Page 35 of Storms of Allegiance

“Someone has to think of the people the crown has forgotten,” Nik muttered, and my eyes snapped back to his.

What was lurking behind that comment? Gathering my courage, I blurted out the question Hayes had refused to answer in Caltor.

“Obviously you don’t travel alone because you hate all people, but I have no idea of the real reason. I can’t make any sense of why a royal prince is roaming the kingdom alone.”

Nik’s eyes tightened, and I stood in silence, wondering if I’d gone too far.

“I’ve had my share of traveling with others,” he said finally. “And I prefer it this way. There’s no one to let you down if you’re alone.”

My heart sank at his words, and it took all my willpower not to reach my hand up to cup his cheek. He looked so strong, but his words told me how much pain was hiding behind his appearance.

Stepping forward, I took one of his hands in mine. “I know people can let you down.” I only had to think of my own recent behavior to remember that. “But is it really better to always be alone?”

Nik hesitated, looking down at our clasped hands with an expression I couldn’t read. “I used to think so,” he said quietly.

“But not anymore?” I struggled to keep my voice even.

He looked up at me. “I found an ally. And then I went off without her, and it was different from how it was before. I used to be satisfied with protecting people from the shadows—I preferred it even. But this time…” His hand shifted, twisting so that now he was the one holding onto me. “I missed having her beside me.”

“Your ally…” I murmured. The word felt cutting—someone useful for his mission and nothing more—and I needed that reminder given the way my heart leaped at his other words.

I looked away, afraid of what he would see in my eyes. If I was honest, I had felt an attraction to Nik almost from the beginning, but this new sympathetic, almost vulnerable side of him was appealing in a whole different way—dangerously appealing, considering he was a prince who viewed me only as an ally.

“Sometimes allies don’t let you down,” he murmured. “Sometimes they make you stronger.”

“I want to be that kind of person.” I tried not to relive my recent lesson in humility. “But you’ve known from the beginning how weak I am.”

“I don’t think you’re weak, Delphine.” His words pulled my gaze back to his. “When I said you were strong yesterday, I didn’t just mean your seed. Everyone has weaknesses, but that doesn’t have to mean you’re weak. Sometimes weaknesses can turn into strengths. Like with your squeamishness causing you to create the wall. You achieved something amazing, and you only did it because of your weakness.”

“So what about you?” I asked, hoping to distract him from the rising heat in my cheeks. “Have you accepted your own weakness?”

His eyes stayed steady on mine, his expression piercing. “Didn’t I already say that? I long ago realized that what I thought was my weakness was the most valuable thing to me.”

The warmth in my cheeks heated to burning, and no words came. He couldn’t possibly be talking about me, could he?

“Your father was fighting the tide trying to suppress you, Delphine,” he murmured. “He was never going to succeed. After all, you even managed to win me over.”

He flashed me a smile that hit my heart like a thunderbolt. I drew in a gasping breath of air, and his eyes dropped to my lips.

A feeling of panic engulfed me, and I stumbled into speech.

“You now know what my father did to me, but what about yours? How did he fail to protect you?”

He managed to keep his face still, but his whole body stiffened, his muscles snapping tight, as if ready for combat.

“What are you talking about?” he asked stiffly.

I gulped. I hadn’t meant to say anything, but I was committed now.

“Last night you saw straight through the nonsense I was spouting to the heart of my real issue. I guess it seemed like you understood me so quickly because you knew how it felt. And since you chose to leave your title and family in favor of roaming the countryside alone, I thought…If I’m wrong, I’m sorr—”

“My parents might be king and queen,” he said abruptly, “and they might have power most other families don’t, but in some things their hands are tied. They never lied to me. I don’t claim my situation is the same as yours.”

“But they still hurt you.” I examined his face, trying to read the emotions hidden in his eyes.

He shrugged and looked away. “Everyone gets hurt sometimes.”

His words were clearly a dismissal of the topic, and it stung after his earlier moment of vulnerability. I looked down, wondering if I should pull my hand free. I shouldn’t have pushed so hard.

---