“Come on,” he says, taking my hand in his again and gently leading me toward the light.
I guess I’ve thrown every sense of self-preservation out the window because I follow him.
We round the bend and sure enough, the trees are spaced farther and farther apart, making room for the sunshine to filter through the canopy once again. We continue down the path until it stops.
A small lake sits in middle of the forest, surrounded by lush trees. The sun filters through, casting its luminous rays on the glossy, crystal-clear surface. Wide, worn stones cut between thick, green grass and spongy moss, leading directly to the embankment.
“Ta-da,” August says, waggling his fingers. “I told you I wasn’t going to kill you.” The idea of him killing me now seems ridiculous. He steps ahead of me and then looks back. “Come on,” he says, a smile lighting his face.
He leads us to a small, wooden canoe. “I thought we could have a picnic on the lake,” he says brightly, hauling it to the edge of the water.
I hold my dress up and he helps me step inside. I take the wooden seat closest to the water. August gracefully steps in, then pushes us off the embankment with one big shove. The canoe slowly drifts to the center of the lake, with help from a soft breeze that he summons.
“This is…incredible,” I whisper, marveling at the water beneath us, clear enough to see individual stones covered in lichen and algae at the bottom.
“Yes, well, I wanted to have the best date of all the princes,” he says with a shrug.
“You seem to love the spotlight, so youwouldlove that,” I say, laughing. His jaw drops, and I hurriedly say, “I’m joking!”
He’s still staring at me, blue eyes twinkling as he says, “I wasn’t expecting you.”
“What do you mean?”
He settles back in his seat, and the canoe shifts beneath us. I immediately grab the sides to stabilize myself.
He watches me with a smirk. “Never been in a canoe?”
“Oh, how can you tell?” I respond drily.
“That right there,” he says, ignoring my rhetorical question. “People in the courts aren’t like you. They’re closed off, guarded. They don’t make jabs or sarcastic jokes. We’re all so scared of saying the wrong thing.”
“Yes, I’ve gotten that sense,” I admit, thinking back to my conversation with King Katze and Queen Issa.
“It’s refreshing, though,” he assures me.
“Koa told me to be on my guard with you all, but it’s difficult for me to guard myself. I would prefer to just be my natural self.”
He nods. “There’s nothing wrong with that, but he’s right. You should be on your guard with anyone from any of the High Houses. We usually always have an agenda.”
I cast my net and say, “Well then, what’s your agenda?”
“To be happy.” Nothing snags. Truth.
“That’s everyone’s agenda. What does happiness look like for you?”
“Honestly, I don’t know.” Truth. He hesitates before continuing, “I’m here, so my goal is to marry you. I guess happiness to me is a wife and kids. It’s what everyone thinks is happiness.” My magic doesn’t flare, but he seems hesitant about his answer.
“Is that really what you want? You don’t sound so sure,” I say, eyeing him.
He extends his long legs, brushing them against my own. I don’t startle when the canoe rocks this time.
“All my life, I’ve been told my only responsibility is to take over my House. I thought I had more time before I had to think about being a king,” he confesses, glancing at me to see my reaction.
I nod in understanding. “I’m not ready for this either. I don’t want to get married. I hate that I’m in this position,” I confess.
He lets out a deep breath. “Weirdly, that makes me feel better. I should tell you something. You probably already know, but you should hear it from me.” This puts me on alert, and I make sure my net is strong for what he’s about to say. “Princess Etta and I dated for a while. I liked her, but she started talking about marriage, and it freaked me out, so I broke it off.” Again, he studies me, waiting for a reaction.
“I knew that, but thank you for telling me. I also heard that you two may have gotten back together, though,” I say, now eyeing him.
