Page 35 of Quest for her Knights
If I was on this tour to find husbands, then I needed to stop lusting after the knights. I mean, I was a woman with eyes so I wouldn’t be able to stop admiring them, but I need to focus on the lords, the men who actually wanted to marry me.
But dating clearly was going to be different here than it was in my world. I need to keep my hands to myself, but what else? I glance at the door, knowing I was going to have to suck it up and ask Ranger. He clearly understands this way more than I do.
Chapter fourteen
Ranger
Pacing in front of the window that overlooks the manicured grounds, I think about what to do. I rub the back of my head, still surprised it was Draven who had hit me after Elora ran from the room. Apparently, he thought I was out of line. They all did.
I didn't mean to upset her, andtechnically, she had done nothing wrong. Touching the lords was completely in her right.
But the whole interaction between them got under my skin. I hated her batting her eyelashes at them, and when she touched his arm, I couldn’t hold myself back any longer. I don’t even know why I’m so upset. It’s why we’re here, helping her to find suitable husbands. But she was moving too fast. A princess shouldn’t be so forward.
“Ranger?” Her soft voice startles me. I stop pacing and turn to stare at her. God, she’s stunning. She’s wearing a new green dress, her damp copper locks trailing down her back, as she looks at me nervously.
“I was wondering, since you seem to know way more about this than I do, would you… Would you teach me how to act around them?”
“There’s nothing wrong with the way you act,” Draven says with a frown, surprising everyone.
“Clearly there is,” she says, motioning to me.
“Draven, Arrow, go scope out the grounds, make sure everything is secure and find us escape routes in case of an emergency,” I tell them firmly. Draven glares at me a moment before nodding, then he storms from the room. Arrow shakes his head at me, a look of disappointment in his eyes as he follows.
I stare at Elora for a moment until Blaze comes out of the bathroom waving a comb at her. “Come sit down, I’ll comb your hair by the fire so it can dry while Rangerinstructsyou.” He gives me a look that’s somewhere between a frown and a smirk before moving one of the chairs closer to the fire and dropping a pillow to the ground in front of it. He sits in the chair and motions to the pillow.
Without a word, she moves over and sits in front of him, then looks up to me expectantly. I drag a chair in front of her and take a seat.
“Let’s start with greetings. You don’t curtsey to anyone below you, which is everyone short of kings or queens. You could curtsy to a prince, but since there aren’t any besides your brothers, that’s a moot point.”
“Really? Who are the other royal families in Dyconia?”
“The Queen didn’t tell you about them?” Blaze asks in surprise.
“No, they didn’t tell me much, honestly.”
“Well, your family, as you know, is from the North. The Silverthorns. Your brothers, the princes, married Princess Freya Highcrest. Her family’s castle is located in the South, but her entire family was killed off by…”
“By the other Elora,” she finishes for me.
I nod before continuing. “The other castle is in the west. Queen Odessa Carmichael lives there with her husbands, who are now kings.”
“Carmichael? She’s related to the lords who live here?” she asks.
“Yes, she’s their sister. She was born a lady but married the previous kings. When they passed, she became Queen in her own right by freeing people from the previous king's tyranny. Then she remarried.”
“Wow, okay, and are there any other royal families?”
“There is the high queen and her husbands. Their castle is located in the central region.”
“They don’t have any sons? I thought males were more common here?”
“It’s a complicated story, but no, she has no sons, and doesn’t seem to be able to bear any. And as she’s now in her sixties, it’s unlikely it will happen.”
“I see, so no other princes, but lots of lords?”
“I wouldn’t say lots, but there are a few unwed groups of men, yes. And for them, you do not curtsy. You can nod your head in greeting, but that’s it.”
“Okay, I can do that,” she says as Blaze combs gently through her hair.
