Page 42 of Legacy of Thorns (Kingdoms of Legacy #3)

Finley

N anny hadn’t been awake for long before Archer and Gabrielle arrived back, a squad of guards with them. From the excited babble of the guards, it quickly became apparent that the whole town was agog with Gabrielle’s reappearance.

“It’s insulting, really, that they’d forgotten all about us,” Gabrielle complained to Nanny. “I mean, surely they could see the brambles across the lake!”

“That’s the work of the Legacy, I’m sure,” Daphne said, but Gabrielle only sniffed.

“I’m sure it was the Legacy’s fault,” Archer agreed. “You shouldn’t hold it against them.”

“You’re right, of course,” Gabrielle agreed with a beaming smile. “It’s the only explanation that makes sense.”

Finley frowned at Gabrielle, but Daphne walked away with a laugh, coming to his side and letting him slip an arm around her.

“Don’t hold it against her,” she murmured. “She’ll be embarrassed by her own attitude soon enough.”

Finley relaxed. He was too relieved at having Daphne in his arms again to stay upset at anything—especially something that Daphne laughed off so easily.

Thankfully, the guards were able to remove the sleeping men from the castle entryway—proof that they hadn’t qualified as Sleeping Beauties and would likely wake before too long. But they would wake under lock and key.

Since the enchantment had preserved the state of the castle and even the food inside, Gabrielle and Nanny welcomed Archer, Finley, and Daphne to stay the night. All three accepted with gratitude, exhausted after barely sleeping the night before.

Nisha and Morrow arrived the next day with Lorne and two others in tow. Nisha and Morrow were disappointed to hear they’d missed all the fighting, but the young woman driving the cart seemed more happy to be reunited with her horse than anything else.

Lorne soon introduced her as the mysterious Avery—who Finley still knew nothing about—and the man as her husband, Elliot. Finley thanked them both for their roles in rescuing Daphne and Archie, as well as their loan of Nutmeg, and Avery entered wholeheartedly into their plans for the future.

“King Vesper is your uncle,” she said decisively when Finley expressed uncertainty about Avery’s suggestion that he and Archer go with her and Elliot to the capital.

“I’m not saying you have to live a life at court, but shouldn’t you at least meet him?

” Her voice softened. “You should be the one to tell him about your father’s passing, not me. ”

Since there was no response to that, Finley was forced to agree. It didn’t hurt that Archie was full of enthusiasm for the idea.

Finley’s feelings toward his father remained mixed, but he owed it to him to at least meet his father’s family and inform them of his death himself.

Gabrielle was devastated to hear of their upcoming departure until Avery suggested that she accompany them to court as well. Her devastation was immediately replaced with raptures, and she bounded away to tell Archie the good news.

“I’m not sure he’ll see it as good news,” Daphne said, clearly trying not to laugh. “You won’t have a friend in Archie for making that suggestion, Avery.”

“We can’t just leave her here with only Nanny,” Avery said, clearly unworried by Archie’s future ire.

“I’ve been talking to Nanny, and even before Gabrielle’s enchanted sleep, her father kept her here, away from the world, without any other young people.

She needs a chance to see the kingdom a little and meet others her age.

” She glanced wryly at Gabrielle who was now bouncing up and down in front of Archer, begging him to join her in some activity he clearly didn’t want to do.

“Perhaps meet some other sixteen-year-old boys besides your poor brother?”

Finley, however, felt no such sympathy for Archie. He was well-served getting a taste of his own mischief.

Gabrielle’s pleas grew loud enough to hear, and Finley gathered that she wanted them all to go outside.

“What a lovely idea!” he called across the room. “We would all be delighted to enjoy some sunshine and admire the cherry blossoms for an hour or two.”

“Finley!” Daphne chided in an undertone, but he just grinned at her.

“Admit that it sounds delightful,” he said.

She laughed. “I suppose it does.”

No one else protested, so Finley and Daphne led the way outside, everyone else following except for Nanny who was overseeing the newly hired servants from the town.

The moment they had settled themselves outside on the gently sloping grass that ran down to the lake, Gabrielle approached Archie, a blush on her cheeks.

“I picked these for my rescuer.” Gabrielle brought a bouquet of daisies out from behind her back and presented them to him.

He scrambled backward, trying to get away from the flowers.

“Oh, no…thank you,” he stammered. “I don’t need flowers.”

Gabrielle’s face fell. “Chocolate, then?”

She gestured, and one of the new servants rushed forward with a tray bearing a selection of chocolates. For a second, Archie looked tempted. Then his expression firmed, and he shook his head.

“Really, Gabby,” he said, “you have to stop offering me things. I’ve already told you that I don’t need anything.”

For the first time, Gabrielle looked irritated by something Archie had said.

“Don’t call me Gabby!” she snapped.

Beside Fin, Daphne held her breath, but Gabrielle’s expression immediately softened. “Even if you don’t need anything,” she said, gazing at Archie lovingly, “I need you. And you deserve everything.”

Archie’s eyes bulged, and he looked desperately at Daphne.

“Please, save me,” he pleaded. “Tell her to stop.”

“Ha!” Daphne said. “Hahahahahahaha.” She stopped to breathe and then kept going. “Hahahahaha—no.” She smiled sweetly at Gabrielle. “Keep going, sweetheart. I think you’ve nearly won him over.”

Gabrielle immediately brightened. “You’ll find the feelings fade in a week or two,” Daphne continued, “but to really give him what he deserves, I would recommend keeping it up for at least a month.”

“I could gaze at him for a year,” Gabrielle sighed, and the rest of them burst into laughter at Archie’s despairing wail.

“And we thought Archie was bad,” Nisha murmured.

Finley grinned. “Gabrielle explained it to me this morning: He’s just so pretty. How can she resist?”

His arm snaked out, circling Daphne’s waist and drawing her to his side.

“I don’t know why you’re talking,” Nisha said. “You two are nearly as bad.”

“But look at her,” Finley crooned. “How could I resist when she’s so pretty ?”

Daphne laughed and whacked him lightly on the shoulder. “Stop that! Archer may deserve it, but Nisha and Morrow haven’t done anything wrong.”

Finley laughed. He couldn’t seem to stop laughing since Daphne had come back to him.

In the chaos of everything, they’d barely had the chance to be alone, but he didn’t even mind. She was alive, and now they could have the lifetime of moments he had dreamed about.

But as everyone spread out beside the lake to enjoy the sunshine, he took her hand and led her away from the others, walking along the shore until they were out of earshot.

He gathered her into his arms, resting his chin on her head and gazing across the water. “It’s so peaceful here,” he murmured. “But we’ll be leaving for the capital soon, and everything will change.”

“Not everything.” Daphne’s arms wrapped around him. “My love for you isn’t going to change.”

He dipped his head to give her a kiss, marveling that he was finally free to do so.

“It has occurred to me,” he said when he came up for air, “that there’s something we haven’t specifically talked about.

But I’m sincerely hoping that when you said you didn’t want to live without me—and then stole someone’s horse to ride across the kingdom to rescue me—you meant you were willing to marry me. Will you marry me, Daphne?”

Daphne laughed. “I didn’t steal Nutmeg!”

“That isn’t an answer,” he said sternly.

“Yes.” She smiled at him, freeing one of her hands so she could trace the line of his jaw. “I would love to spend every day of the rest of my life at your side, Finley. Even if that means staying in Oakden forever.”

Finley’s mood dropped. “I know you miss Glandore,” he said quietly. “Are you sure you’re really all right with being trapped here with me?”

“Oakden was my home first, and I love many things about it,” Daphne said.

“I’m not all Glandorian or all Oakdenian, I’m a bit of both.

I can be happy here. The naps have even started decreasing in frequency finally, ever since my long sleep in Gabrielle’s place.

I certainly don’t want to force a burden onto you, just so I can live in Glandore. ”

She sighed. “I’m starting to understand how my parents came to make the decisions they did. It’s infuriating to be so constrained by the Legacy’s mindless whims!”

“Maybe you won’t always have to be.” Avery strolled up to them, a smile on her face.

Daphne flushed and tried to push away from Finley, but he didn’t let go. She had just agreed to marry him, and he didn’t care who saw them hugging.

Daphne chuckled under her breath, shaking her head and relaxing into his arms again.

“Ah, new love,” Elliot proclaimed with the air of a venerable grandfather. “We wouldn’t know anything about that.”

Avery laughed, and he caught her around the waist, planting an enthusiastic kiss on her mouth while she tried to fend him off.

“Actually,” Avery said when she managed to extricate herself, “we believe there may be a way to remove someone’s tie to their birth kingdom. Elliot managed to do it with his tie.”

“What?” Daphne pushed out of Finley’s arms and turned fully to face Avery. “That’s possible?”

“It’s something we’ve only recently discovered.” Eagerness lit up Avery’s voice and face. “There were reasons that made it particularly urgent in Elliot’s case, but it left us thinking that maybe there are others who would benefit just as we did. And meeting the two of you is confirmation of that.”

“How did you do it?” Daphne asked, just as eager.

But Elliot put a hand on his wife’s shoulder.

“My situation was unique, but we’re researching the possibilities now.

It’s why we came to Lorne in the first place—we wanted to make use of his library and his vast personal experience.

We were planning to travel into Halbury next to follow up some leads there, but when we discovered Lorne frantically looking for you, we had to help. ”

“I haven’t properly thanked you for that,” Daphne said. “I appreciate it more than you can know.”

“We both appreciate it,” Finley said.

Daphne nodded. “And if you do find a way for us to free ourselves from our birth kingdom, we would be even more grateful.”

“If we find anything, I’ll be sure to send word straight to Lorne,” Avery promised. “I think he has a large network of people who would be very interested in that piece of information.”

Avery and Elliot continued on around the lake, walking hand in hand.

“If it’s ever possible,” Finley said when he was alone with Daphne again, “I would move to Glandore for you without hesitation.” He paused. “Once Archie is eighteen, of course.”

“It may well be longer than that before we hear anything from Avery again anyway,” Daphne said. “Possibly much longer. But just knowing it’s a possibility…!” She breathed a happy sigh, and Finley’s heart swelled to see the joy on her face.

He didn’t care if he built a future with her in Oakden or Glandore or both. He just knew his future looked infinitely brighter than it had before she came into his life.