allowed our entry. Winnie followed behind me, but was stopped at the threshold by the viscount.
Her eyes narrowed. “For propriety’s sake, I must remain with Lady Alana.”
“Damn your propriety. Allow the man some privacy with his intended.” Winnie maintained her scowl, earning an eyeroll from Lord Quinn. “Worry not. She’s safe, and I shall remain posted here. Sieur Eldridge, will you accompany Lady Winnie to retrieve some light refreshments from the kitchen?”
