Page 67 of Songs and Spun Gold
Katy snuggled into the blissful softness surrounding her and smiled. She’d never had a dream that felt so much like floating on a cloud; she wasn’t sure she had ever felt so cozy and comfortable.
She gradually became aware of murmurs outside and the distant clash of metal. Her forehead wrinkled, but her eyes stayed closed. Those sounds didn’t fit. She should hear the rushing of the rapids behind her home, shouldn’t she?
No—that was right. King Steffan had sent guards to drag her to his castle. She must have fallen asleep after she finished spinning.
She jolted upright, her eyes flying open, as memories of her third night rushed back in. She’d finished spinning. She’d met the prince…and he was Gunther.
The joy and despair collided within her once again, bending her forward. She covered her face as her mouth twisted, fighting to hold in the wail that wanted to escape.
The backs of her hands brushed against something incredibly soft, and she froze. Wherewasshe? There had been nothing this soft in her room. Even Otto’s cloak, though finer than anything she owned, had been coarser than the velvety blanket under her fingers as she explored the space around her.
Lifting her eyes, she looked around the darkened room. It wasn’t dark like her room; where that had been pitch blackexcept for a thin line of light at the bottom of the door, here a soft glow emanated around the edges of a large rectangle set against the wall. From what she could see of the outline, it looked like...drapes?
She crawled to the edge of the bed – larger than any she’d ever been on – and swung her legs over the edge, setting her stockinged feet on the soft floor. She didn’t remember removing her boots, but then, she didn’t remember entering this room. When she stretched her thoughts back, the last thing she remembered was sitting on a stiff sofa and losing herself in the comfort of Gunther’s—no, Prince Axel’s—arms.
Heat spread across her cheeks at the memory. What had she been thinking, throwing herself at him that way? What must he think of her?
What would Fritz think when he heard?
Not that Fritz’s thoughts mattered unless the prince could talk his father out of the betrothal.
Slowly pushing to her feet, she padded over to the light. She wondered if he had spoken with his father yet and what the outcome had been. From what she knew of the king, she doubted he had been successful.
As she pulled back the drapes, she absently noted that the texture was rougher than the blanket. She squinted in the daylight behind them. As her eyes adjusted, she could make out a grassy courtyard with several dozen men, some paired off in sword fights and others shaking their fists in encouragement as they cheered for their friends. Farther from the walls, extensive gardens stretched out toward a large copse of trees. She knew that somewhere behind it was the surrounding wall, but she couldn’t see it.
She abandoned the drapes and turned to examine the interior of the room. The floor was stone, but the center of the room was covered by a thick, dark blue rug. The bed off ofwhich she had climbed had a delicate gauzy canopy of matching blue above it, and the crumpled bedclothes were similarly colored. A pale wardrobe and matching dressing table under a tall, wide mirror sat against the far wall. Delicate scrollwork had been carved along the edges of both pieces of furniture. On the wall opposite the bed, a fireplace contained a small blaze.
Katy blinked at the entire scene for a few moments. This one room had to be as large as the entire living space above the mill at home. Or close to it, anyway.
She brushed at her skirts nervously, pleased to discover that she was still in her rough woolen dress. She didn’t like the thought that someone might have changed her while she slept. After all, the only two people with her when she fell asleep had been her soon-to-be-betrothed and her cousin. Hermalecousin.
Seeing a door near the bed, she wandered over to it. On the other side was a well-furnished sitting room. It, too, was covered in blue, from the rug on the floor to the armchairs and sofas. What could one person need with so many pieces of furniture?
On the far wall was another fireplace with merrily burning logs. But more than the familiar picture it represented, she was relieved by the sight of the familiar figure crouched in front of it.
“Good morning, Kat,” he greeted without turning to face her. “Welcome back to the land of the living.”
“Morning?” she echoed. “I slept that long?”
Rising to his feet, he flashed her a grin. “No, it’s only midafternoon. But you’ve been sleeping the sleep of the dead.”
Katy strolled farther into the room. “I hope I’ll be able to sleep tonight,” she sighed. “My sleeping schedule is so messed up now.”
“You could join me in the training yards,” her cousin joked. “I bet I could wear you out.”
“Maybe someday I’ll take you up on that offer,” she chuckled. “But I think I’ll pass today.” She trailed a hand across the back of a sofa, admiring the smoothness of the polished wood. “So where am I, and how did I get here?”
“Not on your own two feet,” Otto snorted. He crossed his arms. “As I said, you were dead to the world. As for where you are, you’re in the suite the prince arranged for you.”
She looked around, once more taking in the understated wealth of her surroundings. “A room fit for a princess,” she murmured. Was it bribery? Or simply his good nature? “He shouldn’t have bothered; I can’t marry him.”
“Why not?” Katy could hear the frown in his voice. “You’re not spoken for; you didn’t let Fritz make an official offer. I was there, if you recall.”
“It’s not that,” she replied, shaking her head in frustration. “I didn’t let Fritz speak because I fully expected to be here right now. But things have changed, Otto. Ican’tmarry the prince!”
“What changed, Kat? Why would knowing that he is your actor make you determined tonotmarry him?”
She couldn’t tell him the truth. How could she admit to anyone what she had given up to save her family? Scrambling for a response, she said, “He lied to me. I trusted him, and heliedto me.”
