Page 4 of A Sea So Cruel
The young lord’s attention turned toward the windows overlooking the coast. Even on such a sunny day, the swell remained merciless.
“It’s no joke, Lord Kaidian.Erm,Lord Kaid.” Niklas’s face reddened. “We take our myths and folklore very seriously here. There is so much about the world that we do not know. Do you believe in air?”
“Air?” Kaid questioned.
“Yes. Do you believe that air is real?”
“Of course I do. But what does that have to do with sirens?”
Niklas smiled. “Just because you cannot see something, does not mean it doesn’t exist. You cannot see air, yet you believe it is present. Who are we, as simple humans, to decide what is real and what is not?”
Kaid couldn’t disagree with that. He was shocked that this argument had come from Niklas. He figured the man was more of a logical being. Clearly, he had read the courtier incorrectly.
The walk down the halls was silent until they were outside the ballroom once more. Niklas mumbled to one of the heralds flanking the doorway, and the man slammed his large golden staff to the ground. The crowd quieted as he announced, “Presenting Lord Kaidian Poulson of Haalberg, accompanied by Sir Halsten Seung of Haalberg.”
The few murmurs in the crowd completely dissipated. Kaid hated the amount of eyes that were locked on him, the pregnant silence filling the massive ballroom, but noticed a pair of familiar green eyes through the onlookers. It was the same blonde woman he had met in the hall, though she was now casting him an icy gaze. Kaid gave her a complacent grin and nodded to the crowd.
The guests resumed conversing, eating and dancing a moment later. King Botmar approached from across the room, so Kaid and Halsten walked to meet him. Kaid bowed to the white-haired king, Halsten bowing a moment later, then returning to ogling at the surrounding women.
“Welcome to Orntali, Lord Kaidian. We are pleased to have you here, and pleased to have you join our family,” King Botmar said as he gestured around the room.
Kaid held in his laughter. He was amazed that the king so willingly threw around the word “family,” as though the scandal with his eldest daughter hadn’t nearly torn his family apart. To the public eye, the king was a man who made a mistake and conceived a bastard child with an unknown woman, but haddone the honorable thing in taking in his daughter and treating her as full royalty.
To the nobility, they could see the rest. That he had hurt his wife so deeply they slept in separate suites for months. That they only conceived their own child to put on a united front for their kingdom. That the salvation child was what had killed Queen Else during the baby’s birth. That the king had drunk himself into oblivion most nights since, permanently damaging his memory in the process.
Reigning in his amusement, Kaid replied, “It is my greatest honor, your majesty. I would like to thank you personally for providing such generous accommodations for myself and my chief courtier.”
Halsten’s gaze snapped to Kaid, clearly realizing that the mention of his position was Kaid’s way of reminding him to at leastactlike he was paying attention.
The king grinned widely. “Now, what you’ve been waiting for. Come, meet my daughters.”
King Botmar marched back across the dance floor and Kaid and Halsten followed, ignoring all the eyes that were now locked on them. When Kaid realized who they were walking toward, he halted abruptly, causing Halsten to crash directly into him. He prayed to every god and goddess he could think of that the blonde woman was not his betrothed. He distinctly remembered his father describing Princess Maren as copper-haired.
Kaid felt Halsten push him, urging him to continue on. Luckily, the king didn’t notice the slight stumble. However, now that Kaid’s attention was on the blonde woman, he could tell that she had witnessed his hesitation by her smirk.
King Botmar stepped to the side and to Kaid’s relief, a petite ginger-haired woman appeared. She smiled kindly and stepped forward, holding out her gloved hand. She spoke softly. “Princess Maren Enrathi.”
Kaid gently pressed a kiss to her fingers, then bowed. “Princess Maren, words cannot express how appreciative I am that you have agreed to this arrangement. I hope I will live up to any expectations you have for a partner.”
The blonde woman scoffed, and Maren flashed her a wide-eyed glare. Kaid stared at the woman, wondering who she was to the royal family. There were multiple women surrounding the princess and king. Was she a courtier? A lady-in-waiting?
Maren slipped her hand away from Kaid’s grip. “I look forward to getting to know you more over the next few weeks, Lord Kaidian.” She stepped back and placed a gentle hand on the blonde woman’s shoulder blade, nudging her forward with a dainty grunt. The blonde woman leaned her weight backward, allowing her slippers to skid on the floor. “This is my sister, Princess Asta.”
Even though Kaid wanted to let his jaw drop to the finely polished floor, his face remained indifferent. This cynical woman was to be his sister-in-law, not some employee that he could hopefully be rid of someday.
Asta whipped her hand out and Kaid grasped her fingers, kissing them briskly before letting go. Kaid put on his most charming grin and was pleased to see Asta scowl in return as she wiped the back of her hand on her gown.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess,” Kaid said. “I have a feeling that we will get along just fine.”
Pleased with how the introductions had gone, King Botmar excused himself to speak with one of the dukes. Asta watched the king, waiting for him to be out of earshot before she spoke. “Then you, Lord Kaidian, are not only a prick, but also an idiot.” She threw him a fake smile and Halsten covered his mouth to hide his laughter.
“Sister!” Maren interjected, and Asta winced. “Please go get Svanhild and let her know I will be in need of a short retreat soon. But first, I will dance with my husband-to-be.”
Maren smiled, holding out her hand for Kaid. He contemplated the dynamic between the sisters. Asta had such strong, blunt words, but winced when Maren reprimanded her. He found that peculiar, but pocketed the information for later.
Kaid gently took Maren’s delicate hand and led her to the dance floor.
Even though Kaid was usually quite charming, he was struggling with Maren. He had never had to charm a woman he didn’t exactly want to pursue. Most of his charisma was utilized on women he wished to bring back to his rooms or fellow nobles he was trying to manipulate.
