“He’s shown me how you arrange his figurines. It really makes his day.”
I glanced down at my interlocked fingers. “I know he has a rough time in the palace.”
Prince Thomas pushed his glasses up his nose. “Between you and me, he might not be in the palace for much longer.”
“Oh?” My jaw tightened, remembering the callous words in the letter not meant for my eyes.
“But I wanted to thank you for what you did. Truly. I was about to step in when I realized you had it under control.”
“It was my pleasure.” The words came out bitter, and I pressed my lips together to keep from saying anything to jeopardize my position, or the peace of this moment.
“May I ask…” He hesitated.
I lifted my brows.
“Might I request that you keep what you saw—what you helped with—between you, Stephen and I? His condition…” He winced. “His condition is not something we want to publicize.”
My heart stirred with anger on Stephen’s behalf. There was so much I clearly didn’t understand about the royal family and its power-hungry dynamics. Despite that, no malice seemed to linger in Thomas’s eyes. Instead, they seemed pleading.
“Of course, Your Highness,” I said, confusion flooding my words.
“Thank you.”
I let out a breath. “I guess I ought to thank you as well.” He caught my eye. “Sincerely, this time,” I added. “For Asha. You didn’t have to—”
“She needed help.”
The solemnity in his voice, his echo of my very own words, made me fall silent again. Cicadas chirped, and the air buzzed with an energy I wasn’t used to. For a mere moment, I leaned closer toward the man I disliked more than any other in the palace. It was if the moonlight cloaked our disdain in shadow, our flaws hidden by the night.
“I could teach you.”
I turned to him. His eyes didn’t meet mine as he stared out over the pond.
“I beg your pardon, Your Highness?”
“I could explain a few spells. If you don’t already have a master,” he added. “Just for the summer while I’m home.”
My mouth ran dry, my mind flashing to a pillar of water, crashing down in front of me. “And why would you offer a servant your valuable attention?”
His lips twitched. “I have some free time over the summers in between academic years. Tutoring will help me retain and master the knowledge I’ve gained.”
I waited.
“And… I would need something in return.”
I rolled my eyes. “But of course.”
“You can say no.” He craned his head toward mine. I became aware of the inches between us, of the fact that he could lean myway and press his shoulder against mine. That he was close enough to touch me if he so desired.
My breath caught.
“I…”
He held up a hand. “Let me explain the limitations of the offer first.”
The tension that had been building evaporated.
“First, it will need to remain private information. Don’t gossip about our one-on-one tutoring sessions with your friends or the deal will be off.”
