AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“She doesn’t seem to think that.”
It was too early for dinner and too late for lunch, but Felix figured it was about time they both ate. Rainier probably needed a break from the past, and he needed food in him.
“I’m not going anywhere.” Felix crawled up the bed to hug him. “You’re not any of that stuff she said. I’m going to make some food, so what do you like to eat? I have no idea what you like best.”
“Vegetables,” Rainier muttered as he squeezed Felix. “It’s too early to eat dinner.”
“I know, but you need more little meals in you.” Felix drew back and frowned at his miserable expression. “You know you need to gain weight, right? If I was skeletal, you’d expect me to eat.”
“Yes, but-”
“No buts. You always made sure I had enough to eat.”
Felix had a feeling this wasn’t something that could be fixed in a day. Too much had built up to this, and he’d still have to deal with Mum at some point. While Felix cooked and managed to not burn anything, he tried to think of how Rainier could cope with the future. There was some shit that dinner couldn’t fix.
“I was thinking of something,” he said once he got Rainier to sit at the table in front of the fire. He’d made fried vegetables, mashed potatoes, and warmed slices of smoked ham. “You could leave home and be a Duke.”
“I’m the Crown Prince. That’s for other children in line if they don’t want to stay at home.”
“Your Mum will likely be in good health for quite a while,” said Felix. “She could abdicate in five years if she felt like it, or she could do it in twenty. She could hold onto the crown until she’s old and passes. Either way, you need something for yourself in the meantime.”
Being a Duke meant Rainier would have an area of Glasswood, and the lords there would answer to him first. Rainier would pay taxes to his Mum based on what he made, and he’d take care of the general area. It would take work off of Mum’s plate in general, and it was usually something for lesser Princes who wanted something.
Occasionally, one would take a much smaller area and act as an Earl with rents and taxes paid to him, but not always. It was a good job for the children of a ruler who likely wouldn’t get the throne but wanted to do something useful and similar to ruling.
“I don’t really see the point,” Rainier said after a moment.
“You could live elsewhere, and you’d have something useful to do. Every day that you wake up, you wouldn’t have to see or hear things from her. Both of you could still communicate, and it would force her to lay off of you for a bit. With you living together, she can simply come right up to you and say anything. I’m not saying to cut her off completely, but I think you need distance for a time. Eat before it gets cold.”
Rainier picked up his fork and fidgeted with it. “She’d have to agree to it. A Prince or Princess can’t simply pick a spot and declare themselves as the Duke or Duchess.”
“I know, but if you can get her to agree, maybe with some distance, things could change, and it would be better for you. It’s something to think about, but you don’t have to figure it out right now.”
While he ate, he tried not to stare at Rainier’s plate. The Prince spent more time cutting his food than actually eating, and he chewed every bite far more than was needed. He avoided looking at Felix, and the strain on his face was evident.
That was probably why he’d often looked stressed after returning from meals.
“Do you hate food?” asked Felix.
Rainier shook his head. “I don’t hate food. I like it too much even though I try not to. I wish I could hate it and that everything tasted disgusting, but it doesn’t, so…” He put down his fork. “It was good, and thanks for making it, but I want to lay down.”
“Could you eat a bit more?” asked Felix. “That’s not even half.”
“I can’t.”
Felix’s appetite was gone, but he kept eating once Rainier was in the bedroom. How was he supposed to make sure the Prince ate multiple small meals a day? He hadn’t even put a lot on the plate since he was sure Rainier wouldn’t want big slabs of ham and piles of vegetables.”
He’d left the window by the door open for fresh air, and with the curtain pulled back, he noticed a carriage coming up the road. It wasn’t one for commoners either. Plenty of rich people had horseless ones that worked with magic, but some preferred horses. The two pulling the carriage were fine, white mounts that probably cost a lot.
His heart thumped as he scrambled to get up and head outside. This was the last thing Rainier needed. He hadn’t even been out of the Castle for a full day yet.
The driver guided the carriage to a stop alongside the gate surrounding the front yard, and as Felix approached, two guards exited. One held open the door for Queen Eliza to step out. Her black hair was twisted up, and her gold eyes narrowed while she looked down her nose as if Felix was dog shit.
“My son needs to come out so we can go home. Felix, you can go inside and tell him, but we won’t require your presence afterward.”
He gripped the top of the wooden gate with one hand. “I don’t think he wants your presence.”
Two pink spots appeared on her cheeks. “I know what my son’s come here to do with you.”
