Love is something you fight for, not fight over.
“Ivee will see you as competition whether you want to be or not. She is now our nemesis.”
“Nemesis” seems a little dramatic. After all, there are twice as many men in this pub than women, so it’s not like they’re a rare commodity. Besides, just because someone proposes does not mean the other person must accept. Take my brother Theo, for instance. His first month in Applewood, he turned down four proposals.
If the prince wants to marry Ivee, wonderful. I wish them all the happiness in the world.
Nia’s eyes widen. “I have an idea. Stay here. I’ll be right back.” She unlocks the door and slips back into the pub without another word.
I love my cousin, but I am not going to wait in a privy simply because she told me to. Instead, I return to our table where Ivee and her two friends have claimed our stools, blocking the prince and leaving me to stand awkwardly beside Trevor.
Nia and Nolan speak in quiet tones over by the wall while she casts furtive glances my way. Heaven only knows what she’s telling him.
Trevor adjusts the spectacles on the end of his nose, his lips pursing. “The city library has a thousand more books than the one in the castle.”
The way he says it, so matter-of-factly, makes me chuckle. I wonder what the prince would have to say to that—not that he’s paying us any attention. “Does it? Well, your library sounds far more impressive to me.”
When I catch him glancing at me, his blush returns full force. He reminds me of my father in a way, reserved and soft-spoken. He’s not hard on the eyes, either.
“Would you like another cider, Kerris?”
“I would love one. Thank you.”
The prince appears behind him, clamping a hand on Trevor’s shoulder. “Save your coins for your new roof, Trev.” From his pocket, he withdraws a heavy purse. “Let the royal treasury handle this round—and all the others—tonight.”
4
“Even the richest fae use the privy.”
A Seelie Guide to Happiness
I’ve been abandoned and I don’t even care.
Nia and Nolan have absconded to some dark corner to get lost in each other, leaving me with Trevor, Ivee, her two shadows, Florence and Aurelia, and a monologuing prince.
Prince Ronan tells the most fascinating stories. He’s been to every town in our kingdom—including Gravale when he was a little boy. Not only that, but he has also visited the other six fae kingdoms as well. He’s seen so much in his twenty-seven years, and I’ve seen so little.
With every sip of cider he takes, his stories grow more fantastical. Part of me wonders if they’re entirely true. Not that it matters, I suppose, when they’re so entertaining.
Trevor drinks silently by my side. Every so often, I catch him peeking at me and offer him a warm smile. Mostly, I stare at the prince.
Probably not the smartest thing considering the way Ivee has attached herself like a leech on his arm, but I’m afraid it cannot be helped.
He’s so beautiful. It really is too bad Ivee’s head keeps blocking my view.
Nia stumbles back and swipes her drink, knocking it over in the process. Ivee’s shriek cuts through the chatter as amber liquid splashes all over her skirts.
“Oops,” Nia says with mock sincerity, her lips pressed to the side of her glass.
Ivee shoots her a glower oozing such hatred, I feel a chill in my bones. Her skirts swish as she whirls and stomps to the privy. Florence and Aurelia follow in her wake, assuring her they can “hardly notice” the stain.
Do they go everywhere with her? Imagine the three of them all curled in the same bed, snoring in perfect harmony.
Nia winks at me before skipping back to where Nolan waits and leaping on top of him with an exuberant kiss.
I giggle into my…emptyglass?
Where did all my cider go?
