Page 54 of Mermaid on Heels
“Thank you, Ced.” Luke nodded at his cousin and turned back to Liriya. “Good night, Liriya. Please send my regards to your sisters. I’m looking forward to meeting them. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Liriya nodded at him with a smile. “Sure. You too.”
“I have a thought,” Cedric said suddenly, dragging both of their attention to him. His eyebrows were furrowed in a thoughtful expression as he looked at Liriya. “Are you and your sisters any familiar to the courtly ways of humans?”
“No?”
“Ah, nowthatwould be a problem because your fellow elites can be judgmental, given how aristocratic and bond to customary they all are—though, therearegood aristocratic families, too. But, the problem here is, since this whole thing is going to be a competition between you ladies, they’ll try to find fault in you and see you less—which I don’t want to happen,” Cedric explained seriously. “So, unless you’re going to tell them you’re mer-royalty, which I assume you’re not, the three of you need to be trained to be proper royals in their eyes.”
Luke stroked his chin between his thumb and index, seeming to be thinking. “That’s so… thoughtful of you, Ced. What are you proposing?”
“I propose we give Liriya and her sisters the lessons they need to equal the others. For which, I’ll gladly be the tutor myself.”
Luke hummed in acknowledgement and turned to Liriya. “What do you say to that?”
“I think it is a great idea.” Liriya didn’t hide her impression at Cedric’s thoughtful consideration. She was also touched that he cared for their reputation. “Though, I have a question. Did the people know the former queen was a mermaid?”
Luke frowned and shook his head. “Only our family circle knew about it, and my father’s closest friends. They all respected her, treated her no less and loved her, but it couldn’t have been said for the rest of the court or the kingdom. You see, Liriya, our people believe Merfolk are a myth, so Mother kept her identity secret, thinking it was safe and for the best.”
He paused with a solemn look in his eyes and then rushed to ask, “Doyouwant the people to know what you are?”
Liriya stared at both the men who awaited her answer. In truth, she didn’t know what she wanted. Like she told herself earlier, she wasn’t bearing the title of the elite to become the next queen but only to give Luke a chance to know her. Therefore, it didn’t matter what people knew; at the end of the second week when Luke would announce his bride-to-be, she would go back to her old life anyway.
The thought caused an unsettling feeling in her stomach—again—but she pushed it aside and focused on the current matter.
“I am certain they are not going to be as silent as a grave as my friend Bianca has been, so no. I want to keep it a secret,” Liriya said, before voicing her concern, “But, what am I going to tell them when they ask me where Pearltuna is located and why was I presented to the ballroom asLadyat first until you called mePrincess? That is the only thing I am worried about. As for the rest, I believe I can manage.”
Cedric hummed before saying, “We’ll tell them that Pearltuna is a kingdom on an island, and that you were here with your sisters on a vacation; that is when you heard about the ball and decided to attend, where you got picked as an elite unexpectedly. You didn’t want people to know you were a princess, to avoid being swarmed by them like bees during your private vacation, since you were staying with an old friend like a commoner. Now that you’re an elite, the king has you and your sisters stay at his castle for the duration of the occasion.” Cedric recited fluently, as though he had been working on the cover story the whole time. “What do you think?”
Luke smiled and clapped him on the shoulder, looking impressed. “Remind me to make you my royal advisor as soon as possible.”
“Here I thought you were going to make me the royallibrarianor even a scribe, because of how good I’m with books and words, and just recited an entire cover story to you without knowing the context.” Cedric laughed and rolled his eyes at his own joke.
Liriya laughed with him. “I believe it would be better if he made you his advisor, rather than any of those.”
“Aw, thank you, Liriya.” Cedric placed a hand to his chest and dipped his head, grinning. “So, it’s settled then?”
“Yes.” Liriya nodded and glanced at Luke. “That sounds believable.”
“Great then!” Cedric clapped his hands once and offered his arm to Liriya. “Let’s get you back, Your Highness. I’ve left your friend waiting by the carriage. Besides, we have a long day tomorrow—scratch that, we have two long weeks ahead of us that need to be started in the morning.”
Liriya chuckled at his wit and accepted his arm. He couldn’t help but inject a bit of humor into everything he said and Liriya already liked him for his carefree spirit. Luke was lucky to have him for a cousin.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Luke murmured to her with a gentle smile.
“Good night, Luke.” She returned the smile and walked away with Cedric.
Before they exited the hallway, she turned back and saw Luke standing exactly where they left him, staring after her.
How she was going to survive the next two weeks with him while guarding her heart, Liriya had no idea. He had already danced his way into her heart and settled his place there, declaring it his home. She could only hope that her heart wouldn’t succumb to the revolving danger.
Chapter 13
The carriage ride to Bianca’s house was smooth and upbeat, thanks to Cedric’s cheerful presence. He sat across from Liriya, occasionally casting amused glances out of the window and making remarks that elicited a giggle from her and Bianca.
The cobblestone streets they traveled were aglow with the soft light of gas lamps, much like the way they had been on their journey to the castle. The houses that lined the streets, despite the late hour, were illuminated from within.
Liriya couldn’t help but imagine that the younger siblings and children of the ball attendees might be eagerly waiting for their families to return, just as she wondered if her own sisters and Kitty might be doing the same.