Page 98 of Love & Letter Charms
She opened her mouth to apologize, then forced herself to swallow the words. She took another steadying breath. “With all due respect, Grandmother,” she said, “you do not. The High Lady is right that you know nothing of what the prince is truly like. He is thoughtful and patient and possesses far greater depth than anyone realizes. And even if you do not believe a word either of us says, this still would not be your decision to make. The prince has made his choice clear, and—perhapsmore importantly, where you and I are concerned—I have made mine.”
The truth of it struck Aurelise even as the words left her lips. She had made her decision.She had made her decision.
The feeling that had nearly consumed her in this very room the day before—when Ryden’s fingers had slid into her hair and his hand had closed around hers, when the world had seemed to blur into music and heartbeat—hovered now at the edge of her awareness, beautiful and terrifying in equal measure.
I swear to you that I would never let you drown.
You will not be swept away.
The High Lady regarded Aurelise with unexpected warmth, the subtle shimmer of tears evident in her eyes. “I had all but surrendered hope that my son would marry for love,” she murmured. “How glad I am to be proven wrong.”
Then, as though catching herself in an unseemly display of emotion, the High Lady straightened, composing her features into their usual regal mask. She turned to Lady Rivenna with the air of someone delivering a final verdict.
“Well, Lady Rivenna. You have heard your granddaughter’s wishes.” Then her voice dropped, though not so low that Aurelise couldn’t hear. “It appears you and I shall soon be connected by more than merely our mutually guarded secrets.”
~
Dearest Lise,
I love you.
Yours, with every part of me,
Ryden
Chapter Twenty-Seven
The night aircarried the scent of jasmine and wonder as Aurelise stepped from the palace doors into the transformed gardens of Solstice Hall. She paused at the threshold, one hand pressed to her heart, the other clutching the silver moonflare token she’d been turning over in her fingers all day. Above her, the sky had become a canvas of impossible beauty.
Dozens of paper lanterns drifted upward on invisible currents of magic, each one glowing from within. Some burned with the warm gold of summer afternoons, others shimmered in shades of rose and lavender, while a precious few gleamed silver-white as they ascended toward their celestial destinations.
Guests inscribe wishes on enchanted parchment, Ryden had told her the night they had sat beside the lake,then fold them into lanterns. When released, they rise into the night sky.
Above her, the lanterns rose in graceful spirals, dancing around one another in patterns that seemed almost choreographed, as though the wishes themselves knew how to waltz. It made her want to lift her hands and trail her fingers through the air, calling forth an accompanying melody.
She had spent most of the day sequestered in her chambers, alternating between pacing the length of her room and sittingfrozen on her bed, staring at the letter that had been waiting in her enchanted box when she’d woken that morning.
She wanted to write the same words back to him. She also wanted to say them out loud, in person. But minutes had stretched into hours, and now the festival was well underway, and it seemed she had yet to find her courage. So she had clutched the moonflare token to her chest, taken a deep breath, and finally ventured forth from her chambers.
The gardens were filled with the soft murmur of voices and gentle laughter. She could see the Crown Court ladies in their finest gowns, their faces tilted skyward as they watched their wishes attempt to find their matching stars. The High Lady presided over it all from an elevated pavilion draped in silver silk. And somewhere among them all was Ryden.
Her stomach performed a series of acrobatic maneuvers that would have impressed even the palace performers. After everything that had transpired, she knew exactly where they stood. She knew he loved her. She knew she loved him. She knew she’d already made her choice.
So why did the thought of actually seeing him, of looking into those eyes that knew all her secrets, make her feel as though she might dissolve into a thousand glowing fragments? In a good way, of course. In what she was beginning to suspect might possibly be thebestway.
“You remember the plan?” Aurelise whispered as Thimble darted past her in a pink and purple blur.
Thimble twirled midair before darting back and hovering at eye level, her whiskers practically vibrating with excitement.Oh yes, my lady! We locate the prince, create a spectacular distraction so everyone looks elsewhere, then Spark and I shall ingeniously maneuver him behind the rose bushes where you may FINALLY kiss him senseless!
Heat flooded Aurelise’s cheeks. “Well. Yes. Something like that.”
WONDERFUL!Thimble declared, spinning in a delighted circle.This is the most romantic mission we’ve ever undertaken! Oh! But my lady—The mouse’s eyes went perfectly round.Your gloves! You’ve forgotten them!
“Oh dear,” Aurelise said, knowing perfectly well she’d left them in her chambers with deliberate intent. She’d spent the better part of the afternoon imagining what it might feel like to slide her bare fingers through a certain prince’s beautiful blue hair. And truly, out here in the garden’s gentle darkness, who would even notice the absence of proper hand attire?
A disapproving puff of glittery smoke drifted past her ear.
“What?” she asked innocently, turning to find Spark perched on a nearby garden statue, his golden eyes narrowed with suspicion.
