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Then again, our definitions of scandalous were leagues apart.
I flattened my palm against my chest. “I won’t tell a soul.”
The minstrel dissolved into a smile, whereas the dubious princess scoffed. “I’d like a word.”
Of course, she did. More than one word, probably.
At Eliot’s hesitation, she spoke in a gentle tone. “We won’t be long. I merely wish to know what happened at the Peace Talks.”
’Twas a robust excuse, considering information about the Talks was confidential between the Royals and anyone else who took part. Notwithstanding, it was still a fabrication. Logically, I couldn’t tell Briar anything her mother wouldn’t be able to, but Eliot’s faith in the princess presumably extended beyond such logic. Also, her request justified why she’d want to be alone with me, out of earshot.
Reassured, Eliot smothered me and my conscience with an infatuated look before retreating. The space he left behind filled with a piper’s melody, which drifted from the main lawn. At which point, the Royal and I regarded one another.
Briar studied me openly. Black swirls accented the outer corners of my eyes. Obsidian and dark green fleur-de-lis embellished the collar and cuffs of my black ankle-length coat. That I wondered what she thought of my choices created a sour taste in my mouth.
Her ivory-and-amber dress shimmered, but her face didn’t. She looked violated, as though I’d deflowered her tidy world views and now sought to corrupt the rest of her.
I debated how hard I’d have to smash into that barricade, to break through it completely. Indeed, I had a craving to find out. Whereas everyone else diluted my impulses once I’d finished targeting them, she kept stirring those impulses back to life.
“Poet,” she said.
I spread my arms. “At your service.”
“You are despicable.”
“Nonsense. You didn’t give me time to be despicable.”
“I warned you to leave him be.”
“You shouldn’t tell a jester what to do.”
“I am a princess,” she declared. “I can make you do whatever I command.”
“From any other mouth, that would sound like a dominant-submissive kink.”
“From any other mouth, it probably would be.”
“If you thought I was going to shatter Eliot in front of you, then you’re not as perceptive as you look. This drama is between him and me. And here’s another controversial thought. He’s not an infant in need of a nipple, and you’re not his nursemaid. What the devil gives you the right?”
The princess flushed and swerved her gaze toward the orchids. “It was an accident,” she defended. “I didn’t trail you here. I wanted some time to myself, and I didn’t know what you were about, what you would do to him, or whether I would have to tackle you. I just needed to be sure.” She faced me again, her features pinching. “You stalked that woman here, did whatever it was you did to her, and then dismissed her like a trollop.”
“I dismiss bigots,” I said. “I don’t dismiss lovers.”
The woman had been a tenant of the lower town who’d confessed to a bet with her friends—to corner the Court Jester and reap a moment of pleasure. Typically, I was the one who did the tempting, not the other way around. But I did enjoy bets and had quite the respect for games. And why deprive the woman of coin?
My tongue had made an exception. I’d backed the female into the hedges and whispered decadence into her ear, the graphic friction of my words alone making her come.
Anyway, the woman would have been fined for trespassing, if not apprehended. Whilst my tongue was equipped to handle the monarchy and influence the masses, I wasn’t about to take a chance. Propositioning the Court Jester was common, but violating the Crown’s law to succeed was borderline mutinous. The incident would have shamed her.
“I gave her what she wanted,” I told the princess. “Then she left through an inconspicuous path so the sentinels wouldn’t notice her. You might guess why.”
The answer stumped Briar. “Oh. I see.”
“Clearly, you don’t see.”
“Whatever. For all I know, this is where you lure your consorts. This is your official lair of debauchery.”
My mouth coiled. “Take care, or you’ll start giving me ideas. You don’t want to give a jester ideas.”
