Princess Lea (Part 1) Eng.

Chapter 5

The next morning, Lea woke up sleepless, having nightmares about how she had failed to escape from the Palace. She went down to breakfast with a somber face.

– Where are you going? – she heard Samuel's voice behind her, and it made her jump as it ripped her out of her thoughts.

She didn't answer him, but sighed heavily and went into the kitchen without stopping. Samuel was on his way to breakfast as well, so he was on her heels like a shadow. He was surprised that the girl was getting up so early, before anyone else. He took the tray of food he had prepared for himself. He left the kitchen and headed for his office. Breathing a sigh of relief that he had left her alone, Lea sat down on the island.

– Good morning – she murmured to the cook who had placed pancakes with fruit and tea before her.

– Good morning to you, my dear. Are you ready for today's big day? – the woman asked.

– Not really – Lea groaned and started eating her pancakes.

After she had finished her meal, she went back to her room and changed into the dress that she had prepared for herself. It was a cream-colored dress that came down to her ankles, with a high neckline and scooped back. It had long sleeves to hide her tattoos, and she put on a pair of pearl earrings and a necklace. She hated the social gatherings where her father would introduce her and Letitia to the bachelors from the surrounding kingdoms and to the wealthy families. She took her seat to the right of her father's chair in the hall where the audience was to be held. A seat for Letycja had been prepared on the left side. About an hour later, Samuel came into the hall to check on security.

– On time as always – he noticed as he looked at her, she looked beautiful, his heart beat faster. Her long brown hair, usually tied back in a bun, was now loose. She wore light make-up, which emphasized her green eyes.

She looked at him, not saying anything, just looking at him. Her stomach was tight with nerves, but she said nothing. She wasn't supposed to be nervous, but she had the feeling that she clearly didn't want to be here. Samuel's jokes irritated her even more because she had no intention of running away.

– Are you all right? – he asked, seeing her tense and pale.

– It's even worse when I see you – she muttered under her breath.

He gave her a broad smile. At that moment, accompanied by Letycja and several men, as well as security, her father entered the hall.

The king smiled when he saw Lea in her place, probably thinking Samuel had done well bringing here Lea. Samuel nodded and walked away to the back of the hall where the bodyguards of the other guests were standing.

– Lea, this is Prince Henry – her father said when a shorter boy, around Lea's age, came beside him.

The girl stood up and gave a slight curtsy.

– Henry is the son of my friend Matteo III – he went on – I remember in the good old days we used to go hiking together.

Samuel watched the girl, she had a perfect understanding of how to act. There was a change in her demeanor when she had to pretend to have fun. She took a polite interest in what others said, but it was clear that her gaze was absent.

– You haven't given up yet – Jack, Henry's bodyguard, told him - I think everyone's had enough of her.

– A little respect, she's still a princess, and there's every indication that the future queen could be yours – Samuel remarked.

– Forgive me - the man nodded – I've just been hearing a lot of gossip about her.

– And since when did you have time for gossip? - Samuel wanted to put an end to all speculation as soon as possible. No matter what Leah was, she was the king's daughter and deserved respect – who do you need to talk to to put an end to it?

– No, I'm going to cut it off myself – the man replied with a serious look.

Lea exchanged a few words with Henry and she already knew that nothing was going to come of it, to her surprise he must have gotten his hopes up already, because he didn't want to talk to Letycja at all. It irritated her a little, everyone only wanted to talk to her, but she wanted to get away from here, almost as if on cue, as she thought about escaping, she met Samuel's gaze. A shiver ran down her spine as he stared at her with that piercing look in his eyes. The thought of running away disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared, at least for the time being.

#0PLN Production