“Yes ma’am,” I said, sitting straight in my chair as a child would do when trying to appease their parents. She rolled her eyes, giving a chuckle before walking away.
“You aren’t dining with us?” Eva asked, turning around in her chair.
Briar hesitated, cheeks flushing pink. “I don’t want to intrude–”
“Nonsense,” Eva responded, beckoning the woman forward. “You are family.”
As Briar made her plate and sat next to Eva, the princess grabbed her arm. “Thank you, Briar. For everything.” She rested her head on the woman’s shoulder for a moment before sitting upright.
We all dug into the meal as if we’d been starved, offering our compliments to Briar and to the cook. Though she attempted to remain modest, I noticed the way she preened under our compliments.
King Alric watched as our group ate, small talk passing back and forth lightly. There had not been much to say that had not already been said, and I had no desire to bring the topic of war back up. There would be much more of it before we were done.
He took a match from the table and pulled a pipe out of his pocket. The thick smell of tobacco wafted through the room, but there was a sweeter quality to it. He struck the match, bringing the flame forward and inhaling deeply. The smoke filtered through the room, but no one paid him any mind until he spoke. “I think we should hold a wedding,” he said, looking toward his daughter. He leaned back in his chair, a pensive look crossing his face. The clattering of silverware and chitchat stopped as everyone turned to look at him.
“A wedding, Father?” Eva said, her brows furrowing.
He nodded. “Yes. A wedding for you and Matthew.” He gestured between them. “The rulers are already here. We could throw something together in no time.” He looked to Briar and while she agreed, she did not look thrilled with the idea. Her eyes glanced toward Eva, who still seemed shocked.
She lowered her fork and placed a napkin over her plate. “We are mated, father. There is no point in performing a wedding ceremony. We only need to make an announcement to the court for it to be official.”
King Alric waved his hand. “Nonsense. There is always a reason to celebrate with a party. We could invite the whole kingdom and it would lift everyone’s spirits—“
“Your Majesty,” Matthew interrupted, taking Eva’s hand in his. “While I would love nothing more than to profess my love for your daughter in front of the whole world, I am not sure if that is what she wants.” His eyes softened as they looked at each other. “But I would have her in a heartbeat, if she wished to hold such a ceremony.”
“Eva?” Her father asked, wasting no time to secure his daughter’s answer.
Where was this coming from? And why now?
She took a deep breath, a small tear leaking from the corner of her eye. “Why don’t we think about it? And we can make a decision at a later date?”
“Do you not want to get married?” Alric asked, confused by their hesitation. “I would think you would jump at the opportunity to marry the man you love.”
Eva flinched, as if her father’s words visibly struck her. “It isn’t that, father. I only think there is a better use of our current resources, given the brink of war. We do not need to waste them if Lachlan does truly plan on cutting off supply lines.”
Alric nodded once and returned to his meal, the abrupt silence sending ripples of tension through the air. Eva hung her head before Matthew swept his finger across her cheek to wipe the tear that had fallen.
Eva cleared her throat, picking up her fork and pointing in my direction. She forced a smile on her face. “Don’t think I haven’t forgotten what happened earlier in the council room, Kalen Drake,” she said sharply. With each word she spoke, she jabbed the fork through the air. “When were you going to tell me about your family? Or that you are, in fact, aprince?”
I shook my head. “I’m no prince. I transitioned away from the royal family, officially washing my hands of their dirty games and politics over a century ago. I even took my mother’s family name to go undetected. My brother is the sole heir to Balurin.”
I winced as soon as the words left my lips. Eva’s fist came down on the table, scaring the piss out of everyone at the table. “You have a brother, too? What else are you hiding?”
Matt chuckled as I scrambled to find the right thing to say. “We aren’t close. By all means, I do not even consider him a brother.” I pointed at Matt. “That’s my brother. The only one I claim, anyway.”
She nestled back into her chair and crossed her arms. “I am just confused as to why you didn’t say anything. If you hadn’t wanted to attend the meeting in order to avoid them, we could have arranged that.”
I shook my head, taking a sip of wine. “No. I will not hide from them. They have stolen enough from me, and I refuse to allow them any more control over my life.”
Matt’s eyes gleamed with pride as he lifted his glass in cheers. “Proud of you, brother.”
It was a momentous moment in my life when I realized that a family I chose could be better than one bequeathed by the gods, but when I looked at those around me, I knew it to be true.
Chapter16
Matthew
After dinner concluded, Eva and I bid the others goodnight as we walked back to our rooms. It was quiet in the palace, a solemn mood overtaking the city after a night of mourning and revelry. We took a long path, stopping at a garden hidden near the center of the palace. It was privately guarded, a courtyard in the royal wing that seemed well-tended to if the state of the greenery was any indication.
