Page 1 of Song of the Heart Scale
1
CAT
“Iwant strippers.” I laid on my bed with my head hanging off the edge as I looked at an upside-down Maeve.
Maeve frowned. “You want…what?”
“Strippers,” I repeated. “I have the money… but it would probably be painful if I start throwing a bunch of gold coins at them. Does Elaria have paper money? Can I exchange my coins for dollars?”
“For…what?” Maeve’s frown deepened, clearly confused.
I sat up faster than I should have and the blood rushed to my head. “Whoa.” I spun around to face her. “You know, cash? Paper money? If I throw gold coins at my strippers, I might poke an eye out. My aim is pretty good. It’s bad enough I’m about to be Crown Princess. The last thing I need is a lawsuit to top things off. Nowthatwould be horrible PR.”
“My lady, sometimes you say things I truly don’t understand.” Maeve shook her head and went over to my closet to pick out my clothes for the day.
I sighed. “Where I come from, Maeve, when a woman is about to get married, they throw her a party known as a bachelorette party, and in these notorious parties, we havestrippers. They are males…orfemales. I mean, whatever floats your boat. But in my case, it would be men who dance to some sleazy, overhyped music and start to undress—”
“By the Immortals!” Maeve gasped and poked her head out of my closet. “They getnaked?”
I grinned. “Oh, yeah. Right down to their knickers. Dick swinging, booty shaking, hip thrusting, all up in the bride’s face. It’s truly a rite of passage.” The horrified look on Maeve’s face made me burst out in laughter.
She, on the other hand, was not laughing with me. Her blush was crimson. “That sounds horrific, my lady,” she whispered.
I exhaled loudly and leaned back down on the bed. “I definitely can’t take you to Vegas, then.”
Her brows furrowed. “Your world sounds… crude.”
I chuckled. “We’re a planet filled with seven billion heathens. Crude sounds about right.”
“How can you talk about your world like that?” Maeve asked, clearly in shock.
I shrugged. “The world is a messed-up place. I mean, can’t you say the same about yours? Your emperor is a freakin’ tyrant, and Crown Prince Thorne isn’t far behind.”
“My lady!” Maeve hissed. “You cannot say those things out loud! The walls have ears…”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, yeah. If someone hears, I’ll be executed for treason or something. I know,” I muttered. “But am I wrong?”
Maeve gulped, her eyes widening. “Well… no.”
I made a gun motion with my hand and winked at her. “Exactly.”
“My lady…” Maeve fidgeted. “It’s been three days since Crown Prince Thorne came with the betrothal gifts… Are you really going to marry him?”
I tilted my head and stared at her. “Did you think otherwise?”
“Sort of, my lady. I thought you asked for more time because you planned to run away with the third prince.”
I sighed again. “I sent a message to Damien, hoping we could come up with a plan together, but…”
“But?”
“But he hasn’t come to see me. He hasn’t even sent me a message,” I murmured. “I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s one of two things. Either Damien is planning something and just can’t get a note out to me, or…”
“Or?”
“Or he’s given up.” I shrugged. “And he no longer plans to pursue anything with me.”
Maeve swallowed tightly. “What are your thoughts, my lady?” she whispered.
