Emilie of the Royal Heart

Chapter 25: The Prince Dashes in at the Last Second

 Evidently, Emilie looked so apprehensive in the morning and at noon that her attendants were convinced she was sick again. It took a whole lot of convincing to tell them that she felt fine. She ate three whole bowls of spicy shrimp soup just to prove it.

She didn't feel fine at all, but she couldn't say that was because of how Tiago poisoned her. She might be able to blame it on the malicious way he spied her across hallways, but it was certainly not the backbone of her malady today.

Aurora left that night and she didn't even see him at breakfast or at lunch. Despite her anxiety about the situation, she wasn't sure whether or not she would've preferred his attendance. Part of her wanted him there because then something about this day might feel normal again, and another part didn't want to see him because the pile of unspoken things between them had grown too tall to ignore.

After lunch, she managed to shake off Agatha, Ester, and Minnie to walk around the grounds on her own, contemplating the dilemma Elias presented to her on a silver platter. She trudged about the pathways around the courtyard, her hands twisting the handkerchief Cedric gave her as though this could give her strength to understand her situation. She bit her lip, trying to suppress the desire to have the Tailor around.

She thought for a moment that Cedric would never make her feel like this. He had already removed her from his complicated feelings toward her just so that it wouldn't inconvenience her. He was technically supposed to do things like that for a would-be Princess like her, but Emilie knew he was doing his best not to make her feel uncomfortable with something he thought she felt was unwelcome.

Emilie huffed and stomped to a stop. She shouldn't be pulling other people into her thoughts right now. It was two o'clock and she needed to know if she was going to leave Aurora to be Elias' wife instead by four.

It was hard to pick at such a concept. It was about as straightforward as a circle. It wasn't as if Emilie thought there was a wrong choice. Because something inside her told her she could be very happy to stay with Aurora for the rest of her life. But at the same time, she thought she could be happy on Elias' arm too. Neither choice was strictly better than the other. At least, not that she could see. There were many things she didn't know about the brothers and their history. There were many things she didn't know about Elias. There were still things she didn't know about Aurora.

Elias might be something of a player in love, but Aurora pressed her into becoming his fiance. Which one was worse? Elias made her feel powerful sensations when they kissed, but Aurora made her feel excited about their kisses and every touch. Elias' passion felt like an experience she was present for; Aurora's felt like something she could participate in. Neither affection felt lacking, they only different.

Emilie stayed away from the butterfly garden because she worried it would make her think too much of Elias. She walked the road by the forest instead. She breathed in clear air, with the scent of the pines. She hugged her arms in. She missed home.

She returned back to her room with about twenty minutes before she needed to make her way to the drawing room if she decided it. Emilie approached the window and stared out of it at the hills where Lady Diselle rode her horses. Her eyes drifted over to the vanity and she spotted a coin.

It crossed her mind to flip it. She might have but then she couldn't decide who should be heads and who should be tails. There came a fierce knock on the door.

"Come in," she called, pressing a hand to her abdomen.

The door swept open and Aurora closed it behind him. His hand stayed on the doorknob and he leaned his back against the door. He was wearing the same suit that he had on the day they met - the dark red waistcoat and the crisp button up shirt - but he didn't wear it the same way today.