“Yes. Yes, yes, yes!” She placed her hands on his neck and pulled him down for another kiss. As they kissed, Nicholas found her hand with his and slid the ring down her fourth finger.
How long they sat that way, kissing, laughing, and weeping, Elaina couldn’t tell nor did she wish to. Eventually, however, she began to feel hungry, realizing with a shock how long it had been since her last meal.
“I know you wish to wait for your men, but would it hurt to help them find us by at least reaching a road of some sort?”
“Can you ride your horse without falling off?” He looked at her with concern.
“I think so.”
“Very well. But let me know if you need me to carry you.”
She smiled up at him as he stood. “I will.”
His eyes widened. “Is that Elaina Starke I’m hearing? Did she actually just agree to let me help her?”
Elaina laughed and gave his arm a weak swat as they made their way to the horses. “I’m afraid you’re not the only one who needs to make an apology.”
“Oh really?”
She leaned into him as they walked. “I was so determined to be in control . . . to prove my father wrong, really, that I pushed away everyone and everything that might have helped me. Including you.” She looked up at him. “If I have learned anything during my time in Solwhind . . . and our return, it’s that I am not in control of the world. Nor should I be.” She chuckled. “Perhaps that’s why the stars are always so cryptic.”
“It would have been nice if they had been a little more specific about the dagger. Or Alastair, for that matter.”
“The Maker has spoken to me my whole life through the stars,” she said, “but I could never understand why they wouldn’t simply tell me everything. Instead, they were often vague or only told me enough to get a certain job done. I’ve begun to wonder, however, if the Maker perhaps isn’t simply desirous for each job’s completion, but that he’s also concerned with how I approach each job he gives me. Not telling me everything forces me to trust and rely on him and other.” She felt strangely shy as she peeked up at him. “I think I’ve finally learned that complete control will never be mine. Nor should it be.”
He gave her a sly smile. “And when did you learn that?”
“Tonight.” She pulled him down for another kiss. “I also have learned tonight that relinquishing control can be nice.”
“Unfortunately,” he smirked, “if you plan on marrying the prince of Ashland, I get the feeling you shall need to take control sometimes whether you want to or not.” His eyes glinted wickedly as he grinned down at her.
“And why is that?”
“I’m told the prince of Ashland is rather stubborn sometimes. Much like a mule. The princess, whomever she may be, will probably be charged by the king with keeping him in line.”
“Be careful with that kind of talk. Give me too much freedom, and I’ll make you into a respectable prince.”
He let out a belly laugh. “Now where is the fun in that?”
Epilogue
Getting Started
Elaina recovered quickly once they were discovered by Nicholas’s guards and whisked back to the palace, where her mother was brought and Elaina was attended to by the best physicians in the land. Nicholas visited her numerous times each day, often having to be chased away by both their mothers and ordered to eat.
The reunion between the queen and Theresa was one full of tears and many, many embraces. Elaina even spotted the king shedding a tear of his own, but when he met her eye he cleared his throat and busied himself with a book.
Matilda, her daughters, and Conrad were charged with a number of wrongdoings including slavery, contract keeping with a criminal, and theft. When their manor was searched, records were found showing that Matilda had practically handed Alastair her entire fortune under contract that he would gain it back for her with interest. Despite the hundred thousand gold pounds he’d stolen for Matilda when she’d traded him Elaina’s secret, the majority of her debts had never been repaid, and all their possessions were sold in order to make payments on the three years’ taxes that were due.
Elaina saw to it, however, that Barker and Dog were reunited with their other animal friends at Rosington, where Dog took to following Theresa wherever she went, and Barker grew happy and fat.
The reunion with Lydia and Charlotte was not one Elaina looked forward to as she recovered, but she knew that getting it over with as soon as possible would allow her to heal faster. So when she was well enough, she was moved to the sitting room in her new personal chambers at the palace. There, she waited with her mother as Charlotte and Lydia were shown in.
Elaina tried to sit straight as she waited, but all she wanted to do was crawl beneath the sofa and wait for them to leave. The only thought that kept her in her seat was the knowledge that Lydia had kept her secret at the ball.
A short knock sounded at the door. Elaina gripped the bottom of her seat as her cousin and aunt walked in. For a long moment, they all froze and simply stared. Then, in a rush of tears, Lydia threw herself at Elaina.
“I didn’t want to testify! I didn’t even mean to tell them anything, but Alastair asked me if there was a place you kept your special things, and I didn’t—”
“Lydia!” Elaina took her cousin’s face and held it in her hands. “I believe you.”
Lydia sniveled and looked up at Elaina through red eyes. “You do?”
Elaina nodded. “Alastair and Conrad used us all. Even me and Nicholas.” She got off the sofa and knelt beside Lydia to hug her. “I’ve missed you.”
This brought on a whole new round of weeping, but as Elaina held Lydia, she realized that she had truly missed her cousin. Many moments between them had been strained and even unkind, but after her years of solitude in Solwhind, Elaina knew she wanted and needed her cousin. She needed a friend she could lean on.
On the morning that marked a week until the wedding, Nicholas disappeared, and no one could tell her where he had gone or why, only assure her that he was quite safe and had taken his captain and a few soldiers and headed out before dawn.
One day passed, then two, then four, and though Elaina trusted him with all of her heart, she couldn’t help being a bit peeved that he had felt the need to run such an errand right before their wedding. The last thing she wanted was another reason to worry. Not now, when life was perfect.
All of her frustration went up in smoke two days before the wedding, however, when she walked into her chambers one evening to find her father sitting beside her mother, their hands clasped as they leaned eagerly toward one another. Their conversation was so deep that they didn’t notice her entrance until, in her shock, she dropped the teacup she’d been carrying and it smashed on the floor.
“So what do you think of your wedding gift?”
Elaina jumped as Nicholas walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
“Wh . . . where?” she sputtered, looking back and forth between Nicholas and her father. “How?”
Her father stood, looking uncharacteristically nervous. “The Shadow did something to the weather and drew us into a storm. When the storm broke, we found ourselves stranded on a deserted island with no way to escape until Prince Nicholas here found us.”
“It turns out they were on an island only five miles north of Solwhind,” Nicholas added. “But because of Alastair’s power, they were trapped on the island. I left as soon as I got news that a number of ships thought missing had reappeared.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Elaina gasped.
“I was afraid of getting your hopes up and then disappointing you again.” Nicholas turned her to look at him. “You’re not angry, are you? That I didn’t take you along?”
In reply, Elaina flung herself at her father. And though he’d never been one for embraces, he held her just as tightly, stroking her hair soothingly as she sobbed into his shirt.
“The prince told me everything that happened,” he w
hispered into her hair. “And I . . . Can you ever forgive me?” He paused. “For doubting you?”
Elaina only cried harder.
Elaina’s wedding gown was just as beautiful as the one her mother had imagined, or so her mother claimed, but as Elaina gasped over it in front of the mirror, her mother assured her that this gown wouldn’t be disappearing at midnight.
“I drew it,” she said proudly as she placed a circlet of rosebuds on Elaina’s head, “but five seamstresses are responsible for its existence.”
Elaina ran her fingers over the thousands of clear diamonds embedded into the skirt. It looked like hills and valleys of snow glittering in the sun. Her white sleeves were long but sheer, dotted with little round gems of every color, and the bodice was embroidered with silver and blue roses. Her slippers, though not glass, were still beautiful. They were also practical enough for dancing.
Theresa pulled Elaina from her fawning attendants just as the bells began to toll.
“Elaina,” she said, pausing to touch the curl that had escaped Elaina’s complicated hair twist, “I want you to know I couldn’t be happier for you. You’re marrying a man who adores the very ground you walk on.”
Elaina laughed. “How do you know that?”
Her mother’s eyes gleamed. “I could see it in his eyes the day you put a tadpole in his tea.”
“You remember that, too? Am I the only one who doesn’t?”
“Let me finish. Marriage is hard work. You will only be happy as long as you work to put the Maker first and one another before yourselves.” She smiled. “You’re so much like your father. Independent, duty driven. Keep in mind that loving him is just as important, if not more important than always finishing your task, whatever that may be. And you’ll have many as you begin to inherit the responsibilities of the queen.”
Elaina nodded seriously. She had considered this. Putting a war-torn country back together again would be no easy task.
“But Elaina?”
“Yes?”
“Most importantly, for goodness’s sake, have fun! Live a little, and don’t let duty steal your joy.”
Theresa’s words echoed in Elaina’s mind as her father took her by the arm and led her to the back of the chapel. She had to breathe through her mouth a few times to calm her racing heart.
As soon as the doors were opened and the melody floated out to them, however, her mother’s words made sense. There he was, standing tall and confident in his white uniform edged with blue and silver, saber at his side and his hands clasped behind his back. His dark hair, though combed, was as wild as ever, and for the first time since the war, the gleam of boyish mischief was back in his eyes.
As she and her father began the slow walk down the aisle, Elaina vowed then and there never to let duty blind her to the gift of Nicholas again. For he truly was a gift. The Maker had managed to give her the one man who could teach her to let go. And somehow, in her often rigid, overbearing self, that man seemed to have found the same thing.
She would have it no other way.
The thousands of flower petals that floated down upon them from the chapel ceiling created a shower of pink rain as she and her father reached the foot of the dais. And as Elaina stared up at the man before her, she saw her own joy reflected on his face.
Though she would never know exactly how, she somehow managed to repeat all of the holy man’s words. At least, she assumed she did, for no one said otherwise. All she was aware of was the feel of Nicholas’s rough, warm hands on hers and the bright blue of his eyes peering back into her soul.
But eventually the wait was over, and she heard the holy man utter the final words.
“My prince. Let this wedded kiss be the first of its kind, and may you never know its last until the day the Maker ushers you into his eternal bliss.”
Slowly, almost fearfully, he took her face in one of his hands and her waist in his other. When he brought her face up to his and pressed his lips against hers, Elaina closed her eyes and basked in the fierce joy of his kiss.
For in it was determination.
Vulnerability.
Desperation.
Faith.
Hope.
Love.
Oh how she loved this man.
When he finally let go, Elaina turned to see the holy man now holding a delicate circlet of rose gold scattered with little pink gem rosebuds.
“Kneel,” he said kindly.
Letting go of Nicholas’s hand, Elaina sank to her knees. As she did, her heart began to hammer in her chest.
“Elaina Hope Whealdmar, daughter of Admiral Baxter Starke and Marchioness Theresa Starke, do you swear to love and honor Ashland, working for its good and seeking its welfare in the Maker’s name?”
“I do.”
“Do you accept the honor, privilege, and burdens that come with the crown?”
“I do.”
“Do you swear to serve as crown princess, and when the time is declared, queen, until your duty is lifted from you, accepting and striving to fulfill the duties that are named in our ancient texts?”
“I do.”
“Then,” he smiled so widely his eyes crinkled as he lifted the gold circlet high before placing it on her head, “I hereby anoint you Elaina Hope Whealdmar, Crown Princess of Ashland.”
A roar erupted from the crowd behind her as Elaina stood and took Nicholas’s hand again. And though he still stood like a soldier, the smile on his face radiated the unbridled joy of a small boy.
The wedding celebration was even more extravagant than Princess Sophia’s had been, though Elaina had had very little to do with any of its plans. Still, it was magical. Garlands of roses, lilies, and peonies were strung together and hung from the vaulted ceilings. Tables were piled high with every kind of delicacy from all over the world, and the wine was more abundant than even the food.
And for the first time since moving to Kaylem, Elaina spotted King Xander holding his wife’s hand.
The celebration itself was everything any bride could have hoped for, but Elaina felt her heart flutter as Nicholas led her out to the dance floor. A sense of familiarity hit her as he pulled her close. The music began, and Elaina closed her eyes.
In that moment, it was only the two of them again. Young and naive, she and Nicholas danced alone in an empty ballroom as he called the steps over and over. That’s when it hit her.
“You’ve really wanted to marry me since that first dance?” She opened her eyes and looked at him in wonder. “How did you know?”
He shook his head and grinned. “I knew the moment you put that tadpole in my tea. I simply got a bit . . . distracted along the way.”
Elaina laughed as he twirled her around and then back into his arms.
The rest of the celebrations flew by in a blur, though Elaina couldn’t quite contain her excitement when the Fortiers walked up to give their congratulations. Queen Isabelle was every bit as brilliant and wise as rumor said, and Elaina nearly died of elation when she extended an invitation for Elaina to visit their legendary Fortress and become better acquainted.
After finally meeting Queen Isabelle and thanking King Everard once again for his help, however, Elaina found herself longing for an end to the day. And though the day seemed to last a week, Nicholas eventually took her by the hand and held his finger to his lips. The music still played behind them as they stole away, but Elaina was ready.
“I hope you don’t mind, but we’ll be staying in my chambers tonight,” Nicholas said in a low voice as they started up the stairs.
Elaina’s stomach did a flip as he opened the door and she stepped inside. The room was dripping with rose petals. Goblets of wine had been set beside the enormous canopied bed, and a low fire was burning in the large hearth across from the open balcony.
“Your nightdress is over there on the chair,” Nicholas said quietly, nodding at a large chair by the fire. He shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and shifted, moving his gaze to the floor. “I’ll give you som
e space to get changed.” Then he headed into the next room over and shut the door.
Elaina could only nod, grateful that he was giving her so much room to get ready. Her heart suddenly thundered in her throat, and she drank half a goblet of wine in an effort to calm herself. She undressed as slowly as possible, but pulling on the nightdress still took far too little time.
When he came back in, she was standing on the balcony overlooking the waves that gently lapped at the beach below. She heard him enter but didn’t turn, only hugged his arms when he wrapped them around her and laid his chin on her head.
“Why me?” she asked softly.
“What do you mean?”
She turned and looked up at him. “Why me, when you could have had any woman in the world? They all wanted you, but I didn’t, and you still chose me. Even after years of being apart.”
“I suppose you could turn the question around. Why did you decide to put up with a scoundrel like me?”
She nudged him and smiled wryly. “You didn’t give me much choice.”
He laughed and shook his head. “You wouldn’t have had a boy you didn’t want, and you know it.” He sobered then and brought her hand up to his face, rubbing the back of her hand against his cheek. “I told you, growing up in my family was anything but steady. My father was inconsistent and wandering. My mother, heaven-sent as she is, was often withdrawn. My sisters rarely gave me the time of day. I was loved but spoiled, and when you get everything you want, the world can feel as though it moves with the wind.” He shrugged. “You didn’t.”
She took his hands and traced his knuckles with the tips of her fingers. “You asked me once what I wanted. Now I need to know. What is it that you want?”
“I want you.” He nuzzled her ear. His breath was hot against the side of her face. “What else could a living, breathing man want on his wedding night?”
Elaina laughed. “I mean for the future.”
He hesitated, playing idly with her hair. “I want my kingdom to prosper and for justice to prevail, of course. I want my people to heal and be united again.” He poked her. “I’m determined to get a ride on your father’s ship once it’s repaired, now that he’s been found and all.”
Cinders, Stars, and Glass Slippers: A Retelling of Cinderella (The Classical Kingdoms Collection Book 6) Page 44
