Deianira called a meeting to review the last of the plans for the Prima Ball. She’d had little to do with it so far and wanted to make sure that things were ready for tomorrow.
“We’ve double security at both entrances and I have a witch on standby just in case there’s a malfunction with the wall,” Hewn explained.
“Good. I also want scouts on the outside. If anyone crosses the border I want to know about it,” Deianira said.
“Of course,” he nodded.
“Going off RSVP alone, 83 percent of civilians will be in attendance and the palace’s lockdown procedures are ready if necessary,” Jude presented.
“Thank you.”
Everyone had pulled their weight in the planning of the Prima Ball. It allowed Deianira to rest easy knowing that everything was being taken care of.
As Jude and Hewn started up a new conversation, Salem took a seat uncomfortably close next to Deianira.
“Are you sure we should be moving forward with plans considering the circumstances?” she tried to whisper, but it sounded more like a mumble.
“The people have been preparing for this for months. It’s Prima Day. I won’t let my personal issues rob them of their celebration.”
Salem nodded respectfully. “Okay. Have you had any more episodes?”
“Nope,” Deianira told her truthfully.
Trying to appear casual, Salem settled back into her seat, moving even closer to Deianira.
“So…do you want to talk about what’s going on with you and Alden?”
Deianira continued staring straight ahead. “Nope.”
“Are you positive?”
“Yep.”
“Well, I think he has romantic feelings for you. His pupils dilate when he sees you,” she started listing. “It’s evident that he’s concerned for your health, and he doesn’t seem aware of it, but he’s constantly trying to be in close proximity to you…”
“You’re in close proximity to me.” Deianira snapped. “And I said I didn’t want to talk about it.”
Salem assessed the space between them as if seeing it for the first time. “Oh. I apologize.” She scooted halfway down the sofa.
Deianira sighed. Salem was one of the most perceptive people she knew but socially, some things slipped her mind. It wasn’t intentional.
“No, it’s okay. I’m sorry, I’m just tired. I’m going to head to bed,” she lied as she stood and started making her way to the door. “See you on Prima Day.”
“Good night,” Salem responded.
As Deianira opened the study door, Cade stood right outside, hand raised to knock.
She jumped. “Shit!”
Looking back to make sure no one had witnessed her outburst, she pushed at his chest, followed him out, and shut the door behind her.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sca…”
“What the hell are you doing here? You can’t just knock on the door, my whole council’s in there,” she hissed.
“I just wanted to check on you,” he whispered.
The guilt wasted no time in washing over her.
“It’s okay,” he said before she could apologize. “You’re busy.”
“No,” she replied way too enthusiastically. “I mean, I’m not busy. I was just heading out,” she blurted and instantly regretted it.
“Where?”
She studied him for a while before shaking her head. Why not?
“The woodlands.”
Cade frowned. She couldn’t tell if he didn’t believe her or if he was just worried about why she was going there. Deianira sighed. It had been a long day and she could let loose for just a minute. As much as her stupid heart jumped at the thought, she had to force her next words out.
“Do you want to come with me?”
She could see the surprise flash across his face before he schooled his expression. He nodded.
“Yeah, sure.”
She turned in the direction of the east stairwell, expecting him to follow.
“Uh, those don’t go to the ground floor,” he called.
She scoffed. As if she didn’t know that.
“We’re making a pit stop.”
There was a moment of silence before she heard his footsteps thudding behind her and soon, he was at her side again. As they continued walking, Cade broke the peaceful silence.
“Have you had any more episodes?”
Rolling her eyes, Deianira groaned. “Why does everyone keep asking me that? No, I haven’t.”
Cade stopped walking and Deianira turned to him, waiting. His face was straight, eyes were hard.
“Deianira, you scared the shit out of me that day. You might not think that it’s a big deal, but I was the one carrying your body to the infirmary, and if I have to see you like that again, Mikhael’s gonna need an extra bed for me.” He stepped forward. “So, I’ll ask you every five minutes if it means I’ll be better prepared to help you.”
Deianira’s breath caught in her throat. She hadn’t thought about that. She’d been so focused on being resistant toward him that she ignored what he had done for her. The fact that he even cared so much made her feel uncomfortable. She flicked her gaze away before fixing him with a stare of her own.
“Well, as I said, I haven’t had any and I’ve been managing fine. It’s your hovering that’ll send me over the edge,” she griped.
Cade didn’t cower away from her hard look. “Cry about it.”
For the hundredth time in the past few weeks, she stared at Cade, stunned. Wanting to change the subject, she grasped at random thoughts until a question struck her. Placing her hands on her hips, she narrowed her eyes at him.
“Cade, where are your guards?”
A mischievous smile spread across his lips as he began walking again.
“No clue.”
“You do realize that they are for your protection as well, right?” she shook her head with disbelief and caught up with him. This was the second time he’d slipped his detail.
He shrugged. “I don’t need protection. I have you.”
“I wouldn’t count on it. I’m probably the one you need protection from.” She had meant it as a joke, but she couldn’t help but notice the small hint of truth that it held.
“Somehow, I doubt that.”
“Either way, I’m upping your security, first thing after the ball.”
As they reached a small supply closet, Cade shot her a confused look. She just brushed past him and walked into the room to collect what she came for.
To his credit, Cade didn’t ask too many questions as they trekked through the trees. It allowed Deianira to breathe in the cold air, to listen to the icy leaves crunching beneath her boots. Almost there.
“Are we just walking or are we going somewhere?” So much for silence.
Deianira ignored him as she picked up her pace. She couldn’t help but smile as she reached her destination. It had been too long since she’d last been here. As much as she liked to train or spar with Jude to clear her mind, this topped it, no questions. Cade finally caught up to her as she set her bag down on the ground.
“Deianira, wh…”
“Shh!” she hushed him as she stared out onto the frozen lake.
Reaching into her bag, she pulled out her pair before pulling out a second. She wasn’t sure what Cade’s size was but they were the only pair she could find that seemed big enough.
“Put these on.” She handed them to him.
Cade
Cade stared at the strange shoes. He’d never seen anything like them. They looked like boots but they had a long blade running along the bottom. He carefully took them from Deianira’s hands.
“Am I allowed to talk now?” he asked. She stared at him, bored, before nodding. “What are these?”
Deianira took a seat on the ground and started pulling off her boots. “They’re called ice skates.” When he only blinked at her, she rolled
her eyes. “You put them on your feet.”
Cade shrugged. Why not? Copying Deianira, he took a seat next to her and took off his boots before slipping them on and tying up the laces. Not too tight though, they were already a smidge on the small side. He didn’t want to ask any more questions about what they were doing so he just waited for her to explain. After a few seconds of watching her struggle, Cade rolled onto his knees and scooted in front of her, gently grabbing her leg.
“What are you…”
“I got it.” He waved her off as he started to loop the lace through the hole before giving them both a firm tug. Cade smiled to himself as he started to fold them over one another and cross them. For such a small person, she had quite big feet. He tied a second knot and pulled it tightly, then he tucked the extra length into the sides of the boot.
“There.”
Cade looked up to find Deianira staring at him. Her gaze took in his whole face. His eyes, his nose, his lips.
“What?” he asked, nervous.
He wasn’t always sure if he was doing something that was annoying her. He was still trying to learn her quirks. Deianira blinked and shook her head.
“Nothing. Let’s go.”
He caved. “Go where?”
Deianira granted him a rare smile when she gestured towards the lake as she stood. For someone that looked beautiful with a scowl, a smile on her lips was nothing short of enchanting. It transformed her whole face. He had to look away before she caught him staring.
Cade’s stand wasn’t nearly as graceful as Deianira’s. She stomped up to the lake before holding onto a low-hanging tree branch as she took a step onto the ice. He stilled.
“Deianira.”
She snorted as she put her other foot down. Cade started marching towards the lake after her.
“Deianira, get off the ice!”
She turned to him, walking backward across the ice.
“No,” she smiled.
He stopped his advance. She wasn’t walking, she was gliding. It was…beautiful. Cade wasn’t sure what she was doing or how, but his heart still raced at all the thoughts of what could go wrong.
“Deianira, I’m not kidding! It could break.”
She rolled her eyes as she spun in a circle and made her way back to the edge before stopping and spraying ice from her feet.
“It won’t. I come here every year. Trust me.” She gave the ice two hard kicks making Cade’s heart leap. “It’s solid.”
He wasn’t so sure. He just wanted her back on solid ground.
Deianira tilted her head. “Come on,” she said, hands in her jacket pockets.
Cade chewed on his lip. She was obviously fine and he did trust her. Shaking his head, he marched towards the edge and grabbed the same tree branch. The second his ‘ice skate’ touched the ice, he went flying. Cade didn’t even know where his feet went as he skidded several feet forward. He’d barely managed to feel the dull pain that sprouted in his knee when a captivating sound filled the air. He lifted his head and squinted his eyes to find Deianira, hands on her knees, laughing her head off. It only got louder as she caught Cade’s expression. She began wheezing.
It was all Cade could do not to smile. He couldn’t even feel the ache in his knee anymore. He couldn’t focus on anything but that beautiful sound. He did his best to feign annoyance.
“Something funny?”
She slapped her hands over her mouth with a loud snort as she shook her head. Cade tried to get back to his feet but found himself on his knees again. It really did hurt, but he would throw himself off the top floor of the palace if it meant that she would keep making that sound. In his attempts to stand, he’d gotten closer and closer to her. Deianira didn’t seem to realize what he was doing before he grabbed her around her knees and brought a hand up to cradle her head as he yanked her down to the ice.
She squealed and locked her arms around his neck, still racked with laughter. Cade joined her this time.
Deianira giggled as she tried to squirm out of his hold but every time she made headway, he grabbed her again. Cade wasn’t stupid. He knew that she was stronger than him. She could’ve knocked him out and escaped his hold if she wanted to, but she was having fun. He could tell because he was having fun too.
Eventually, he rolled on top of her and as she kicked out, he landed right between her thighs. Their laughter quickly sobered. He could see their breaths mingling in the frosty air but neither of them said anything. His eyes dipped to her lips. They were right there. So close. He could’ve just…
Well, whatever it was, it can’t happen again. Cade pulled back and sat on his haunches. She had boundaries. He needed to respect them. Preparing himself to give an awkward apology, he was surprised to see Deianira stand, seemingly unruffled.
“Come on.” She held a hand out. “I’ll help you.”
Cade learned a few things over the next hour. First, ‘ice skates’ were meant for ‘ice skating’. As in literally skating across the ice. Cade couldn’t count the number of times he’d fallen. He was definitely going to be sore in the morning, but it was okay because she found him hilarious.
Second, Deianira was good at just about everything. He couldn’t get over the way she moved. She was powerful but elegant. Strong but graceful. He could’ve watched her forever.
“How do you just do that?” he asked as she landed a jump and skated a circle around him.
“I don’t know. A hundred years of practice kinda helps you to just do things.” Fair enough. “Jude brought me out here a lot.” He steadied himself, arms out as he looked at her wistful smile. “After it happened,” she didn’t need to elaborate, “I couldn’t go to school anymore. I couldn’t see my friends. Well, they weren’t my friends any more at that point.” She sighed. “I don’t blame their parents though. I wouldn’t let my kid hang out with a killer,” she said lightly, but Cade could see the pain beneath the surface. “There’s an ice rink in the city that I used to go to, but I’m sure you can imagine that it wasn’t as appealing when the whole Dome wanted me dead.”
Unsteadily, Cade skated towards her. She reached for him as he came close, hands grabbing his biceps as he held her arms.
“My parents were loved. Truly adored. And…” She took a deep breath seeming more annoyed than upset. “Jude still wanted me to have a life outside of the palace, so he found this trench and had it dug out and filled.” Her smile peeked out again. “Now it’s a lake, but my very own ice rink in Prima season.”
He didn’t know what to say. She’d been a child. Not only had she just lost her parents but the nation she was set to rule had hated her. That wasn’t something that a thirteen-year-old should have had to deal with. He’d never seen her as at peace as she was when she was skating, so he wordlessly turned her in his arms and grabbed her hand as he started to push off his back foot. Deianira followed him seamlessly. She kept at his slow pace and held onto his hand as they rounded the rink. They kept going around, lap after lap, and Cade’s chest slowly eased as he watched her face soften a fraction every time her foot hit the ice.
