Page 50 of Of Curses and Courtship

“No,” I exclaim. “You must stay. Allowmeto apologize, my lady?—”

“Go on, then.” Emyr sneers. “Before I tell the others how cruel you’ve been. Sleep off your inebriation, lest you wake up ill.”

Silva trails away, muttering under her breath.

Emyr turns to me, and I’m still frozen in my spot,watching him with new eyes. Helena said he was kind to the workers. Is he standing up for me because I am a friend, or would he defend another employee the same way?

“Apologies,” he says. “She isn’t usually so cruel, but the drink… it does that to some, I suppose.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” I mutter. “She’s right. You shouldn’t be speaking with me tonight.”

“I can speak to whomever I please. This is my party, and I’m the prince.”

“That’s right. It is.” Finally, I uproot myself, turning away. “Enjoy yourself. I must return to my work, Your Highness.”

“Ophelia!”

I fight the urge to turn, to get one last look at his bright eyes, forcing myself onward instead.

“Remindme never to do a favor for you again,” I mutter, closing the door behind us.

It is three in the morning when Helena and I are finally allowed to return to our bedchamber. We have cleaned as much as possible, the party has ended, and the palace is as peaceful as ever.

Though I’ve not stayed at the Sun Palace long, this room is a welcome respite. My body begs for rest, and I give in, not bothering to undress before I slouch into my little bed.

“I’ll give you no such reminder,” Helena says. “Besides, it seemed as if you had fun. Did my eyes deceive me, or did you spend several moments chatting with the prince?”

“Your eyes may be going bad, my dear. We spent a few meager seconds together, and only because he was searching for a drink.

“Hm…” She squints at me. “That’s not what it looked like. Iheard whispers, you know. Something about him fighting with one of his kin.”

Heat rushes to my face. I hide my expression behind a pillow and groan into it. “That is not the case.”

“Of course. I’ll pretend I heard nothing, then.”

Lying to Helena is useless. She’s already seen through me with great ease.

I sit up and hug the pillow to my chest. “He defended me quite valiantly. That’s something I am unaccustomed to.”

My stepsisters never spoke up for me, and how could I have expected them to? Their mother was a terror. Even Ethel, my first love, didn’t stand up for me in the end. She chased me away. My father, though… he was always on my side, and I’ve not had someone like that in a long time.

Her expression softens. “I’d defend you, too. But why did he have to? What happened?”

“His dreadful cousin poked and prodded him for speaking with me—with amaid.”

She sneers. “Disgusting. Elitist. Typical of royals.”

“Is it?”

She nods. “Most of them are like that.”

I play with the frayed ends of my pillow and look away. “Is Emyr the same?”

How embarrassing it is to ask, but I must know. Would he stand up for the other maids the way he did for me? What about the cooks and the gardeners? If he only protects me because of our friendship, it does not matter. That wouldn’t make him the caring man I wish to paint in my mind.

He lives there now, a daydream of something I could have had in another life—one where I was truly a lady at his ball.

“Hard to say. I never knew much about him before. He spent much of his time in school and traveling. The other maids have nothing but nice things to say about him. Friendlier than the rest, they say.”