“Hello?” I said.
“A thank you would be nice.”
I raised a brow. Of course he deserved my gratitude—he’d just healed Asha. At the same time, it was hard to ignore the way he was peering at me now, with that cold edge of derision in his eyes. His firmly-set jaw reminded me of the smallness I’d felt in his presence the first time we’d met at this very spot.
I pursed my lips. “Thank you.”
Although Asha was awake, her body was limp, her eyelids heavy with the temptation of sleep. I pulled her closer to me.
“You should be more careful,” he lectured. “She could’ve been severely hurt.”
“You think I don’t know that?” Anger pricked at my every word.
“If you’d known it, she wouldn’t be healing from a head injury atthis exact moment.”
He had me there. I bit my tongue, guilt spreading throughout my chest.
“Fine,” I said. “I’m sorry. That was reckless of me.”
The crease between his brows deepened. Was he always so disapproving? So critical of the people he was supposed to serve?
My fingers clenched around Asha’s skirts. “Don’t you have somewhere to be, Your Highness?”
He narrowed his eyes once more. “It’s my palace.”
I huffed.
Asha’s eyes fluttered shut.
“Let her sleep,” he commanded. “She’ll be better in a few days. Lots of fluid, lots of rest. Bring her to a physician if she has any head pain.”
“Of course,” I murmured.
He let out a loud sigh. “And take better care of your daughter.”
I opened my mouth to respond before clamping it shut. I didn’t care to correct him. I just wanted him gone.
Prince Thomas’s gaze lingered on me, as if awaiting my response. I felt the heat of it a beat too long, and warmth crawled up my neck in a way wholly unfamiliar. When my eyes flicked up, he seemed to be observing my features, trying to find a flaw in them to exploit.
I wouldn’t give him the chance. “Goodbye, Your Highness.”
He rose to his feet, giving a polite bow. “I hope she feels better soon. That was quite the fall.”
The reminder of my auntly failure sent another wave of shame rolling through me. Asha’s small form had already curled on her side, falling into a trouble-filled slumber I knew Kelara would resent me for.
One which I fully deserved.
At my silence, the prince turned on his heel and strode across the gardens. I pulled Asha to her feet, and when it was clear her body was too limp to stand, I picked her up, letting her arms wrap around my neck. Humiliation followed me, whispering from the alleyways, weighing down my every step like the water that still soaked my skirts. I carried her home in my embrace, praying over her healing, regretting ever having asked her to come with me.
But one prayer was muttered more than all the rest: I deeply, dearly, ever so strongly desired never to see Prince Thomas again.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Kelara came close to biting my head off that evening.
As soon as I got home, I laid Asha upon the bed she shared with her mother. Her belly rose and fell within a spell-woven slumber. I assured Kelara of the prince’s words, of the confidence with which he’d examined Asha and healed her. I warned her it would take days to recover, and made her promise to alert me if Asha’s condition worsened. Kelara knew I’d come back from the palace in a heartbeat to assist her.
And her response?
