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His green eyes had lost all their beauty and were raging with anger and hate.
“Your Highness,” he said in a low tone. “I need to request a private word with you. Now.”
I tried to pull loose from his grip without causing a scene. I was about to end the war in the North and gain my people’s trust and love back. Starting an open confrontation with one of the most powerful men on this earth would not play in my favor in front of my people.
As hard as it was, I smiled. “I’m afraid that will have to wait,” was all I said, and I pulled gently on my hand again, but King Louis tightened his grip, painfully squeezing my fingers. My eyes widened at him. How dare he treat me like this in the wide open. Had I underestimated his power and what he was willing to do to get what he wanted?
“I said excuse me” was all I was able to get out before Rune had Louis’s wrist, squeezing it so hard the king was forced to let go of me. Rune adjusted his grip, turning the whole thing into an awkward handshake, violently moving King Louis’s arm up and down. Rune’s smile carried a practiced benevolence.
“Thank you for your kind wishes,” he said loud enough for others to hear. “My wife longs for a short stroll but will be back shortly for the feast she has prepared.” Then he leaned in closer to Louis and whispered: “If you ever touch her again, I’ll pierce my sword through those sparkly green eyes of yours.”
King Louis stepped back. Shocked. Outraged. I was so stunned by the whole scene, I just stood there, watching it as if I wasn’t even part of it.
“Come, let’s go for a stroll,” Rune said and took me by the hand King Louis had just dropped.
Speechless, I followed him past the crowd chanting their best wishes and blessings. We made it out into the hallway and around the first corner when I stopped and pulled out of Rune’s grasp. He let me go easily.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“To find your little lover boy.”
My head jerked back. “Alrick?”
Now it was Rune’s turn to look confused. “Do you have more than one?”
“Of course not,” I clarified quickly.
“Then what is it?”
You are not supposed to come with me! Besides, how do you know everything all the time?
“I...”
The thought of Rune knowing that I had already gifted myself to Alrick was so embarrassing, my cheeks turned as red as blood.
“I need to be alone for a bit,” I said, avoiding his gaze.
“That I can’t allow,” he countered, straightening his spine into his full height.
“Allow? I think we have to clarify something here. You’re not to be the real king,” I reminded him. “I can do as I please, and right now it pleases me to be alone.”
Rune ran his hand through his thick black hair, then shook his head.
“Sorry, but no.”
“What?”
“I don’t trust your guards, so it’s on me now to keep you safe. If you want to succeed in ending this war, and not have your maids find you beheaded in your bed when they come to brush your hair, then I shall stay by your side. That was the one condition I had added to the contract.”
Wimfred! How could he have kept this a secret from me when I signed?
“But if that’s too much for you, we can go back and recant the announcement. We are not married yet.”
Rune started walking in the direction of the celebrating crowd.
“No, wait!” I hollered after him. He turned and looked at me, triumph written in the grin on his face.
“Fine, but we will find a middle ground for this new guard duty of yours. I won’t have you follow me everywhere.”
