“You won’t be alone,” I say, giving him a playful shove. “Do you not recall what else we talked about this morning? How I asked if I could do mysomethingalongside you doing yours?”
He gives me a wry grin, but there’s a note of worry in his eyes. “Yes, I recall. However, you are a princess. I’m…I’m just…”
I step in closer, placing my hand over his heart. “You’re just the man I love. And while I may be a princess, I’m not beholden to any promise to live here.”
“You’d trade this luxury for a rundown manor and an unkempt farm?”
I quirk a brow. “I’ve worked in a brothel. I’ve befriended kittens who live behind waste bins. What makes you think I’m beneath working on a farm?”
“I don’t want you to work on the farm,” he says.
I open my mouth to argue, but he speaks first.
“I want you to do thatsomethingyou spoke of this morning. Find a way to use your magic that feels fulfilling. You may work by my side if you wish, but I think it’s more important that you live foryouright now. It’s what your father wanted, and it’s what I want too.”
His grim, resolute tone has panic tightening my chest. “Are you…breaking up with me? Or putting us on a break?” I gasp. “Wait, were we ever courting? I…I never really gave it much thought, considering—”
He swallows my words with a kiss and lifts me in his arms. “I’m saying no such thing, Astrid,” he whispers against my lips. “I want you to be my mate if you’ll have me.”
My heart leaps at the wordmate. Fae don’t refer to just anyone they’re romantically entangled with as their mate. It’s a term given only to committed partnerships. It’s less official and less permanent than marriage, but for some fae, it’s the highest form of commitment they participate in. Not even two weeks ago I was convinced I’d never experience love. Never know what it was like to be truly seen and loved for who I am.
But now…
Now love warms my chest, spilling outward until I feel like I’m the one glowing instead of the cerapis sprites.
“We can grow side by side,” Torben says. “We can grow together—entwined or parallel. But we don’t have to do the same thing. Or…or become the same tree.”
I understand what he means now, and I realize I do have much to grow and learn. Already I nearly tried to do what I’ve always done—to latch onto the one person who sees me, to mold myself around what they do. But Father wanted more for me, and if I’m being honest…so do I.
“You’re right,” I say, and the admission sends a chill through me. A shudder of awe over the possibilities that await. The terrifying prospect that comes with having a future I never thought I’d have.
Everything that comes next—every joy, success, or failure—will be planted by me.Me. As I truly am. I don’t know what it will be like, but I’m ready for it. To go on this journey with myself. And him.
“I accept you, humble farmer Torben Davenport,” I say, tone mocking, “but I have conditions. Well, one.”
He pulls back enough to meet my eyes. “What’s that?”
“How many kittens can I have?”
His chest rumbles with laughter as he presses his lips to mine once more. “As many kittens as you want.”
EPILOGUE
ONE YEAR LATER
ASTRID
Thousands of people have seen my face, and of those thousands, only a handful know what I truly look like. A year has passed since I learned how to control my magic. To some degree, at least. It isn’t always easy. Sometimes, when meeting a new stranger, something about their countenance, the curl of their lips, the tilt of their chin, will have me reaching for my magic when I lock eyes with them. Now, though, I know how to let it go.
I know that I’m safe.
Safe to be seen.
That sense of safety, however, still feels tenuous around one person.
Queen Tris.
Anxiety tickles my chest as I wait in the parlor inside Davenport Manor. Any moment my stepmother will arrive. Even though she’s kept her promise to me over the last year, I can’t help but be reminded now and then of how things used to be. How I previously perceived her…and how she perceived me. I think I’m close to forgiving her. Or maybe I have already. Maybe that’s why I invite her to tea once a month.
