Page 82 of Songs and Spun Gold
A group of young ladies turned at their entrance. “And soit begins,” Tobias muttered, eyeing their bright eyes. He flagged down a nearby server and plucked a glass from the older gentleman’s tray. “Time to begin fortifying myself.”
Axel slapped him on the back, almost spilling his drink. “Whatever it takes, my friend. You shall have the pleasure of bearing the full brunt of their admiration tonight. I have brought my protection in the form of fair Katrin. Does she not grace my arm better than any young lady has done before?”
“Has there been one before?” Michael asked, his eyebrows raising.
“But of course,” Axel replied without missing a beat. “A prince cannot avoid escorting ladies both young and old with great regularity. Is it not so in Daraigh?”
Tobias took a sip of his drink. “I believe he referred to a more permanent lady. Must not have heard about Heidi.”
“Heidi?”
“A young woman I met a few months ago. There is little to tell,” Axel said dismissively.
Tobias snorted. “Little to tell? You’ve been mooning over her ever since.”
The Daric prince widened his eyes. “Mooning? It fits your dramatic nature, but I never expected you to moon over one of these fine ladies.” He waved a hand at the flock hovering just out of range.
“Oh, it wasn’t one of them,” Katy cut in with a wicked grin. “She was a village girl, like me.” Axel’s right hand twitched on top of hers, but he didn’t otherwise react to her addition.
“Did you find her?” Michael asked, turning to his friend with a curious expression.
Frowning, Axel replied, “Find who?”
“The girl from the village. You know, when we went to visit...” He trailed off, looking down for a moment before continuing. “There was a girl in the nearby village that you couldnever leave without seeing. What was her name...? Helena used to tease you about her.”
To Katy’s surprise, a light blush dusted Axel’s cheeks. He hadn’t been embarrassed by the sight of her in her underthings, but this unsettled him? A pang flashed through her, but she quickly shoved it away. She could work with this. “Which village was it?”
Michael’s brow furrowed. “I can’t remember. Axel?”
“You know I don’t remember, Michael. If I did, I would have gone back.” His voice was unusually quiet, and his eyes dipped to the ground as his hand tightened over hers.
He had been serious that night in the theater. There really had been a girl who made the village wonderful for him.
Hadn’t he said he’d left after his sister died? And Princess Helena—no. No, many facts of his identity were lost to her, but everyone in Flussendorf agreed that Katy’s friend was a nobleman. A prince was not a nobleman.
But still— She held back a wince at the pain in her temple. No, it was—it was only a coincidence.
“Then who is Heidi?” Michael pressed.
Axel’s mouth twitched into his polite smile, but the look he gave his friend was serious. “I’ll tell you later, Mike.”
Michael’s jaw muscles stood out. “Don’t call me that.”
The discussion ceased as they were overwhelmed by the crowd of female well-wishers. At some point, Axel’s cousin wandered by. Katy judged Marielle to be in her late teens. It would be impolite to ask her exact age, so naturally, she did. After all, Axel’s parents were nearby.
The other girl simply pressed a finger to one side of her button nose and stretched her slightly-too-wide mouth into a smile, her dark eyes dancing. Queen Carina apologized profusely and glared at Katy. Surprisingly, the king smiled instead, as if amused by the attempts of his son’s betrothed to offend hisniece.
At least the queen had reacted as intended. But it would be better if King Steffan had, too.
It was almost time to sit down for dinner when a pretty brunette leading a cluster of young noblewomen sashayed over. Each wore a gown with a neckline lower than Katy would be comfortable in and held a matching fan in her left hand.
“Just when I thought we’d escaped them,” Tobias muttered, taking a sip of his drink.
Axel didn’t reply, but Katy noticed that his smile flattened a little and the crinkles around his eyes disappeared. Nevertheless, he nodded graciously as the leader stopped in front of him, one hip jutted to the side as she fluttered her fan in time with her eyelashes. “Good evening, Lady Ilse.”
“Happy birthday, Prince Axel,” she said, echoed by her flock. “It is such a delight to celebrate with you.”
“Thank you,” he replied simply. His expression was serene and patently fake, but Lady Ilse seemed pleased.
