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“I wouldn’t want to keep you from more important things,” I said, losing some of my bravado in asking.
Noah shrugged. “Nonsense. I’ve heard fresh air is good for the body. And…well I can do what I please sometimes. One of the perks.” He winked.
I snorted, shaking my head. “Let me grab a coat.”
The prince nodded and stepped out of my room. The bluebird chirped a few times at the window. “I’ll be back soon, little friend.”
I met Noah in the hallway and together we made our way down the corridors until we came to a set of double doors I’d yet to exit from.
The guards bowed their heads at Noah from either side of the doors and he raised a hand, immediately relaxing them to the stance they’d had upon our approach. He opened one of the doors and we slipped out.
I stared in awe, unable to follow Noah down the marble staircase before me.
The double doors led to an incredibly breathtaking garden. It was designed to be circular, and the layout caught my eye, as if I’d seen it before. Everything was growing in patterns.
There were flowers, trees, fruit, everything I could imagine, all beckoning me forward like a regular Garden of Eden.
“It’s surely a sight to behold, but you don’t have the best view from that far away, Cora.” Prince Noah’s voice broke the haze that had fallen over me and I giggled, embarrassingly enough, as I took the marble staircase two at a time to reach the bottom and stand at the archway opening to the gardens.
“Is the design meaningful?” I turned around and Noah tilted his head. “The layout. I feel like I’ve seen the shape of it all before.”
He nodded vigorously, as if realizing what I’d meant. “It’s the mark of the Unseelie. Circular in design, never-ending. It represents the intricacies of our people, while showing we all remain connected and ever flowing.”
“That’s beautiful,” I murmured.
“Come on,” Noah said, brushing past me and into the garden.
His stride was long and I hurried to keep up with him. We walked in silence, comfortable silence actually. It was nice and for the first time in my life, I was content in a moment without worrying. Perhaps it was silly of me given my position. But there it was nonetheless.
I stopped at a section of pale orange roses. I’d never seen such a beautiful color of anything. “Happy birthday to me,” I whispered and leaned in, inhaling deeply as the fragrant aroma enveloped me.
“What?” Noah asked, louder than he normally spoke.
I turned around and his eyes were wide and expectant. I frowned. “Huh?”
He grasped me by the shoulders as a smile pulled at his lips. “Did you say birthday?”
The heat rose in my cheeks and I put up a hand absentmindedly, touching them as if I could cool them down. “Yeah, it is. It’s no big deal…” I quickly tried to recover, not wanting to have to go inside or risk cutting our time short if he thought I’d want to be doing something else.
“No big deal? Cora it’s your birthday!” He jumped back and clasped his hands together.
I couldn’t help but stare at how giddy he had become. The crown prince. Over his feeder’s birthday.
“Um…” I couldn’t make out what to say.
He paced back and forth. “Well now, we must do something. Sneak into town?” He raised his eyebrows, wiggling them in excitement.
I rubbed my forehead, still not comprehending his behavior. Watching the humor replace the stress that faded at his amusement, wiped away my own confusion. This was the perfect way to let loose and get to know the man behind the prince.
Noah reddened and rubbed the back of his neck. His nervous laughter was more endearing than it should have been. “Sorry, I get carried away for special occasions. Especially when I can give someone else the attention that always seems to be focused on me.”
I touched his arm, surprising even myself at the ease in which comforting him came. “No, that sounds like the best birthday ever. Truly.”
He bowed and held out his arm toward me. “Milady Coraline, shall we find some mischief to get into for this rare celebration?”
My mind spun. No one wanted to celebrate me before. Should I let him? Would I be in trouble? Was it right?
I didn’t care.
