Page 157 of Kneel Before Me

“Then find me someone who does.”

The footman bowed. “Yes, Your Highness.”

He scampered away. In his absence, Maximus stared out the window at the stars. The Alpha Serpentis was bright tonight, shining now that the sky had cleared of rain. Maximus had never felt particularly connected to the stars—the sky did not incite fascination in him the way it did in other people. He never watched the sunset; he did not care for a sunrise. But tonight it felt as if the constellation were pointing him in the direction of Daphne—as if the cosmos were spurring him on. Perhaps he was becoming sentimental as he got older. Or perhaps fate was leading him toward his future. Either way, when a different footman returned and the carriage jolted into motion, he found himself oddly calm.

The journey was not a long one; before he knew it, they had reached a garden gate with a small cottage beyond it. Maximus approached slowly, spotting an older woman in the kitchen. Long, loose curls. The same freckled skin. This must be Daphne’s mother.

Maximus knocked on the front door.

The woman opened it, her eyes going wide the moment she saw him. “Your…Highness?”

“Good evening,” he said smoothly. “I apologize for disturbing you. I was wondering if Daphne was home.”

“She is at Ella’s house,” her mother said, still wide-eyed. “They were at the square together.”

“Ah. I see.”

Maximus hadn’t considered that. Of course Daphne would check on her friend. Mild annoyance filled him as he realized she hadn’t actually gone home like he’d told her to.

“You are welcome to wait for her,” Daphne’s mother said when the silence dragged on. “If you wish.”

“Thank you,” Maximus said. “I will do just that.”

An awkward pause followed, in which they stared at each other. Then Daphne’s mother stepped back, beckoning him into their home.

“Can I get you anything while you wait?” she said. “Something to eat, or perhaps to drink? We have plenty of wine. I…believe you sent it.”

Maximus smiled. “No, thank you.” He shook his head. “I just need to speak with her.”

“Very well. You can wait in her room.” She pointed at a door off the kitchen. “It’s just through there.”

With a polite nod, Maximus left her.

Daphne’s room was small—smaller than Maximus’s bathroom at the castle. He stood in the middle, suddenly unsure what to do. There was no chair, and it seemed wrong to sit on her bed. A glass spray bottle was perched on her dresser. Without thinking, Maximus crossed to it, picking it up and spraying it into the air. It hardly smelled like anything—just the barest whiff of the sea. But he recognized it instantly as the same scent he’d caught in Daphne’s hair when they were on horseback. Maximus closed his eyes, breathing it in. He sprayed it one more time for good measure. Then he set it down, his gaze falling to a stack of paper tucked behind the bottle.

Letters.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Maximus

Maximus knew he shouldn’t read them.

This was Daphne’s private space; he had no right to invade it. But some animal instinct within him compelled him to act, and sharp anticipation pierced him as he picked up the slim stack of paper. They reminded him of the letters he kept in his own bedroom—the ones between him and Lilibet.

Before he could stop himself, Maximus began to read.

Daphne,

I hope the dress was to your liking. I thought the color would be beautiful on you. Then again, any color would be beautiful on you.

—K

Daphne,

I cannot stop thinking about what we did last night.

—K