A Dove's Tale

Chapter 42

I let myself into the library, keeping my eyes trained on the floor as I took a deep breath to refocus. It was a good thing I didn't work with Theresa regularly. She was fun, but I was here to work, not to gossip about princes, and I was already kicking myself for telling her about Prince Nokto. That was embarrassing enough before Prince Licht arrived.

Why did he have to hear that?

I closed the door and my eyes, leaning my forehead against the cool wood. Now I had to deal with Prince Chevalier, and my face was still blazing hot. He would probably tease me relentlessly about that.

This morning had been really nice and quiet, and I had been looking forward to an afternoon of the same, maybe with an opportunity to ask Prince Chevalier about his motivation behind visiting the Hill of Remembrance. I knew better than to think it was all for my benefit, and I knew him better than to think it was a simple desire to honor the dead on his part. His reasoning was always more complex than that. But the afternoon was almost gone, and he wouldn't be in the mood to talk about that, not after I accused him of wrongdoing by not coming to save me from Prince Nokto.

That was stupid of me.

I took another deep breath and lifted my head, opening my eyes to see a rose engraved into the rich brown wood of the door. It was so realistic, I could almost smell it.

"You're late."

Prince Chevalier's cold voice came from right behind me. I jumped and spun around, my heart suddenly racing as I looked up at his icy blue eyes. Had I been so distracted by my own thoughts that I hadn't heard his footsteps? Or had he been standing there the whole time, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched me, and I hadn't even noticed him?

I had smelled his cologne. He was standing close enough for me to smell his cologne. If my blush faded at all, it came rushing back, redder and hotter than ever. He took one look at me and smirked.

"The Clown again?" he asked mockingly.

I swallowed hard, trying to pull myself together. "Not in person, your highness, but it couldn't have been any less embarrassing if he had been. If I ever ask to work with Theresa again, please remind me to keep my mouth shut."

He chuckled. "Which you now intend to do with me."

"Well, I'm certainly not telling you what I told her, your highness, although if you're curious, you can ask Prince Licht, because he overheard everything. Suffice it to say that Prince Nokto was up to his usual tricks, which I don't like, but apparently, Theresa does. There isn't anything for you to worry about, and it was unfair of me to say you should have been here. If I can't handle him by now, then that's my fault, not yours."

Prince Chevalier's eyes didn't leave mine as I spoke, but his smirk faded, and I stopped, biting my lip nervously, worried that I said too much. The words just tumbled out of me without me even thinking about them. Was that just because his sudden appearance rattled me, or was it because he was standing so close to me? Too close. And I couldn't even take a step back to put some physical distance between us, because the door was directly behind me, and the light scent of roses was wrapping around me, and suddenly I wondered if he was keeping his arms crossed so he wouldn't touch me. He hadn't touched me since I angrily told him he'd lost that privilege. Although why I was thinking about that right now, I didn't know, and I was certain he had a much better reason for crossing his arms than that, like annoyance that I didn't return on time.

"Come," he said, spinning on his heel and dropping his arms to his sides as he strode across the library to the back room. I followed reluctantly, but I stayed by the door after I shut it behind us. He returned to his chair and didn't even look at his book, instead taking the pose that meant I had his full attention: elbow propped up on the arm of the chair, chin resting in his hand, pale blue eyes on me. That unsettled me even more. It seemed like he was looking at me a lot lately, and although his eyes didn't wander across me like Prince Nokto's, they seemed to penetrate deeper.