Page 23 of A Storm in Every Heart (Enchanted Legacies #2)
“ I just wanted you to know that I was right.”
Daemon turns to look at me, an expression of resignation already on his face. “Oh, here we go.”
I glare up at him. “I was!”
It’s the morning of the first full day of Vernallis’s visit to the court of Hydratta, and Daemon and I are standing beneath the arched entrance of the Hydrattan royal race track.
Nearly every moment of the next three days includes some sort of event or activity, all culminating in a masked ball on the last night of the summit.
This morning’s entertainment is horse racing. It’s not exactly my idea of fun.
Daemon jerks his head in the direction the crowd is moving. “We should find a spot to watch before it all fills up.”
“I don’t care about watching the race.”
“Well, I do. Come on, I’ll buy you a lemonade before we sit down.”
I roll my eyes, but trail behind Daemon down the small stone path that leads to the racetrack.
The track is an enormous oval, flanked on all sides by low fences, with spectators leaning against them, eagerly anticipating the race.
Those avoiding the sun are seated on tall wooden bleachers.
The highest seats, shaded by vibrant tents, are reserved for the most important guests.
From here, I can see King Sebastian and Queen Marbella already settled in the most ornate box, positioned right behind the race’s starting point.
At the starting line, a dozen or so Fae men are preparing their horses to begin the race.
Daemon and I make our way to the back of an enormous line of people all waiting to buy food and drinks from the shouting vendors beneath rainbow-striped tent awnings.
It’s clear who’s from Vernallis and who’s from Hydratta, because all the Hydrattan nobles are dressed perfectly for the humid weather in loose silks and thin, sleeveless garments.
Both the men and the women seem to favor pants over skirts, and I even spot a few women in cropped shirts that clearly show they’re not wearing any corsets underneath. I burn with envy.
I’d almost forgotten how warm it can get in Hydratta, and I’m already sweating beneath my light cotton gown. Around me, many of the other Vernalli nobles are worse off than I am, and I can see them peeling off layers the longer we stand beneath the scorching sun.
I turn my head in every direction, distracted and fascinated by all the colorful clothing and glittering jewelry.
“I can’t stand the suspense,” Daemon says, nudging me with his shoulder.
“What?” I ask, tearing my eyes away from the shiny gold beading on a nearby woman’s skirt.
“Tell me what you were right about.”
“Oh, yeah,” I narrow my eyes, annoyed by the reminder of last night. “I met Prince Kastian last night.”
“Did you?” Daemon asks, seeming uninterested.
“Yes, and I was right. He absolutely was the boy from the harbor all those years ago.”
Daemon raises his eyebrows. “You sure?”
“Definitely.”
“Huh. I owe him fifty gold, then. I wonder what he was doing that day without all his guards.”
“Don’t you dare bring it up,” I hiss. “I don’t want him to realize we’ve met before.”
Daemon’s furrowed brows pull even lower. “Why?”
“I just don’t.” I glance around to make sure no one is listening to us. “Please don’t say anything.”
“Fine, I won’t,” he says with exaggerated annoyance.
I let out a breath. “Thank you.”
Daemon scrutinizes me closely. “Don’t tell me you’re still having fantasies of becoming a princess.”
My cheeks heat. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Please,” he scoffs. “I thought you’d gotten over that, but you’re just upset because your little fantasy was shattered. Don’t tell me the prince wasn’t everything you hoped he would be.”
“You’re horrible!” I hiss, my face flaming now. “I hate you.”
He grins. “No, you don’t.”
I set my jaw in a scowl and refuse to look at Daemon again as we stand in the unmoving line.
Unfortunately, I’m only angry because Daemon is right.
After meeting the prince in the harbor, I spent years fixated on childish fantasies of becoming a princess. Eventually, I grew out of it, and I’d almost forgotten the entire thing until I was told we’d be visiting the court of Hydratta. Then perhaps I got my hopes up all over again.
Maybe I was a bit put out to realize that Prince Kastian was already engaged.
And then, it’s possible that I was startled when I walked out of the dining hall and found him, not only right in front of me, but yelling at me.
And alright , perhaps I reacted badly to both those things and was a tiny bit rude to him. Very rude, actually. I’m probably lucky I wasn’t thrown out of the castle.
But all of that is behind me now, and I am completely and utterly fine. I’m unlikely to find myself alone with Prince Kastian again, and soon we’ll return to Vernallis, and I can forget all about him.
We’re just a few steps away from reaching the front of the line when a sudden roar erupts near the bleachers. Curiosity gets the better of me, and I stretch my neck to get a glimpse of the chaos. Instantly, a wave of regret washes over me.
Prince Kastian has just arrived with a group of guards, and he’s waving politely to the crowd of nobles as he walks toward the stairs to the royal observation box.
Suddenly, as if drawn by an invisible thread, he pauses mid-step, his gaze sweeping the crowd before settling firmly on me.
Our eyes meet, and his expression flickers with recognition.
“Oh no,” I yelp, ducking behind Daemon. “Hide me!”
Daemon leans out of my way. “What the hell are you doing? Stop being a freak.”
“Shut up!” I hiss, bending my knees and trying to make myself as small as possible. “Don’t draw more attention to us.”
Daemon laughs. “I’m not the one drawing attention. What is wrong with you?”
Before I can answer, a stone drops into my stomach. Around Daemon’s legs, I can see the crowd parting and the shadows of feet coming toward us. Oh my gods, this is not happening.
“Found it,” I exclaim, pretending to reach for something on the ground then shoving my hand into my pocket as I stand straight again. “I dropped my hairpin.”
Daemon rolls his eyes at me, but mercifully doesn’t ask about it as he turns to focus on the approaching prince.
Prince Kastian stops in front of us. He’s dressed far more casually than last night, in blue silk trousers and a loose-fitting white shirt.
I raise my eyebrows when I see the edge of a black swirling tattoo on his forearm peeking out from beneath his sleeve.
I’ve only ever seen sailors with ink on their skin.
I never imagined that a prince might have tattoos.
“Good morning,” Prince Kastian says after a slightly too-long pause.
“Morning,” Daemon says brightly, as if he talks to royalty every day. He should probably bow to the prince, but of course he doesn’t. Instead, he sticks out his hand for Kastian to shake. “Daemon Ashwater, twelfth Baron of Ashwater.”
Prince Kastian looks a bit taken aback, but grips Daemon’s hand anyway to shake. “Pleasure to meet you.” He doesn’t introduce himself, but instead glances over Daemon’s shoulder toward me. “Nice to see you again, Lady Odessa.”
Daemon looks over his shoulder and smirks at me before turning back to Kastian and feigning ignorance. “Oh, have you already met my sister?”
“Yes,” Prince Kastian says at the same time as I say, “No, not really.”
“I think I offended your sister last night,” Prince Kastian says to Daemon. “I just wanted to apologize again.”
Daemon steps out of the way, and both he and Kastian look at me expectantly.
I know what I’m supposed to do—I should curtsey and insist that whatever awkwardness took place in the hall last night was entirely my fault.
That’s the polite way to handle a situation like this, but I can’t bring myself to do it.
I find myself staring blankly at Prince Kastian, unable to speak even as a voice in the back of my head screams at me to say or do something. Anything.
“Right…” Daemon says, looking bemused. He turns back to Prince Kastian. “Well, Dessa and I were just going to get drinks and sit down. Care to join us?”
I shoot Daemon a deadly glare, which no one seems to notice.
Again, Prince Kastian looks a little startled. Probably he’s too important to sit with lesser nobles. Probably he has to go sit with his fiancée and the other royals. Probably?—
“Alright,” Prince Kastian says.
I jerk my head up, suddenly finding my voice again. “No, you can’t!”
“Why not?” the prince asks.
“Yeah, Dessa, why not?” Daemon asks, smirking.
My cheeks heat. “Don’t you have to sit with your family?”
He shakes his head. “I could, but I don’t have to. If you asked my father, it would probably be better for me to be seen mingling in the crowd.”
I want to ask why he doesn’t want to sit with his fiancée, but I know Daemon will never let me hear the end of it if I do. “Oh, never mind. Sit wherever you want, Your Majesty .”
Prince Kastian smirks, the slightly arrogant look reappearing on his face. “Thank you for your permission. I’d hate to offend you again.”
I turn stiffly back toward the line for lemonade, knowing that anything I say will only make an uncomfortable situation worse.
The line for the lemonade suddenly and miraculously opens up for us, and we collect drinks before the three of us find a spot in the stands, partially shaded by the royal boxes above us, and sit down to watch the race.
I expect that the prince’s guards will follow us, but they all seem to try to make themselves scarce.
Perhaps that’s how he was able to escape them so easily eight years ago.
Soon, all the seats fill in around us as nobles go out of their way to try to eavesdrop on our conversation with the prince. I can see a lot of them glaring at us, probably wondering why Daemon and I were singled out. I wish I knew.
To my absolute horror, Daemon and Prince Kastian get along immediately.